I have a small raised bed garden in my backyard. It brings me so much joy! I usually have an abundance of tomatoes and basil during the summer, and I made this garden fresh pasta often this summer. Whether you grow your own tomatoes and basil or you buy them at the store, you will love the light and fresh taste of this super simple dish.
You’ll need:
- 1 lb pasta (I used rotini, but you can use any shape you like)
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Minced garlic
- Tomatoes (I used cherry tomatoes, but you can use grape or you can just chop up regular size tomatoes)
- Crushed red pepper
- Fresh basil and parsley
I always challenge myself to use up things I have in the fridge or garden or pantry. I’ve come up with some pretty interesting dishes this way. Notice I didn’t say that they were all great. But I was very pleased with how this dish turned out.
Cook the pasta a minute or so less than the package directions. Drain and set aside. Heat about 1/4 c olive oil in a large skillet. Then add some minced garlic. I added two large cloves, but I really love garlic, so you can do one clove. Chop a bunch of fresh parsley and basil and toss into the oil and garlic. The next step is to add the tomatoes. I was using yellow and red cherry tomatoes and I just put them into the pan whole, but I smashed them a bit. Sprinkle some red pepper flakes into the mix and lower the heat, just letting this simmer and for the flavors to come together.
After simmering for a couple of minutes, mix in the pasta and stir to coat it all in the sauce. Turn off the heat and add salt and black pepper to taste.
Serve with fresh grated Parmesan if desired.
My other favorite thing to do with leftover basil is to make a beautiful pesto sauce.
Easy Garden Fresh Pasta with Tomatoes and Basil
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading...Ingredients
- 1 lb rotini pasta (can use other shapes if you want)
- Fresh parsley and basil
- Cherry or Grape tomatoes (as many as you want)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
- Crushed red pepper to taste
- Salt and black pepper
Instructions
Cook the pasta a minute less than the package directions.
Drain pasta and set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Add the minced garlic and fresh herbs and turn the heat down to medium low.
Add the tomatoes and smash them a little.
Let it all simmer for 5-10 minutes or until the tomatoes break down a bit.
Toss the pasta into the sauce and stir to coat and let the pasta finish cooking - just a minute or two.
Top with as much cheese as you want and extra herbs.
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