• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Green Valley Kitchen
  • Home
  • About
    • Meet Me
    • Disclosure
  • Recipe Index
  • Subscribe
    • Email
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipe Index
  • About
  • Subscribe
    • Email
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » 30 minutes or less

    Pasta with fresh tomato sauce and mozzarella

    Published: Aug 28, 2014 · Modified: Nov 12, 2022 by Geraldine · 16 Comments

    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

    This recipe for pasta with fresh tomato sauce and mozzarella is my last hurrah to summer tomatoes.  I’ve been experimenting the last couple of weeks trying to find the perfect way to use fresh tomatoes in a pasta dish and finally found the easiest, tastiest way to use up all those summer tomatoes.

    Pasta with fresh tomato sauce and mozzarella

    The biggest problem I’ve had making a fresh tomato sauce is, once the tomatoes are diced, there is too much tomato juice.  I tried sautéing the diced tomatoes in a little olive oil and garlic but the sauce was too soupy – so I ended up having to cook them for a long time which caused the tomatoes to lose all shape – and you’re kind of defeating the purpose of using fresh, summer tomatoes if you cook them down into a tomato puree.

    Pasta with fresh tomato sauce - tomatoes rinsed

    I tried adding fresh tomatoes uncooked to pasta but again there’s just too much tomato juice – making everything kind of watery.  I thought about straining off the tomato juice – but that seems a waste.

    Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce - Ingredients

    Then I saw this technique on Food52.  It’s from a Michael Ruhlman recipe.  Basically, you chop the tomatoes, salt them lightly, and let them sit as they release their juices.  Next, sauté some garlic and add the tomato juice (not the tomatoes) to the pan.  You’re creating a sort of tomato juice beurre blanc, which is basically a fancy way of saying you swirl cold butter into the hot tomato juice and garlic mixture to create a sauce. Finally, toss cooked pasta with the tomato juice/butter sauce, add the chopped tomatoes, a little fresh basil and some fresh mozzarella and it’s done.  All I can say is it was perfect.

    Pasta with fresh tomato sauce and mozzarella

    A couple of notes:

    I used less salt, garlic and butter than the original recipe called for.  And everything worked out fine.

    You can use any pasta shape you like for this recipe.  I used penne.

    My tomatoes were very ripe so I only used a little salt on the tomatoes – they released a lot of juice with just a 1/2 tsp of salt added.

    I used unsalted butter because that’s what I had on hand.  Salted butter will probably be just fine.

    I added the mozzarella at the very end – after the pasta had cooled slightly – since I didn’t want a lot of melted, stringy cheese.  You want the tomatoes to be the star in this dish.

    This is an easy, fast dish to put together.  You want to have everything prepped before hand so you can just add each ingredient at the right time without feeling rushed.

    Adapted from this recipe from Food52.  Food52 is a great resource – with lots of wonderful recipes – so go check it out.

    Print

    Pasta with fresh tomato sauce and mozzarella

    Print Recipe

    An easy summer pasta dish using fresh tomatoes and mozzarella.

    • Prep Time: 10 mins
    • Cook Time: 12 mins
    • Total Time: 22 minutes
    • Yield: 2 to 4 1x

    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 2 cups of dried pasta – I used penne
    • 1 veggie bouillon cube
    • 3 large tomatoes or 6 medium tomatoes – about 2 to 2 1/2 cups of chopped tomatoes
    • 1/2 tsp of salt
    • 1 tbs olive oil
    • 6 cloves of garlic – minced
    • 2 oz of fresh mozzarella – diced
    • 3 tbs butter
    • 6 twists of black pepper from a pepper mill
    • 1 large handful of basil – about 15 leaves – minced

    Instructions

    1. Chop tomatoes into a medium dice. Add 1/2 tsp of salt and half of the minced basil to the diced tomatoes. Stir to combine and let it sit as you prep the other ingredients and bring the water to a boil.
    2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add pasta and bouillon. Cook pasta according to package instructions.
    3. While the pasta is cooking, heat a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Add the olive oil to the pan. Next add the minced garlic and stir the garlic to cook for 30 seconds. Don’t let it burn.
    4. Using a fine mesh sieve, strain the tomatoes over the sauté pan, so the tomato juice flows directly into the sauté pan. You want to add all the tomato juice to the garlic cooking in the sauté pan. Set the tomatoes aside and cook the tomato juice over medium high heat for a minute or two until the tomato juice thickens slightly.
    5. Drain the pasta when ready and set to the side.
    6. Add the 3 tbs of butter to the tomato juice/garlic mixture in the sauté pan. Stir or swirl pan as the butter melts so it is fully blended into the sauce.
    7. Once all the butter has melted, turn off the heat and add the cooked pasta to the sauce in the sauté pan. Toss to combine.
    8. Next, add the tomatoes and black pepper to the pan and toss.
    9. Transfer pasta to a bowl. Add the remaining basil and diced mozzarella and stir to combine.
    10. Serve pasta and enjoy!

