Fresh Cherry Tomato Pasta Sauce with garlic and basil is quick and easy to make. The summery no-cook vegan pasta sauce is bursting with incredible flavors. Try it with penne or any of your favorite noodle shapes for a mouthwatering meal that's ready in only 20 minutes.
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One of the best things about vegan pasta recipes is that not only are they delicious, they're often fast to make. Some sauces, like avocado pesto and dairy-free lemon cream sauce, don't even require cooking.
Similarly, this cherry tomato pasta features a quick marinated tomato sauce made with garlic and basil combined with a little olive oil and red wine vinegar. Simply toss the mixture with your favorite cooked pasta and enjoy a light and refreshing meal in minutes.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- It's a complete meal ready in only 20 minutes.
- You'll have dinner on the table in the time it takes to boil water and cook a box of pasta.
- It's a great way to celebrate the summer flavors of fresh tomatoes and basil.
Ingredients
- Cherry tomatoes (or grape tomatoes)
- Fresh garlic
- Olive oil
- Red wine vinegar
- Salt
- Fresh basil
- Pasta (I prefer a short pasta shape such as penne, rotini, or bowtie for this recipe)
- vegan butter (optional) such as Earth Balance or Miyoko's
Variations
- Try white wine vinegar or balsamic in place of the red wine vinegar
- Use other fresh herbs like parsley, oregano, or tarragon
- Add sliced olives or capers
- Top the pasta with vegan parmesan cheese, tofu feta cheese, or savory pan fried chickpeas
For the complete list of ingredients with measurements plus recipe instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
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Instructions
- While the pasta is cooking, place the tomatoes in a mixing bowl.
- Add the garlic, olive oil, vinegar, and salt. Stir and allow to marinate at room temperature for a few minutes.
- Just before the pasta is done, tear or cut the fresh basil and add it to the sauce mixture.
- Toss to combine and serve the marinated tomatoes over the drained pasta.
Amy's tip
Wait to tear or cut the fresh basil leaves until the pasta is almost done cooking. This will help prevent the cut edges from turning black due to oxidation.
Serving suggestions
Enjoy this quick marinated cherry tomato pasta on its own or with a salad.
It pairs well with a green salad with artichoke hearts or a fermented tea leaf salad.
Or if you prefer salads without lettuce, try balela or Mediterranean grilled eggplant salad.
And if you're entertaining, it's delicious with sun-dried tomato and walnut stuffed mushrooms as a starter and raw vegan key lime pie for dessert.
Storing
While I love having leftovers, I recommend enjoying this raw cherry tomato pasta immediately. For that reason, I wrote it to make 2 servings. However, you can easily double or triple it.
But if you do have leftovers that are already combined with the pasta, you can refrigerate them until the next day. Then either enjoy your pasta at room temperature or heat it in the microwave. It won't taste quite the same, but at least your leftovers won't go to waste.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, these small tomatoes can be used interchangeably in recipes. Their main difference is that grape tomatoes are oval shaped instead of round.
Pasta cut in short shapes such as penne, rigatoni, farfalle work well with chunky vegetable sauces since the ridges capture more of the sauce than a long pasta shape like spaghetti or fettuccine does.
If fresh basil is unavailable, other fresh herbs like oregano, parsley, and tarragon will work well in this recipe.
If you're out of red wine vinegar, you can substitute while wine vinegar, sherry vinegar, or balsamic vinegar.
More vegan cherry tomato recipes
And for even more recipes, join the Vegan Mediterranean Diet Recipes Facebook group for support, inspiration & fun!
Love and Veggies,
Amy
📋 Recipe
No-Cook Cherry Tomato Pasta Sauce
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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
Instructions
- Combine the cherry tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, and salt in a bowl.
- Set aside the tomato mixture while you prepare the pasta according to the package directions.
- Just before pasta is done cooking, tear the basil leaves (or cut them with herb scissors) and add them to the tomato mixture. Stir to combine.
- Drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Stir in the vegan butter, if using.
- Add the tomato mixture to the pasta and toss well to coat.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only.
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KM says
Yummy and healthy.
Amy Katz says
Glad you enjoyed it!
Nehal Preet says
I loved this recipe so much, I am a huge fan of Penne Pasta. This recipe is really easy peasy! I will try this recipe for sure! Thanks a lot for sharing with all of us. Much love & Regards!!
Amy Katz says
Thank you so much, Nehal!
Sherri Ellerby says
Loved having an easy and delicious way to make use of our cherry tomato surplus from the garden. I probably put in a little more tomato than the suggested amount. I also used balsamic vinegar instead, since I didn’t have any red wine vinegar on hand. Gave it a nice sweet taste!
Amy Katz says
I'm so happy you enjoyed it, Sherri!