Italian

Baked pasta with cherry tomato sauce and ricotta

Name: Baked pasta with cherry tomato sauce and ricotta recipe
Yield: 4
Cuisine: /italian
Ingredients: 500g extra-large dried pasta shells; 400g firm ricotta, drained, crumbled, plus extra to serve; 2/3 cup (50g) finely grated parmesan, plus extra to serve; 2 x 250g punnets cherry truss tomatoes; Finely grated zest of 1 lemon; Small basil leaves, to serve; 1/4 cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to drizzle; 2 small red onions, finely chopped; 5 anchovy fillets, drained; 3 garlic cloves, crushed; 2 tbs finely chopped black olives; 1/2 bunch each basil, flat-leaf parsley & oregano, finely chopped; 1/2 cup (140g) tomato paste; 1 1/4 cups (310ml) white wine; 4 x 400g cans cherry tomatoes; 750ml bottle passata sauce (we used Woolworths Macro Organic passata)

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by Dominic Smith

Jan 27, 2020

"This uses a super-simple sauce the family will love. It's like a hug from your nonna," says Dominic Smith.

500g extra-large dried pasta shells
400g firm ricotta, drained, crumbled, plus extra to serve
2/3 cup (50g) finely grated parmesan, plus extra to serve
2 x 250g punnets cherry truss tomatoes
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
Small basil leaves, to serve

Cherry tomato sauce (makes approx. 2.5L)

1/4 cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to drizzle
2 small red onions, finely chopped
5 anchovy fillets, drained
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tbs finely chopped black olives
1/2 bunch each basil, flat-leaf parsley & oregano, finely chopped
1/2 cup (140g) tomato paste
1 1/4 cups (310ml) white wine
4 x 400g cans cherry tomatoes
750ml bottle passata sauce (we used Woolworths Macro Organic passata)

Method

1.

For the cherry tomato sauce, heat the oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over high heat. Add the onion, anchovies, garlic, olives and half of the herbs and cook, stirring frequently, for 6-7 minutes until anchovies have broken down and onion has softened. Stir in tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes until paste is toasted and starting to stick to the base of the pan. Add wine, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Stir in cherry tomatoes and passata sauce then bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring frequently, for 45-50 minutes until thickened. Season to taste and add remaining herbs. Stir to combine.
2.

Preheat oven to 200°C.
3.

Meanwhile, bring a large saucepan three-quarters full of salted water to the boil. Add the pasta shells and cook for 7-8 minutes until almost tender, then drain. Arrange shells in a large, 3L-capacity ovenproof dish. Spoon over as much of the sauce as you’d like and scatter over ricotta and parmesan. Season to taste. Bake on the bottom shelf of the oven for 25-30 minutes until top is golden. Store remaining sauce in airtight containers in the fridge.
4.

Place cherry tomatoes on an oven tray, drizzle with olive oil and season to taste. Roast on the top shelf of the oven for 12-15 minutes until blistered. Remove from oven and stand until ready to use.
5.

Scatter baked pasta with lemon zest, extra ricotta and parmesan, basil leaves and roasted cherry tomatoes to serve.