    Did you make this recipe?

    Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

    More 30 minutes or less

    • Fresh Corn Salad with Cherry Tomatoes and Avocados
    • Quinoa Salad with Cherry Tomatoes and Cucumbers
    • Tomato Soup with Goat Cheese
    • Pasta with Sautéed Cherry Tomatoes, Olives and Feta

    Filed Under: 30 minutes or less, Main Meal, Pasta Tagged With: Mozzarella, Pasta, Tomatoes

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

    1. Sheila

      September 02, 2014 at 10:19 am

      Watching Wimbledon on TV, eating this lovely light meal, a glass of red wine, what could be better!

      Reply
      • Geraldine

        September 02, 2014 at 10:44 am

        Hi Mom – wish I was there with you – I need a glass of wine right now and it’s only noon!

        Reply
    2. Chloe

      August 31, 2014 at 10:00 am

      Wow! It is really good (I am currently eating it 🙂 ) !

      Reply
      • Geraldine

        August 31, 2014 at 10:43 am

        Hi Chloe – I thought the same thing when I made it! So easy and so good. Thanks for letting me know. Have a great rest of the weekend!

        Reply
    3. Olivia - Primavera Kitchen

      August 29, 2014 at 10:57 am

      Oh Gosh this pasta looks so delicious and flavourful. This is the best season of the year to eat fresh tomatoes. They look so juicy! And your process photos are gorgeous!

      Reply
      • Geraldine

        August 29, 2014 at 1:46 pm

        Thanks so much, Olivia. Have a great weekend!

        Reply
    4. Julia | Orchard Street Kitchen

      August 28, 2014 at 3:56 pm

      This looks great, Geraldine! I love the idea of making a sauce with the fresh tomato juices. Your photos are beautiful!

      Reply
      • Geraldine

        August 28, 2014 at 7:01 pm

        Thanks so much, Julia. This is a super easy recipe – hope you try it. Have a good one!

        Reply
    5. Sippitysup

      August 28, 2014 at 11:13 am

      Beautiful flavors. GREG

      Reply
      • Geraldine

        August 28, 2014 at 1:35 pm

        Thanks, Greg! Have a great day.

        Reply
    6. Olivia

      August 28, 2014 at 10:19 am

      YUM! I love caprese pasta! I will definitely be trying your version of it!!! 🙂

      Reply
      • Geraldine

        August 28, 2014 at 1:35 pm

        Hi Olivia – Caprese anything in my books is a good thing! Have a good one.

        Reply
    7. Traci | Vanilla And Bean

      August 28, 2014 at 9:02 am

      Stunning, Geraldine! Your process photos are beautiful! Thank you for this inviting recipe and testing and retesting for the perfect outcome! I’m looking forward to this!

      Reply
      • Geraldine

        August 28, 2014 at 1:32 pm

        Thanks so much, Traci! Let me know if you try it. Have a good one!

        Reply
    8. Crystal | Apples & Sparkle

      August 28, 2014 at 8:28 am

      Oh. my. goodness. You hooked me with ‘tomato juice beurre blanc’. That sounds amazing! You photos are beautiful, as always! : )

      Reply
      • Geraldine

        September 04, 2014 at 7:04 pm

        Thanks so much, Crystal. Definitely try it – it was soooo good and easy. PS: Your comment was in my spam folder 🙁 – don’t know why – sorry for the delayed response.

        Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I’m Geraldine. On Green Valley Kitchen, I’m sharing easy, fresh and healthy vegetarian recipes that anyone can make.

    More about me →

    Popular Recipes

    • Ravioli With Sauteed Asparagus and Walnuts
    • Tomato, cucumber, avocado salad
    • Whipped Goat Cheese
    • Roasted Sweet Potatoes Stuffed with Quinoa and Spinach
    • Pasta with Broccoli
    • Old Fashioned Brownies

    Spring Salad Recipes

    • Southwestern Quinoa Salad with Black Beans
    • Quinoa Salad with Cherry Tomatoes and Cucumbers
    • Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Cherry Tomatoes and Feta
    • Mediterranean Orzo Salad

    Categories

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About Us | Privacy Policy | Subscribe

    COPYRIGHT © 2023 · Green Valley Kitchen