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September 2, 2021

Burst Tomato Pasta

With a couple pints of tomatoes, garlic, olive oil & Parmesan, you can make this easy burst cherry tomato pasta for a quick weeknight dinner.

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With a couple pints of tomatoes, garlic, olive oil & Parmesan, you can make this easy burst cherry tomato pasta for a quick weeknight dinner.

After squeezing in a quick getaway before the start of school, I’m still not ready for summer to end quite yet.

I absolutely love fall, but I want a few more weeks (ok, maybe more like a month or so) of days that I don’t have to think twice if I need to stop wearing sandals and start remembering to put on a jacket.

My brother took care of our cat and our container garden while we were away. No surprise, he did a fantastic job. We came home to a happy cat and A LOT of tomatoes.

Right before we left, I did a big harvest, but this time it was an even bigger one! I am always amazed at how many cherry tomatoes a single plant, let along a few, can produce!

Different varieties of cherry tomatoes are my favorites to grow at home.

What To Do With Cherry Tomatoes

Because the surplus tends to hit with more tomatoes than I know what to do with at once, I look for recipes that use up a lot of tomatoes.

I love slow-roasted cherry tomatoes. When I have less time, I do my easy 30-minute roasted tomatoes. You can stash these tomatoes in the fridge or freeze them, so they last a bit longer.

But I don’t always want to turn on the oven. Skillet pastas are a great way to pack in a ton of cherry tomatoes into a meal that’s ready fast. It is so satisfying to see the tomatoes wrinkle and burst in the pan in minutes.

Bookmark this burst tomato pasta for a busy weeknight dinner.

Recipe ingredients including dried pasta

The Ingredients

This is what you need to make this tomato pasta:

Tomatoes: Small tomatoes are best, which is why I like cherry tomatoes. They can be different colors and shapes. It doesn’t matter as long as they are tiny.
Spaghetti: I always keep spaghetti in my pantry. It is an all-purpose noodle that’s ready in 10 minutes. You just can’t go wrong with it.
Garlic: We are big on garlic at our house, so I slice 3 garlic cloves for this recipe. You can see the slices throughout the spaghetti.
Red pepper flakes: It’s impossible for me to make a tomato dish and not include red pepper flakes for that touch of heat.
Parmesan: I stir shaved Parmesan cheese into the pasta when the sauce has finished cooking.
Olive oil: Make sure to use extra virgin olive oil.
Salt & pepper: Such a simple recipe with so few ingredients needs salt and pepper to bring out all the best flavors.
Fresh herbs: Once I have the pasta divided onto plates or into bowls to serve, I sprinkle on chopped fresh herbs like basil, parsley or chives—really whatever I have on my kitchen counter!

How To Make Burst Tomato Pasta

First, I get the pasta out of the way. I cook the spaghetti until it is al dente. Then I drain it and toss the noodles in a splash of olive oil, so they don’t’ stick together.

Next, I get started on the tomatoes. I heat olive oil in a large skillet and carefully add the tomatoes. As they cook, I stir them around so they are getting heated on all sides. After a few minutes, the skins on some will start to split.

To give the tomatoes a nudge to burst, I softly push them down with the back of a wooden spoon as necessary. You can also use a potato masher to do this.

Then I add the sliced garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to the skillet. I keep cooking and stirring for a few more minutes. By then the tomatoes have released their juices and have turned kind of saucy.

At this point, I fold the pasta into the sauce doing my best to coat the spaghetti. Finally, I stir in the Parmesan.

What To Serve With Burst Cherry Tomato Pasta

I divide the pasta into bowls or portion it out onto plates. To finish, I top the pasta with chopped fresh herbs.

Keeping with the theme of easy cooking, I like to serve this pasta with an arugula salad tossed in lemon vinaigrette or balsamic vinaigrette. If I am feeling more ambitious, there’s a chance I may be able to top that salad with homemade croutons, if I already have a batch made.

Try These Other Cherry Tomato Pasta Recipes

Cherry Tomato Eggplant Pasta
Tomato Corn Orecchiette
Sheet Pan Cherry Tomato Gnocchi
30-Minute Zucchini Tomato Orzo
Roasted Garlic Sheet Pan Gnocchi
Zucchini Noodles and Cherry Tomatoes
Roasted Tomato Zucchini Squash Pasta Salad
One Pan Orecchiette
Roasted Tomato Garlic Pasta Salad

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