Fresh Tomato Basil Pasta Straight from the Garden

Fresh tomato basil pasta is a good way to use fresh tomatoes and basil from the garden. It’s so delicious you’ll want to make it every night.

Fresh Tomato Basil Pasta

If you grow tomatoes and basil, there’s a good chance that you will have more than you need come mid-late summer. One of my go-to recipes for these yummy garden goodies, is fresh tomato basil pasta. It’s so delicious, and you can make it in the time it takes to boil the pasta.

Even if you don’t grow your own, farmers markets are full of tomatoes too. Recently I received a nice basket of fresh-from-the-farm tomatoes from the Stone Church Acres Farm CSA I joined. Raise your hand if you agree. There’s nothing more delicious than a fresh summer tomato!

Basil loves the heat, and in my area I cannot really start growing it until June, but by the end of the month, I have more than enough. So I usually cut a few stems and toss it in just about everything. Don’t you just love the smell of fresh basil in the kitchen?

This fresh tomato basil pasta has lots of garlic, sweet onions, and hot pepper flakes in it too. However, I really think you could add or subtract them to meet your own taste preference, without ruining the dish. 
This sauce cooks down pretty quickly, but I have a trick to make it cover an entire pound of pasta.

When the pasta is done cooking, instead of draining it in the sink, simply add it directly to the sauce, allowing plenty of starchy pasta water to come along with it. You can then add even more pasta water, to get the desired level of sauce to pasta ratio.

If you like, add plenty of fresh grated Parmesan or Romano cheese at the end, and set out a dish of more cheese for your guests to add as they want.

Fresh Tomato Basil Pesto Recipe:

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Fresh Tomato Basil Pasta

You won't believe how easy and delicious this one is.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 large summer tomatoes - chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
• 2 large cloves garlic - crushed
• 1/2 medium sweet onion - diced
• 2 T . extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 c . chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 t . crushed red pepper flakes optional
• 1 lb . pasta
• grated Parmesan cheese to taste

Instructions

1. Start your pasta first. The sauce only takes about 10-15 minutes.
2. Add the olive oil to a large saucepan. Add the onions and saute on medium heat for a couple of minutes until the onion starts to turn translucent.
3. Add the garlic and stir for about 30 seconds making sure the garlic does not burn.
4. Add the tomatoes and simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Add the basil and the pepper flakes and cook on low for another minute or so.
6. Move your saucepan close to the pasta pot and transfer the pasta right into the saucepan.
7. Add additional pasta water as desired.
8. Stir and serve in the saucepan or transfer to a pasta bowl.
9. Serve with Parmesan on the side and allow your guests to add a much as they want.

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