Yesterday we posted a detailed recipe about how we confit cherry tomatoes during the spring and late fall to help give out-of-season tomatoes a flavor boost. We infuse them by cooking the tomatoes low and slow in the oven in a bath of olive oil, garlic, and herbs to help bring them to life. These little blistered gems are great for storing in the fridge and freezer so that they are available to us on a whim. One of our favorite uses of them is for pasta. The fresh tomatoes give a nice remix to traditional pureed tomato sauce and are already super flavorful from the garlic and herbs. We top the angel hair with fresh burrata and basil for the ultimate simple dinner. If you’ve made the tomatoes in advance, dinner is on the table in less than 20 minutes.

Angel Hair with Confit Tomatoes & Burrata

Makes: 4 servings

Total Time: 20 minutes if you have made the tomatoes in advance; 1 hour 20 minutes if you have not

Ingredients:

• 1 lb angel hair pasta
• 2 cups confit tomatoes with their oils and juices
• 2 tbs olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 package burrata (usually comes with two balls)
• 6 large fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and garlic to the pan. Sauté for about 3 minutes, or until the garlic is starting to crisp and become fragrant. Add the white wine and confit tomatoes to the pan and cook another 3 minutes. Reduce the heat of the pan to low until the pasta is finished.
2. Heat a large stock pot with salted water. Bring to a boil and cook the angel hair according to package directions, about 4 minutes. Remove 1 cup of the water from the pot before draining the pasta. Drain in the sink and throw the pasta directly into the tomato pan. Increase the heat to medium high.
3. Use tongs to toss the pasta in the tomato sauce so that the pasta is coated with the sauce. Add the pasta water as needed if the tomatoes and oil seem too dry. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Serve the pasta in a large, family style bowl. Top with the burrata, basil, and another drizzle of olive oil.