Summer Pasta with Tomatoes, Garlic, and Basil
This is a wonderful way to use those beautiful, fresh summer tomatoes that are just bursting with flavor. (And it's so simple, it's more a process than a recipe!) Don't let the amount of garlic worry you - it mellows as it cooks.
*I did not use the whole box of pasta for this recipe. This amount of tomato/garlic mixture will serve two people, or one REALLY hungry person! I usually cook a whole box of pasta at a time and save the leftovers for pasta salad or other dishes.
Ingredients:
- 1 box pasta of choice*
- 1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 10 - 12 cloves of garlic, sliced
- 3 cups diced fresh tomato (or use grape or cherry tomatoes)
- 1/4 cup fresh basil (green or purple), chopped
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- fresh ground sea salt and coarsely ground black pepper, to taste
- nutritional yeast or vegan Parmesan to garnish (optional)
Preparation:
- Heat the extra virgin olive oil over low-medium heat. When it is warm, add the garlic. Stir constantly and keep the heat low - you don't want the garlic to burn!
- After a couple of minutes, add the tomatoes and stir to coat everything with olive oil.
- Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and cover.
- In the meantime, get the pasta going in a stock pot.
- While the pasta is cooking, stir the veggies every few minutes, and cook until the tomatoes shrivel a bit - or, if they are whole, they begin to burst.
- Remove the veggies from the heat and cover them.
- Finish cooking the pasta, strain it, and return it to the pot.
- Add pasta to the veggie mixture - start with about 3 cups, add more if needed (and see note below) - and stir to combine.
- When you're happy with your veggie-to-pasta ratio, add fresh basil, salt, and pepper, and stir to combine.
- Garnish with extra basil and/or Walnut Parmesan if you'd like, and enjoy!
Notes:
*I did not use the whole box of pasta for this recipe. This amount of tomato/garlic mixture will serve two people, or one REALLY hungry person! I usually cook a whole box of pasta at a time and save the leftovers for pasta salad or other dishes.