Fresh Tomato Pasta
This recipe could not be easier. It is bright and refreshing making it a great hot-weather meal or side. You do need a minimum of an hour for the recipe to blesh, so plan accordingly.
If you want to make this heartier you could add some cooked chickpeas to the sauce ingredients and let them soak up some of the flavour before adding the pasta.
- 200 grams fresh tomatoes (scant 1/2 lb, chopped)
- 1-3 clove garlic (5-10g, peeled and finely chopped)
- 13 grams fresh basil leaves (2-4T, torn in pieces)
- 30-60 milliliters extra virgin olive oil (2-4T, use the best one you have)
- 1/2-1 teaspoon salt (sea or kosher)
- black pepper (freshly ground, to taste)
- 120-160 grams dry pasta (4-6oz)
- parmesan (reggiano) (optional, finely grated to taste)
- 1 cup chickpeas/garbanzo beans (optional, canned or cooked)
Mix all the sauce ingredients together (tomatoes to black pepper with optional cooked chickpeas) and let sit for a minimum of an hour - 3 hours is better. Leave it out of the fridge, on a counter or table, with a lid on or a plate over the top. If you remember to stir it occasionally, that's great but not absolutely necessary.
Boil a big pot of water for the pasta. Warm a serving dish (either by heating in the microwave or by filling with hot water and then dumping it out). Cook pasta according to package instruction until al dente.
Before draining the pasta, take a scoop of pasta water out and reserve it in case you need it to 'loosen' the sauce a bit. Toss the drained hot pasta with the bleshed sauce in the warmed bowl, add a bit of reserved water if you need it to be 'saucier'. Top with finely grated parmesan, if desired.
