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Fresh Tomato Pasta

Sweet, little Cherry tomatoes make a delicious sauce for short pasta, flavored with garlic, basil, parsley and parmesan. A great Summer dish!
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Course: dinner, lunch, Main Course, Side Dish
Keyword: basil, cherry tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, orechiette, parmesan, parsley, pasta, short pasta
Servings: 4
Author: Nicole Coudal

Ingredients

  • 12-14 oz. Short pasta (shells, elbows, Orechiette, etc.)
  • 2 Tb. Unsalted butter
  • 1/2 c. Olive oil
  • 4 Garlic cloves, peeled & sliced thinly
  • 4 pints Small (cherry) tomatoes, halved
  • 1/2 tsp. Red pepper flakes
  • 1 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
  • 2-3 grinds Fresh black pepper
  • 2-3 sprigs Fresh basil
  • 2-3 Tb. Fresh parsley, chopped
  • 2-3 Tb. Fresh basil, chopped
  • 1/2 c. Freshly grated parmesan cheese (plus more for serving)
  • 1/2 c. (Pitted) Kalamata olives, chopped

Instructions

  • Fill a large pot with water and 1 Tb. Kosher salt. Bring to a boil and cook pasta until it's al dente.
  • While the pasta cooks, add butter and oil to a large, non-stick skillet over medium heat.
  • Add garlic and heat about 1 minute. Add tomatoes, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper and basil sprigs. Heat gently about 5 minutes (reduce heat if it seems the garlic is browning). Slightly mash the tomatoes with a wooden spoon so they release as much juice as possible. Remove large basil sprigs, then stir in chopped parsley and basil. If pasta isn't finished cooking, turn off heat and let this it sit until ready.
  • When pasta is cooked, remove it from the water with a large strainer/spider (reserve the starchy cooking liquid) then add it to the tomatoes and cook, over low heat, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in parmesan and olives (if the mixture looks too thick, add a bit of pasta cooking liquid). Serve with more parmesan on top.