Fresh cherry tomato and basil pasta
This is one of the most basic, easy, and delicious summer meals I make using backyard cherry tomatoes. Pick the ripest ones, maybe a couple of pints, and the sauce is almost done.
A little mystery: Can anyone explain why cherry tomatoes right next to each other on the same stem can ripen at such different rates given the same microclimate?
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 small red or yellow onion or a whole shallot, diced
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- Maybe a dozen big basil leaves, julienned (stack them, roll them up the long way, then slice thinly)
- Small handful of other fresh herbs, minced (optional)
- 8 oz whole wheat pasta — I like linguine
- Salt and pepper to taste
To quickly cut the tomatoes, arrange them on a round plastic storage container lid, invert a second lid, and hold gently but firmly over the tomatoes then slice between the lids with a serrated knife — voila — they will all be halved quickly using this trick I learned from my son.
Directions
- Bring a big pot of water to a boil.
- Cook the pasta.
- In the 9 to 10 minutes, it takes to cook dried pasta, saute onion or shallot in the olive oil until softened.
- Add the garlic and crushed chilies. Sauté for about a minute until the garlic is fragrant.
- Raise the heat and add the tomatoes. Heat through until the tomatoes break down a little and begin to bubble.
- Stir in the basil and optional herbs near the end of the cooking time.
- Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.
- Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce in the skillet.
- Serve and marvel at what you just created.
Nutrition information (per serving)
- Calories: 294
- Total fat: 8 g
- Saturated fat: 1 g
- Trans fat: 0 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
- Sodium: 13 mg
- Total carbohydrate: 51 g
- Dietary fiber: 7 g
- Total sugars: 2 g
- Protein: 10 g