Cherry Tomato Pasta

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A quick and delicious pasta made with fresh cherry tomatoes, garlic, basil, and olive oil. Top with parmesan cheese, if you'd like. This is a wonderful easy meal for one, or double the recipe for two! I love this best with angel hair pasta.

I made cherry tomato pasta for lunch today! It took 30 minutes from start to finish and everyone was happy ^_^

I minced garlic, chopped basil, cut the tomatoes. We already had grated cheese in the fridge and pasta and olive oil in the pantry.

Make the sauce and boil the pasta. Then mix and toss!

Fresh, simple, and GOOOOOD.

Ingredients

Here's what you'll need:

Olive oil
Because this is a simple recipe, the quality of each ingredient matters more. Use a good olive oil for this.

Cherry tomatoes
Get good and fresh cherry tomatoes! Even more awesome if they are local. We used cherry tomatoes from Sensei Farms (more in the section below).

Garlic
Everyone has their own opinion about garlic. In my world, the more the merrier!

Sea salt or kosher salt
Just a little bit of salt to season. Sometimes I even skip the salt while cooking and sprinkle Maldon Salt on top right before serving.

Angel hair pasta
You can use any shape of pasta for this dish but angel hair feels like the best fit. The cherry tomato sauce a fresh and delicate sauce. So you want a "lighter" pasta to pair with it.

Fresh basil
We toss half of the basil with the pasta and use the other half to top the finished dish. Fresh basil is wonderful!

Grated parmesan
Optional but tasty. We sprinkle a little fresh grated parmesan on top at the end. Fresh is the key word. If it's not too much extra work, grate the parmesan cheese from a block instead of using pre-grated parmesan. It really makes a difference. (But if you're cooking for a big group or in a rush, pre-grated is ok!)

Red chili flakes
Also optional but tasty. Another fun way to add a little heat is to drizzle chili oil or chili crisp on top of the finished dish.

Sensei Farms

You've seen the lettuce from Sensei Farms in this recipe for Pork Lettuce Wraps. Did you know they also grow tomatoes? Yes!

They make three kinds of very tasty small tomatoes: cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, and Lanai mini tomatoes.

You can use any kind of small tomato for this recipe, but it is best with cherry tomatoes. I'm not sure why but quick pasta sauces always come out most "saucy" with cherry tomatoes ^_^

I bought these tomatoes from Foodland (am a fan of the Foodland Farms Kahala location). I've also seen these tomatoes at Whole Foods and many supermarkets in town. Local produce in Hawaii is amazing.

Instructions

Let's get cooking!

Prepare the tomatoes.
First, prepare the cherry tomatoes. Wash, pat dry (it doesn't need to be super dry), and cut each tomato in half.

Cook the tomatoes.
In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.

Then add the halved cherry tomatoes. Cook for 3 minutes until the tomatoes soften and get a little "saucy."

Season.
Then add the minced garlic and sea salt. Cook for another 3 minutes.

It should be pretty saucy at this point! Like in the photo above. Remove from heat and set aside. (I just move the pan to another burner on the stove).

Cook the pasta.
Then in a separate large pot, cook the angel hair pasta according to directions on the pasta package.

Once the pasta is done cooking, use tongs to remove the pasta directly from the pot of water and to the pan with the cherry tomato sauce.

Remove the big pot of water from the stove.

Mix, mix, mix.
Place the pan with the sauce and pasta back on the "main" burner, and turn the heat to medium.

Use tongs to gently toss the pasta and mix it with the cherry tomato sauce.

Add half the chopped basil and toss again a few times to mix everything.

Finish, eat, and enjoy.
Divide the pasta between two plates.

Top with the rest of the basil, followed by the grated parmesan and red chili flakes (both optional but a good idea).

Eat hot and enjoy!

Top Tip

Many pasta recipes have you make the sauce and cook the pasta on two different burners at the same time. It sort of makes sense, but it also feels really stressful. I like to use one burner at a time.

What I do is cook the sauce first using my main/front burner. Then I move the sauce to the back burner, and use the front burner to cook the pasta. I use tongs to move the cooked pasta from the big pot to the pan with the sauce. Then I move the big pot to another burner (or place on the counter with a trivet).

And then you can finish the dish by tossing the pasta with the sauce. Toss, toss, toss! To me, this logic makes more sense. It takes a little longer than operating two burners at the same time. But it's more calm and organized....and in the end, I appreciate calm and organized hahah ^_^

FAQ

Looking for other pasta recipes?

We love Midnight Pasta...packed with anchovies.

Also great is Mentaiko Pasta (and because mentaiko usually comes in packs of two, you can also make Mentaiko Udon).

I like Parsley Pasta as a side dish, and I really love the simple and flavorful Butter Soy Sauce Pasta. Last but not least, Shiitake Mushroom Pasta!

P.S. Babies and little kids love Pastina. I also enjoy this too when I'm feeling under the weather ^_^

Can you use other types of small tomatoes?

Yes! This pasta is best with cherry tomatoes but grape tomatoes also work well. (If using larger tomatoes like beefsteak or roma, I prefer to make a classic red sauce.)

Can you add protein to this dish?

Yes! Love it topped with grilled shrimp. Sometimes I roast chicken thighs with olive oil and salt and pepper in the toaster oven. Slice it up and serve it on the side or on top of the pasta. Juicy!