Tomato and Garlic Confit Pasta
This simple yet flavour-packed tomato and garlic confit pasta is the ultimate weeknight comfort meal. Sweet roasted cherry tomatoes and tender garlic cloves make the perfect creamy confit sauce. This meal takes minimal hands-on prep, and is tasty enough to impress guests at a dinner party.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
For the Tomato & Garlic Confit
- 18 ounces cherry tomatoes
- 2 bulbs garlic peeled
- 6 shallots peeled
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
For the Pasta & Sauce
- 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 ounces grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan plus extra for garnish
- 11 ounces penne pasta
- 1 teaspoon chilli flakes optional, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat: Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F).
- Confit: Combine the tomatoes, garlic cloves, shallots, rosemary, olive oil and generous amount of salt in a large baking dish or oven proof pan. Bake for 1 hour, or until the tomatoes and garlic are soft. Reserve 2 tablespoons of olive oil the pan, and set aside the rest of the oil in a jar to be used in any other dish that requires olive oil. It will have a beautiful tomato and garlic flavour!
- Cook Pasta: Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to the boil. Follow the instructions on the back of the pasta packet for al dente pasta, but drain the pasta 1-2 minutes before the suggested cooking time. Reserve up to ½-1 cup of pasta water.
- Blend Confit: While the pasta cooks, place the pan of confit on the stove and bring it to a slow simmer on a medium heat. Add the cream and cook for several minutes, or until bubbling. Remove the rosemary sprig and discard. Using an immersion blender or blender, blend the ingredients until smooth and well combined.
- Add Pasta Water: Add the pasta to the pan and reduce the heat to low. Slowly incorporate the pasta water and the cheese until you have a silky and glossy texture. You may not need all of the pasta water, so do this step slowly.
- Garnish & Serve: Serve immediately with a sprinkling of chili flakes and extra cheese.
Video
Notes
- Use high-quality olive oil. Since the confit is the star of this dish, a good extra virgin olive oil will elevate the flavour. The oil carries the sweetness of the tomatoes and richness of the garlic.
- Don’t skip the pasta water! Adding a few splashes of reserved pasta water helps emulsify the sauce, and make it silky so it clings to the pasta beautifully.
- Boil the pasta until 1-2 minutes before it's al dente. Let it finish cooking to your desired tenderness in the sauce so the pasta can soak up all that flavour.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 612kcal | Carbohydrates: 72g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 66mg | Sodium: 214mg | Potassium: 644mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 1499IU | Vitamin C: 33mg | Calcium: 228mg | Iron: 3mg
