Simple Roasted Tomato Sauce

Simple and delicious, perfect summer pasta sauce. You could use this as a base and add other veggies and protein if you wanted! If you’re a meat eater, adding chicken and arugula would turn this into a “Milanese” pasta. I think I’ll add some of my favorite Beyond Meat Hot Italian Sausage and broccoli to this next time! Whether you’re keeping it plain and simple or getting creative, this dish is sure to be a hit.

What you’ll need:

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes

• 4Tbs avocado or olive oil

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 2tsp red pepper flakes, more or less to taste

• salt and pepper

• juice of half a lemon

• 1tsp dried oregano

• 1tsp dried parsley ( or 1 handful fresh, chopped)

• balsamic glaze, optional

Directions:

1) Rinse tomatoes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2) Drizzle tomatoes with 1-2Tbs oil, pinch of salt and pepper, and oregano. Toss to coat.

3) Place on lined baking sheet ( *make sure your sheet has a lip and isn’t one of the cookie sheets that is completely flat as you will have a lot of tomato juice to clean out of your oven) and roast for 20-25 minutes or until the skin starts to burst.

4) Cook pasta based on package directions.

5) Once the tomatoes are done, heat a skillet to medium heat and add 2Tbs oil to the pan. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add red pepper flakes ( and if you are using dried parsley, add this now) at this point too.

6) Add the roasted tomatoes and juice to the pan, add the lemon juice, and simmer for 5 minutes.

7) If you are using fresh parsley, you can add this now.

8) Add drained pasta to the skillet. ( Protip: when I am cooking sauces like this, I will typically reserve 1cup of the cooking liquid just incase you need to add some to the dish. I did not find that this needed any additional liquid given how juicy the tomatoes were but it’s all about personal preference!)

9) Garnish with balsamic syrup if desired and add any additional protein. Enjoy!