When I was a kid I would have hated this recipe. There are only a few things I remember telling my mom I absolutely refused to eat when I was younger and on that list was a thing I called “stewy tomatoes.” My mom would make a dish very similar to this with whole slow cooked tomatoes, fresh basil, garlic, toasted pine nuts and angel hair pasta. There was no getting it past me. Stewy was ewwwy and that was that.
Today stewy tomatoes, if we must call them that, are one of my favorite ways to make a pasta sauce. There’s nothing more delicious than making a simple fresh pan sauce with little cherry or heirloom tomatoes that are bursting with their own juices. Add in some roughly chopped garlic and fresh basil and you’ve got one hell of a sauce.
This version of the sauce incorporates one of favorite, easy, and versatile recipes — tomato confit. If you’re frazzled by the idea of having to do one recipe to start on this one, don’t be. There is nothing easier in the world than making tomato confit! Once it’s made the options are endless — and then you can throw it in a mason jar and use it for two weeks! So let’s get started! All you need for the simplest version of tomato confit are some leetle tomatoes, olive oil, and some salt and pepper.
To make this recipe super easy I recommend confit-ing your tomatoes the night before you plan on making this pasta. It makes the whole thing much easier and enhances the flavor of the pasta if you let the tomatoes sit and mellow out once they’ve been confit-ed.
Let’s get started.
Step 1: You, Me and Confit. Click this link and confit those tomatoes. It is very easy. Fret not.
Step 2: One Pan thank you Ma’am. Yes, this is another one of my one pan thank you ma’am recipes. Throw your olive oil and roughly chopped garlic into the pan, and let it cook for 1-2 minutes over medium-low heat. Bring heat up to medium and add tomato confit, salt, and pepper into the pan. Generally I use about 1/2 pound of my tomatoes in making this. However, this recipe is more so about technique than about me giving you very specific measurements. If you want it to be full of lots of tomatoes add more, if you want less add less. Here is a beautiful photo so that you can see approximately how many I like.
Step 3: Simmer That Dinner. Allow your sauce to simmer for 4 minutes over medium heat. Then throw in the basil and allow it to cook another minute.
Step 4: Use Your Noodle. This recipe is amazing with angel hair pasta. But if you’re getting married this year (AHEM) or just trying to be healthier, butternut squash noodles make an amazing substitution. It also keeps this meal in just one pan! Throw your noodles into the pan and cook for 5 minutes, stirring to incorporate the sauce. Now taste your noodles to make sure they’re not too aldente. Continue to taste them until they are your desired consistency. Mind you, they should not be mush, you want them to keep their noodley shape.
Step 5: Plate ’em. Plate your noodles. Top with toasted pine nuts and parmesan cheese (or vegan parm, if you want this meal to completely plant based!)
A Breath Of Fresh Heir-Loom {heirloom tomato confit pasta sauce}
Ingredients
- 1/2 head garlic coarsely chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of black pepper
- 1/2 pounds tomato confit
- 4-5 leaves of basil chopped
- 1 pack of your favorite fresh spiralized vegetable noodles- carrots, butternut squash, zucchini (they sell these all fresh at both Trader Joes and Whole Foods or you can make your own with a spiralizer)
- 2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
- Grated Parmesan cheese or vegan parm for topping
Instructions
- Confit your tomatoes using my tomato confit recipe.
- Yes, this another one of my one pan thank you ma’am recipes. Throw your olive oil and roughly chopped garlic into the pan, and let it cook for 1-2 minutes over medium-low heat. Bring heat up to medium and add tomato confit, salt, and pepper into the pan. Generally I use about 1/2 pound of my tomatoes in making this. However, this recipe is more so about technique than about me giving you very specific measurements. If you want it to be full of lots of tomatoes add more, if you want less add less. Here is a beautiful photo so that you can see approximately how many I like.
- Allow your sauce to simmer for 4 minutes over medium heat. Then throw in the basil and allow it to cook another minute.
- This recipe is amazing with angel hair pasta. But if you’re getting married this year (AHEM) or just trying to be healthier, butternut squash noodles make an amazing substitution. It also keeps this meal in just one pan! Throw your noodles into the pan and cook for 5 minutes, stirring to incorporate the sauce. Now taste your noodles to make sure they’re not too aldente. Continue to taste them until they are your desired consistency. Mind you, they should not be mush, you want them to keep their noodley shape.
- Plate your noodles. Top with toasted pine nuts and parmesan cheese (or vegan parm, if you want this meal to completely plant based!)