Roasted Tomatoes and Spaghetti with Pesto

Summer Pesto and Pasta Series: Chapter One

Inspiration

An abundance of tomatoes and basil seem to magically appear as the summer sun burns away the fog. Along the coast we wait in anticipation for the caressing warmth of summer. Like small children at Christmas who can’t wait any longer for Santa we wait for the bright glorious summer sunshine. Our spirits soar when there is no fog for a 5 day run and the temperature climbs into the high seventies. To celebrate summer I make fresh pesto and roast tomatoes for pasta. One of my favorites is Roasted Tomatoes and Spaghetti with Pesto. This is a great way to use ripe tomatoes and whirl up all that basil.

Essentials

This is an easy pasta dinner to prepare. The house is a wonder of seasonal aromas; garlic, basil and tomatoes. To be a great pasta both fresh pesto (recipe below) and fresh ripe tomatoes are important. Although any type or size of tomatoes can be used, I like to use medium size tomatoes. Large tomatoes don’t roast as evenly. The outer edges begin to break down while the large core in the center remains hard. I find very small tomatoes to be labor intensive. Adjust the roasting time to the size of tomato you use.

I offer this recipe as a vegetarian entrée but often add grilled or roasted chicken to the spaghetti and pesto. When my son and his girlfriend visited recently and asked for this recipe I knew it was to be my next blog post.

Preparing fresh tomatoes for roasting

7-12	fresh ripe tomatoes, 7 if large, more if small
3-5 T	to taste, pureed fresh garlic or very finely chopped/smashed garlic
1 T	dried basil leaves
3–5 t	olive oil
	salt and pepper
1 lb	spaghetti, or other dried pasta
1/2 C	pesto to taste, homemade is best, see recipe below
1/2 C	grated Parmesan cheese to taste, plus more for serving
10-12 leaves	fresh basil for serving and garnish

1. Prepare tomatoes: Preheat oven to 425°. Lightly oil 9×13 inch rimmed baking dish. A 9×13 inch size baking dish will make the perfect amount of roasted tomatoes for 1 pound of spaghetti. Slice tomatoes in half on the widest side. Fill rimmed baking dish with halved ripe tomatoes, cut side up. Sprinkle tomatoes with salt and pepper. Then slather each of the tomatoes tops with the garlic. Sprinkle dried basil on the tomatoes. Finish with a sprinkle of olive oil. Bake tomatoes until the garlic coated tops begin to brown and the juice just begins to release from the tomatoes. Tomatoes should retain their round upright shapes. The tomatoes will turn to mush if overcooked. Time is dependant on the size of tomatoes used, from 20 to 40 minutes. After 15 minutes, check the tomatoes for doneness and baste with the accumulated pan juices. If the tomatoes seem dry, drizzle on more olive oil.
2. Prepare pasta: While tomatoes roast, cook the spaghetti according to the package directions. After cooking and draining the pasta, mix together with the pesto. This will keep the pasta from sticking together and infuse the pasta with the pesto flavors. If you are adding cooked chicken, do so now.
3. Serving the pasta: Place the pasta with pesto in a large serving dish, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Gently arrange the roasted tomatoes on top of the pasta, add the pan juices and fresh basil garnish. Pass additional Parmesan cheese for everyone to share.

Pesto

Pesto is a key ingredient for this recipe’s blockbuster summer flavor. Please use your favorite pesto. If you haven’t yet found your favorite recipe, I’m sharing mine with you. If you are a traditionalist you may not care for this recipe which uses half walnuts and half pine nuts (pignolis). I like the texture and flavor with the walnuts. (It’s also less expensive to make.) The recipe makes 3-1/2 to 4 cups of pesto. Since this is more than I use for one meal I freeze the rest in 1/2 cup portions, in small reusable plastic containers. With a film of olive oil on top, the pesto keeps nicely in the freezer. I find that a 1/2 cup portion of pesto is a perfect fit when cooking a 1 pound box of dried pasta. I have included the recipe below.

Preparing fresh basil for pesto

	Homemade Pesto / Ina Garten
1/4 C	walnuts
1/4 C	pine nuts (pignolis)
3 T	chopped garlic, 9 large cloves
5 C	fresh basil leaves, cleaned, dried and packed
1 t	kosher salt
1 t	ground pepper
1 1/2 C	good olive oil
1 C	grated Parmesan cheese

• Place the walnuts, pine nuts and garlic in the bowl of the food processor with the steel blade. Process for 30 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt and pepper. With the food processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is finely pureed. Add the Parmesan and purée for another minute. Serve, or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin layer of olive oil on top.