What to do with a lot of cherry tomatoes
I was trying to figure out what to do with the abundance of cherry tomatoes that are growing now when I came up with the idea to create this homemade spaghetti sauce with fresh roasted tomatoes.
Roasting cherry tomatoes is easy. I do have a tip, however, to get the roasted tomatoes to hold their flavor and shape. After cutting them in half, toss them in a colander and sprinkle salt on them. Let them rest there for 30 mins in your sink. This will help draw the moisture out. After that pat, any excess moisture of with paper towel and then place the tomatoes in a dry bowl for the next step, seasoning.
How to roast tomatoes
- Wash and cut in 1/2 the tomatoes.
- Toss them in a colander and sprinkle salt. Let them rest there for 30 mins in your sink.
- Pat any excess moisture with paper towel and place on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
- Drizzle tomatoes with olive oil and roast at 400 degrees for 35 minutes without string or until most of the moisture has evaporated. Remove from the oven.
Fresh herbs are always best if you have them to make this homemade spaghetti sauce with fresh tomatoes. If not most groceries sell the plants now in the produce section. They are cheaper than the little packs they sell and I can get several trimmings off of them if I keep them watered.
I have a Hydroponic Garden Tower that I have all my herbs for this recipe growing in. It has been easy to keep this going year-round, but I do have to pull it into our garage in the winter and use plant lights.
For this light pasta meal, I ramped up the nutrition and cut out the gluten by using Trader Joe’s Brown Rice & Quinoa Spaghetti Pasta. Quinoa is an excellent alternative choice to wheat pasta and it does not get mushy when it’s cooked like gluten-free pasta tends to do. It is higher in protein than other gluten-free varieties, and it contains high amounts of fiber and iron. Another plus, it cooks quickly and does not clump together like other grain alternative pasta.
Quick Vegan Cheese Topping Substitute for Spaghetti Sauce With Fresh Tomatoes
I also created something a little different for this recipe to go with this homemade spaghetti sauce. I wanted to a topping like cheese but I’m vegan. So I created an alternative that I like even better than parmesan cheese. I mixed dried Italian bread crumbs equally with nutritional yeast, tossing to mix, and then sprinkled on top of my spaghetti.
If you enjoy vegan recipes with tomatoes be sure and try these.
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Spaghetti Sauce With Fresh Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 3 cups cherry tomatoes in various sizes and colors
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup garlic cloves peeled and cut in half peeled and cut in half
- 1 cup zucchini diced about the size of the tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper courslly ground
- 1/2 crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup of fresh chopped herbs such as parsley, oregano, basil, and thyme. Divide these into half portions
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 4 ounces Spaghetti pasta
Vegan Cheese Topping
- 1/4 cup fine Italian bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Cut tomatoes in half, place in a colander. Sprinkle with salt lightly and toss. Allow draining in the sink for 30 minutes. This will help release some of the moisture from the tomatoes which will help them roast quicker and hold their shape better
- Fill a large pan with water, bring to a boil. Drop in 2 servings of spaghetti and cook until done.
- Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper
- After 30 minutes, pat the tomatoes excess moisture off with paper towels. Place tomatoes in a large bowl.
- Drizzle tomatoes with olive oil and then add 1/4 cup of herbs, garlic, zucchini, pepper, salt, and crushed red peppers. Toss gently until all coated, then place on parchment paper
- Roast tomatoes mixture at 400 degrees for 35 minutes without stirring or until most of the moisture has evaporated. Remove from oven.
- Place Italian bread crumbs, nutritional yeast, and salt in a bowl. Stir until well mixed, set aside.
- Place cooked pasta in a large bowl, add cooked tomato mixture over pasta, add balsamic vinegar and 1/4 cup fresh herbs and toss to coat evenly.
- Sprinkle vegan cheese topping over pasta when serving.
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