Name: Cherry Tomato Pasta with Fresh Basil
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 1 dry pint cherry tomatoes (halved or quartered (or substitute grape tomatoes)); 2 cloves garlic (minced); 1 Tablespoon olive oil; 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar; salt (to taste); 10 fresh basil leaves; 8 ounces penne pasta (or other short pasta (gluten-free, if desired)); 1 Tablespoon vegan butter ((I used Earth Balance) optional)

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Cherry Tomato Pasta with Fresh Basil is easy to make in minutes with only a few ingredients. The no-cook vegan sauce is perfect for summer.

This recipe was originally posted 4/20/2017.

I love making easy meals when the weather warms up.

The last thing I want to do is be standing over a hot stove stirring a simmering homemade pasta sauce for hours.

That’s why I turn to recipes where I only have to cook the pasta and can simply stir in a no-cook fresh sauce.

Some of my favorites are Lemon Cream Pasta Sauce and Avocado Basil Pesto Pasta.

And this Cherry Tomato Pasta with Fresh Basil is a recipe I’ve been making for as long as I can remember.

Dinner in under 30 minutes

Cherry Tomato Pasta is such a fast recipe, you’ll have dinner on the table in the amount of time it takes to boil the water and cook the pasta.

It’s a perfect meal as part of a plant-based Mediterranean diet.

And it pairs well with dishes such as Marinated Artichoke Hearts Salad, Chickpea Cucumber Salad, and Grilled Corn Salad.

Cherry Tomato Pasta Ingredients

This easy recipe requires only a handful of ingredients.

It’s perfect to make when tomatoes are abundant at the farmers market, or maybe even in your garden.

Here’s what you’ll need to make Cherry Tomato Pasta:

cherry tomatoes (or substitute grape tomatoes)
fresh garlic
olive oil
red wine vinegar
salt
fresh basil
pasta
vegan butter (optional) such as Earth Balance or Miyoko’s

I like using cherry tomatoes since they are easy to cut.

All you need to do is half or quarter them, depending on their size.

And since this is a rustic Mediterranean dish, there’s no need to have perfect knife skills.

Simply combine the tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, and salt in a mixing bowl, then let the no-cook sauce rest while you cook the noodles.

For the pasta, I like to use my favorite Barilla Gluten-Free Penne in this recipe.

If you’re not following a gluten-free diet, you can use whatever kind of penne you like, such as traditional or whole-wheat.

Plus other shapes can be substituted, but I recommend using a short pasta rather than spaghetti or linguine.

Fresh Basil

One of the best things about this Cherry Tomato Pasta recipe is the fresh basil.

It gives the no-cook sauce an amazing flavor that’s completely unlike dried basil.

To me it tastes like summer.

But be sure to wait to add the basil until just before the pasta is cooked.

And for best results, tear the basil leaves with your fingers instead of using a knife which will bruise the delicate herb.

You can learn more about how to use and store fresh basil in the article Using Fresh Basil.

Cherry Tomato Pasta Recipe

While I love having leftovers, this is one pasta recipe that I recommend enjoying immediately. For that reason, I wrote it to make 2 servings.

However, you can easily halve it or double or triple it.

But if you do have leftovers, you can refrigerate them until the next day and either enjoy your pasta at room temperature or heat it in the microwave.

It won’t taste quite the same, but at least your Cherry Tomato Pasta won’t go to waste.

If you love this recipe, please give it 5 stars!

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5 from 2 votes