I can’t say enough about how much I LOVE this recipe!
Before I walk you through how to make this amazing dish, I want to first talk about my experience with growing cherry tomatoes. When I first started gardening, so many of them would go to waste. I just couldn’t keep up with the vines. It was heartbreaking to toss them out so I knew I had to do something.
There are two things that turned this around for me. First, we used to plant three or four cherry tomato plants, which was way too many for us. Since each plant produces hundreds of tomatoes, we decided to scale back to two plants each year.
Second, I got smarter about how I was using them and started coming up with recipes to use the abundance of harvested cherry tomatoes. This brings me to this recipe that I’m sharing with you today.
I make pasta sauce many different ways, but I can honestly tell you this is my absolute favorite! To me, nothing can beat slow-roasted tomatoes, especially the sweetness that comes from cherry tomatoes.
Now, here’s the bonus: I like to make multiple batches of the sauce and freeze it to eat on all winter. Just spoon it into freezer containers or freezer bags. All you do is thaw the sauce out, boil some noodles, give it all a toss, and that’s dinner in about 10 minutes!
Why You’ll Love This Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta
Roasting for maximum flavor. Slow-roasting cherry tomatoes concentrates their natural sugars and caramelizes their edges. The flavor is deeper, sweeter, and richer from the very first bite.
Garden tomatoes or store-bought. Both work! This sauce was born from an abundance of homegrown cherry tomatoes, but it is just as good made with store-bought. Ruby Rows by Private Selection is the store-bought variety worth seeking out for their consistent sweetness.
The whole house smells like an Italian restaurant. Garlic and cherry tomatoes slow-roasting is one of the best kitchen aromas.
Stock the freezer for winter. Double the batch while you are at it. Frozen in portions, this sauce makes weeknight dinner a 10-minute job all season long.
Other Ways to Use This Sauce
A few favorite ways to use this sauce beyond pasta:
As a dip – set out a bowl with crusty bread or breadsticks.
As a pizza or flatbread base – spread it thin in place of traditional pizza sauce.
Stirred into soup – a spoonful deepens the flavor of vegetable soup or chili.
As tomato soup – stir in a splash of milk or heavy cream and warm gently. Rich, smooth, and ready in minutes.
With meat – simmer cubed steak directly in the sauce for a hearty weeknight dinner that comes together almost entirely on its own.
Ingredients
Cherry tomatoes: The riper the better. Roasted sweet, ripe cherry tomatoes are far more flavorful than underripe ones.
Garlic cloves: Five whole cloves roasted alongside the tomatoes until soft and golden.
Olive oil: Drizzled over everything before roasting to help the tomatoes blister and the garlic caramelize. Use quality olive oil.
Fresh thyme: Three sprigs laid in with the tomatoes before roasting, adding an herby warmth.
Sugar: Just a half teaspoon, stirred in after blending. It rounds out the acidity of the tomatoes and brings the sweetness into balance.
Butter: Stirred in off the heat at the very end. One tablespoon makes the sauce silky and rich without making it heavy.
Pasta: Any pasta shape you enjoy. The sauce clings well to ridged shapes like rigatoni or penne, but spaghetti and linguine are equally good here.
Fresh basil: Chopped and scattered over just before serving.
Red pepper flakes, salt, and freshly cracked black pepper
How to Make Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta
Roast low and slow. Combine the tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme in the cast iron skillet and roast in the oven. You want the tomatoes burst, blistered, and slightly caramelized.
Cool before blending. Let the roasted mixture cool before reaching for the immersion blender. Hot tomatoes in a blender or with an immersion blender that isn’t fully submerged will splatter and burn.
Blend until smooth. Keep the immersion blender blades fully submerged the entire time. Alternatively, carefully transfer to a regular blender. The goal is a smooth, velvety sauce.
Simmer the full 20 minutes. Return the sauce to the skillet, stir in the sugar and red pepper flakes, and simmer on medium-low for 20 minutes. The simmer is what thickens and concentrates the sauce.
Finish with butter off the heat. Turn off the heat and stir in the butter until melted. This makes the sauce silky rather than just thick.
Reserve pasta water. Before draining the pasta, scoop out a cup of the starchy cooking water. A splash stirred in at the end loosens the sauce without thinning it.
How to Serve Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta
Immediately after tossing. The sauce coats the pasta right out of the skillet and is best served while still hot.
With a generous shower of fresh basil and a drizzle of good olive oil over the top for a clean, restaurant-style finish.
With crusty bread for dragging through whatever sauce remains on the plate.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use regular tomatoes instead of cherry tomatoes?
Sweet cherry tomatoes are highly recommended. Roma tomatoes are the closest substitute in terms of sweetness and low water content. Slice them and increase the roasting time slightly to account for the extra moisture.
Do I have to use a cast iron skillet?
Any oven-safe skillet or baking dish works for roasting. That said, cast iron retains heat exceptionally well and gives the tomatoes better direct contact for blistering and caramelizing. It also goes straight from the oven to the stovetop for the simmer, which saves a step and a dish.
Can I add protein to make it a more complete meal?
Absolutely. Grilled or roasted chicken tossed in with the pasta is a natural addition. Italian sausage browned and added to the sauce before simmering adds richness and depth. Sautéed shrimp is a lighter protein option.
Roasted Cherry Tomato Pasta
Ingredients
- 5 cups cherry tomatoes
- 5 garlic cloves
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- ½ tsp sugar
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 12 oz pasta of your choice
- 2 Tbsp fresh basil (chopped, for garnish)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).
- In a large cast iron skillet, combine the cherry tomatoes, garlic cloves, olive oil, salt, pepper, and thyme sprigs. Toss until everything is evenly coated.
- Roast for 35 minutes, until the tomatoes have burst, blistered, and are starting to caramelize at the edges.
- Remove from the oven and let cool until safe to handle. Discard the thyme stems.
- Transfer the roasted tomato mixture to a large mixing bowl. Blend with an immersion blender until smooth, keeping the blades fully submerged at all times to prevent splattering. Alternatively, carefully transfer to a regular blender and blend until smooth.
- Return the sauce to the cast iron skillet. Stir in the sugar and red pepper flakes. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat, then reduce to medium-low and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened and reduced.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the butter until fully melted and the sauce is glossy.
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a pot of generously salted boiling water until al dente. Before draining, reserve about 1 cup of pasta water. Drain the pasta.
- Add the drained pasta to the skillet and toss to coat with the sauce. Add a splash of reserved pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce to your preferred consistency.
- Transfer to plates and garnish with freshly chopped basil. Serve immediately.
Notes
Make ahead:
- The sauce can be made up to 5 days ahead and refrigerated in an airtight container.
- Reheat gently in the skillet over low heat, then cook fresh pasta when ready to serve.
- Double the batch. The extra effort is minimal and the freezer payoff is significant.
How to store:
- Store sauce separately in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- I recommend cooking pasta fresh each time.
How to reheat:
- Warm the sauce in a skillet or saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through.
- Add a small splash of water or broth if the sauce has thickened too much during storage.
- Cook fresh pasta while the sauce warms.
Freezing:
- Cool the sauce completely before freezing. Do not freeze with pasta.
- Spoon into airtight freezer-safe containers or freezer bags. Squeeze out as much air as possible, label, and lay flat in the freezer.
- Freeze for up to 3 to 4 months.
- Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, or run the sealed bag under cool water for a quick thaw. Reheat gently in a skillet over low heat.
Did You Make This Recipe?
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