The PASTA WITH PESTO AND CONFIT CHERRY TOMATOES is a delightful first course, rich in aromas and flavor, perfect to serve even to vegetarian or vegan friends (in that case, naturally omit the cheese from the pesto). It’s a dish that’s fairly easy to prepare and, although it requires a bit of time to make the sauce and the cherry tomatoes, it can be assembled at the last minute without trouble.
The goodness of this dish comes from the creaminess and the aromas of the pesto — for which I recommend using high-quality, very fresh basil — and from the confit cherry tomatoes, which add extraordinary sweetness as well as a pleasant acidity that contrasts nicely with the enveloping taste of the pesto, creating a very pleasant sensation on the palate. It’s a true triumph of Mediterranean flavor: simple yet rich and satisfying, as happens with good things.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Inexpensive
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4 servings
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Spring, Summer
Ingredients
- 13 oz pasta
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp sugar
- to taste salt
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups basil (small, tender leaves)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 oz pine nuts
- 1.5 oz parmesan cheese
- 3/4 oz pecorino romano cheese
- Half cup extra virgin olive oil
- coarse salt
YOU’LL NEED THE FOLLOWING FOR PASTA WITH PESTO AND CONFIT CHERRY TOMATOES
- 1 Baking sheet
- 1 Mortar
- 1 Pot
- Parchment paper
PREPARATION PASTA WITH PESTO AND CONFIT CHERRY TOMATOES
Wash and thoroughly dry the cherry tomatoes, cut them in half and place them cut-side up on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or in a baking dish.
Sprinkle them with salt, sugar (don’t skimp — the sweeter they are, the better) and oregano.
Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and bake in a preheated, conventional oven at 248°F for about 1 hour and a half.
Wash the basil and let it dry thoroughly on a cloth. Meanwhile, place the garlic clove, removed of its green shoot, in the mortar and crush it. Add the coarse salt and continue to pound.
Once you have a paste, add the pine nuts and crush them as well. Then add the basil and pound it with circular motions to release the basil’s essential oils.
Finally add the parmesan, the pecorino, the extra virgin olive oil in a thin stream and mix. Your pesto is ready.
Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water, drain it and quickly toss it over the heat with the pesto and the confit cherry tomatoes with their juices, adding a ladle of the cooking water.
Plate and enjoy the pasta with pesto and confit cherry tomatoes hot and creamy.
