Make this easy homemade cherry tomato pasta sauce with fresh cherry tomatoes and simple ingredients you have on hand.
This homemade tomato sauce only takes about 20 minutes to make. Serve a delicious homemade pasta meal in less than 30 minutes.
Simple ingredients simmered together in a skillet and tossed with penne pasta will have you serving a delicious homemade meal in less than 30 minutes.
It is a perfect week night meal for a busy night.
Or when you are trying to figure out what to do with a bunch of cherry tomatoes.
Ingredients
All you need are a few simple ingredients and some ripe cherry tomatoes to make this quick and easy pasta sauce.
- 5 cups ripe whole cherry tomatoes
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- pinch of sugar
- ¼ cup finely grated real Parmesan cheese, divided
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 8 oz. penne pasta cooked el dente
- 1 teaspoon fresh or dried parsley flakes
- fresh basil
Let's make pasta sauce!
This homemade tomato pasta sauce recipe is very easy to make in five simple steps.
Step 1: Cook the pasta following the directions on the box. Drain and rinse well so the penne pasta noodles do not stick together.
Step 2: Heat the olive oil and butter in a large skillet. Add the cherry tomatoes to the skillet. Simmer the tomatoes over medium heat until they start to soften and burst.
Step 3: Add the salt, garlic, Italian seasoning and sugar to the pan. Increase the heat and bring to a medium simmer. Simmer until the sauce has slightly reduced.
Step 4: Add 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese to the skillet. Continue to simmer until the sauce has thickened.
Step 5: Add the cooked and drained Penne pasta and red pepper flakes to the pan. Toss the pasta with the tomato sauce to coat the noodles.
Step 6: Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan over the top. Dot the top with basil leaves and sprinkle with parsley before serving.
Recipe FAQ's
Common questions about fresh cherry tomatoes.
Cherry tomatoes are bites size and bursting with flavor. Cherry tomatoes can be added to salads, cooked into a sauce, dried and made into sun dried tomatoes, used to make tomato juice or eaten out of hand. Cherry tomatoes can also be frozen and used later in the season.
No cherry tomatoes do not need to be peeled before eating or cooking with. The skin is very tender and will break apart and cooked down when cooking with them.
Recipe Expert Tips
Expert tips to help you make the best plate of pasta with a homemade sauce.
- Cherry Tomatoes: Fresh cherry tomatoes are the best for this recipe but you could substitute chopped whole tomatoes that have been drained to remove the extra moisture the seeds will have compared to the cherry tomatoes.
- Olive oil or butter: A combination of olive oil and butter give this sauce a rich flavor. If you do not have butter on hand you can substitute the same amount of olive oil in place of the butter.
- Basil: fresh basil has an amazing flavor and aroma. If you don't have fresh you can sprinkle with ¼ of dried basil. Check the flavor before adding more as dried herbs are much stronger than fresh herbs.
- Parmesan cheese: Real freshly grated Parmesan cheese is my choice. The powdered is no recommended.
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Cherry Tomato Pasta Sauce
Ingredients
- 5 cups whole cherry tomatoes (rinsed and drained)
- ¼ cups extra virgin olive oil
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- 1 pinch sugar
- ¼ cup finely grated real Parmesan cheese (divided)
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to taste)
- 8 oz. penne pasta (cooked, drained and rinsed well)
- 1 teaspoon fresh or dried parsley flakes
- 1 bunch fresh basil
Instructions
- Cook the pasta following the directions on the box. Drain and rinse well so the penne pasta noodles do not stick together.
- Heat the olive oil and butter in a large skillet. Add the whole cherry tomatoes to the skillet.
- Simmer the tomatoes over medium heat until they start to soften and burst.
- Add the salt, garlic, Italian seasoning and sugar to the pan.
- Increase the heat and bring to a medium high simmer. Simmer until the sauce has slightly reduced.
- Add 2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese to the skillet. Continue to simmer until the sauce has thickened.
- Add the cooked and drained Penne pasta and red pepper flakes to the pan skillet.
- Toss the pasta with the homemade tomato sauce with the to cover.
- Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan cheese over the top of the pasta. Dot the top with fresh basil leaves and sprinkle with parsley before serving.
- Makes 4 servings.
Video
Recipe Expert Tips
- Cherry Tomatoes: Fresh cherry tomatoes are the best for this recipe but you could substitute chopped whole tomatoes that have been drained to remove the extra moisture the seeds will have compared to the cherry tomatoes.
- Olive oil or butter: A combination of olive oil and butter give this sauce a rich flavor. If you do not have butter on hand you can substitute the same amount of olive oil in place of the butter.
- Basil: fresh basil has an amazing flavor and aroma. If you don't have fresh you can sprinkle with ¼ of dried basil. Check the flavor before adding more as dried herbs are much stronger than fresh herbs.
- Parmesan cheese: Real freshly grated Parmesan cheese is my choice. The powdered is no recommended.
Kimberly
This looks so good. I'm surely going to try it out the next time we have pasta. Thanks for sharing it at our #HomeMattersParty