In these first crisp days of Fall, there is nothing more satisfying for dinner than pasta made using the last of this season’s tomatoes, roasted in the oven to eke out every last bit of sweetness.
I had planned on using plum tomatoes for this recipe, but when I got to the store, all they had were hothouse tomatoes from Holland and some grape tomatoes from the USA. I went for the grape tomatoes; I often find hothouse tomatoes to be tasteless, plus these were shipped so much farther. The grape tomatoes ended up working surprisingly well here.
In addition to being easy and scrumptious, this recipe is pretty recession-proof: the tomatoes aren’t too expensive, and everything else is probably already in your pantry. If you want to splurge on fresh herbs, or if you grow your own, go for it. But especially in roasting, I find dried herbs work perfectly well.
Roasted Grape Tomato Pasta
4-6 cloves garlic, sliced very thin
2 T olive oil
2 pints grape tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise
2 tsp dried rosemary, rubbed between your palms
1 tsp ground dried red pepper
1/2 tsp dried parsley flakes
1 tsp salt
more olive oil to finish10 oz penne pasta
parmesan cheese, shredded, to taste
Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Put garlic and oil in a 9×13 glass baking dish (using something along the lines of a pyrex dish, not a cookie sheet). Stir it around gently with a wooden spoon to ensure all the garlic slices are separated. Put this in the oven while you wash and slice the grape tomatoes. (I find the garlic needs a few more minutes cooking than the tomatoes do.) Take dish out of the oven and put tomatoes in, being sure to scrape any juices from the cutting board into the dish to (be careful, there might be splatter!). Add seasonings and stir it all up. Roast for 20 minutes. Toward the end of the roasting process check to see how dry the tomatoes are. If they haven’t given up much juice, add another splash of olive oil.
In the meantime, cook the pasta in salted water until barely al dente. Add the pasta and a ladleful of pasta water directly to the Pyrex dish. Stir to incorporate, and while you are at it, scrape up some of the caramelized bits sticking to the bottom of the baking dish.
Top with some shredded parmesan cheese and serve!
Serves 3 or 4.
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