Roasted cherry tomato pasta lets the oven make the sauce: 600 g of whole cherry tomatoes roast at 200 °C for 30 minutes with a whole garlic head (bottom cut off), thyme and a generous pour of olive oil, then the roasted garlic squeezes out as a sweet paste and hot spaghetti stirs straight into the blistered tomatoes. Sweet, garlicky, with a rich jammy finish. Serves 3.
Instructions
- 1
Fill a baking dish with the whole cherry tomatoes.
- 2
Cut the bottom off the garlic head so every clove sits open and tuck it in with the tomatoes.
- 3
Add the thyme sprigs, salt and pepper, and a generous pour of olive oil — it is the base of the sauce.
- 4
Roast at 200 °C / 400 °F until the tomatoes are wrinkled, blistered and sitting in their own juice.
30:00 - 5
Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in boiling salted water to your liking.
- 6
Pull out the thyme, then squeeze the roasted garlic head — the cloves come out as a sweet paste, no peeling.
- 7
Add the spaghetti to the dish and stir — the tomatoes burst, meet the garlic and oil, and become the sauce right there.
Watch the video
Notes from our kitchen
Two things decide this dish. Don’t pull the tray early — the sauce only exists once the skins are wrinkled and blistered and the tomatoes sit in their own juice; pale tomatoes make a watery plate. And don’t go shy on the oil: it is half the sauce, and a dry dish gives you roasted tomatoes on naked pasta. If the garlic paste resists squeezing, the head needed longer in the oven — not more force.
Variations
- Short pasta instead of spaghetti. Penne or rigatoni work in the same baking dish — the ridges and tubes catch the burst tomatoes and garlic paste instead of letting them slide off. Stir them in the dish exactly the same way, straight from the pot.
- What to serve with it. It needs very little: torn basil or a handful of grated Parmesan at the table, and bread for the oily tomato juice left in the dish. The video is right that the second plate disappears faster — plan quantities accordingly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why cut the bottom off the garlic head?
With every clove sitting open against the hot dish, the garlic roasts into a soft, sweet paste that squeezes straight out of the skins after baking — one squeeze replaces peeling and chopping a whole head, and the paste melts evenly into the sauce.
Can I use large tomatoes instead of cherry?
Cherry tomatoes are the point here — their skins blister and burst into a jammy, concentrated sauce. Large tomatoes carry much more water; if that is what you have, halve them, roast longer, and expect a looser, soupier result.
How much olive oil is “generous”?
Enough that the tomatoes sit in a visible pool — several tablespoons at least. The oil is not a coating, it is half the sauce: it catches the tomato juices and roasted garlic and emulsifies into the glossy jammy finish when the pasta is stirred through.
How do I store and reheat leftovers?
Keep leftovers airtight in the fridge and plan to eat them within a couple of days. Reheat gently in a pan with a splash of water — the starch relaxes and the jammy sauce loosens back up. A microwave works too; stir halfway so the oil re-emulsifies.
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