Meet a pasta that is quite the attention-seeker. On the table in less than 30 minutes, cherry tomato pasta is weekday-worthy. It’s big, bold AND sweet and savory thanks to cooking cherry tomatoes until they burst and caramelize.
And it’s got mad texture, thanks to an under-the-radar corn cooking method that will change everything you thought about cooking corn —on or off the cob.
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I’d go as far to say that this one can also be tagged for company, it’s that good. Add some of my super juicy chicken breasts and you have dinner.
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Choosy about cherry tomatoes (and other things)
For the ideal burst tomato sauce, I love and only recommend using cherry tomatoes as they are super sweet, beautifully round in shape helping them to burst beautifully. Save your favorite heirloom tomatoes for a less discriminating garden tomato sauce.
Pasta selection tips
Spaghetti or another long strand pasta like fettuccine would be excellent choices because they’ll help the corn cling to the creamy sauce but I prefer a lone wolf kind of pasta: small shells.
Small shells hold the sauce while hiding surprising bits of the sweet corn inside, And because the shells are comparable in size to the tomatoes, they can be easily scooped up with a spoon or fork.
How to make burst tomato pasta
Start with a large skillet with higher sides that is large enough to make the sauce and toss the pasta with the corn and tomatoes.
Finishing notes
If using frozen corn, don’t fret if it takes a couple more minutes for the water to evaporate.
Light cream is essentially table cream or cooking cream. Half and half will also work.
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Burst Cherry Tomato Pasta with Charred Corn
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Ingredients
- ½ lb pasta, shells preferred or long strand like spaghetti; approx 8 oz.
- 2 ears corn, kernels removed from cob; about 1 ½ cup
- 2 T unsalted butter
- 1 tsp salt, plus a bit more to season corn
- ½ tsp black pepper, plus a bit more to season corn
- 1 T olive oil
- ½ cup onions, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pint tomatoes, or 2 cups
- ½ cup table cream or light cream
- 2 T fresh basil leaves, minced
- 1 T fresh thyme leaves, minced
- fresh grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In at least a 4qt saucepan, cook the pasta in salted boiling water until al dente or according to package direction. Reserve about 1 cup of pasta water. Drain the pasta and set aside.½ lb pasta
- Cut corn away from cob to yield approximately 1 ½ cup. Sweet frozen corn can also be used.2 ears corn
- Melt butter in a large skillet with sides over medium heat. Add corn and a sprinkle of salt and pepper (reserve the rest of the seasoning for the tomatoes). Saute until golden for about 4 minutes. Remove corn from pan to a plate or bowl and set aside.1 tsp salt, 2 T unsalted butter, ½ tsp black pepper
- Add olive oil to the same pan and saute onions for about 3 minutes until translucent. Stir in garlic and toss until you can smell it, about 30 seconds.1 T olive oil, ½ cup onions, 2 cloves garlic
- Toss tomatoes in with onions and garlic and add salt and pepper.1 pint tomatoes
- Lower the heat to medium and cover the pan. Cook until the tomatoes pop and start to blister, checking every so often.
- Add some of the reserved pasta water (start with ½ cup to the tomatoes) and cook until slightly thickened. Pour in cream and toss with hot pasta. Add more pasta water as needed.½ cup table cream or light cream
- Toss in the fresh herbs and sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan cheese.2 T fresh basil leaves, 1 T fresh thyme leaves
