Roasted cherry tomato pasta with spinach and beans is a deliciously easy meal. Savory roasted cherry tomatoes with garlic and basil are a perfect pasta topper!
If you love tomato sauce, you are going to double love the rich flavor of this roasted cherry tomato pasta. While the tomatoes roast, you have plenty of time to make the pasta, beans, and spinach. Then, put it all together!
Dave can't really eat that much tomato sauce, so another thing I love about this recipe is that I can dish his pasta, spinach, and beans up before adding the tomatoes. The kid and I can have tomato pasta, and Dave can top his with oil and vinegar instead.
Making the roasted tomatoes
The roasted tomato sauce doesn't require any stovetop simmering. After roasting, you just toss those flavorful tomatoes in with the pasta and call it a day.
To roast the tomatoes, toss them together in a baking pan with fresh basil and garlic, olive oil, and a touch of balsamic vinegar.
Toss the tomatoes into the oven while you make the rest of the meal. No need to even stir them!
Making the pasta with spinach and white beans
While the tomatoes roast, it's time to make the pasta. You can use any type of pasta you like (did you know that there are more than 47 kinds to choose from?). The cooking time will vary depending on the package directions.
What won't vary is my cheater method for making pasta, beans, and spinach. Here's what you do.
Set the water to boil, and drain and rinse your can of beans. When the water hits a rolling boil, add the pasta and the beans to the pot.
While the pasta boils, transfer your baby spinach to a colander in your sink.
When the pasta is perfectly al dente, pour the pasta, beans, and boiling water over the spinach in the colander. Then, use a spoon to toss everything together, right in the colander.
Putting it all together
By now, the cherry tomatoes should be just about done roasting. They are ready when they have burst open.
Pull the tomatoes out of the oven, and transfer the pasta mixture from the colander right into the baking pan you used to make the tomatoes.
Toss it all together, and serve!
Variations
This dish is a delight as-is. In fact, my seven-year-old son told me, "Mom, I don't like it. I love it!"
But sometimes, you want your supper to be a little bit extra. If you're feeling the urge to zhuzh it up, here are some of my favorite additions:
- Toss sliced green or black olives in just before serving.
- Pan fry or air fry sliced vegan Italian sausage and add to the finished dish.
- Top it off with my Magical Fairy Dust.
- Sprinkle on vegan mozzarella shreds and bake at 350° F for 20-25 minutes, until the cheese melts.
If you have other variations you like to use with this recipe, I hope you'll share them in the comments. Part of the joy of this dish is that you can make leftovers more fun with mix-ins.
How to store and reheat it
Your leftover pasta will keep for two to three days in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
To reheat, you have two options. First, you could transfer to a pan on the stove over medium heat, stirring until everything is heated through.
Or, you can transfer to a microwave-safe dish, and heat for 90 seconds to 2 1/2 minutes, depending on the strength of your microwave.
Roasted cherry tomato pasta
Ingredients
For the roasted cherry tomatoes
- 2 pints cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 cup fresh basil - minced
- 4 cloves garlic - minced
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar - see note
For the pasta
- 8 ounces pasta - Any kind you like will work!
- 1 15 ounce can of Great Northern Beans - drained and rinsed - see note
- 8 cups baby spinach - or chopped spinach
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
Roast the tomatoes.
- Toss all of your ingredients together in a 9x12" baking pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes, depending on the size of your tomatoes. Smaller tomatoes will need less time to cook. Your tomatoes are ready when most of them have split open.
Make the pasta, and put it all together.
- Prepare the pasta according to the package directions, but also throw the white beans into the pot when you add the pasta to the boiling water.
- While the pasta and beans cook, empty the spinach into your colander. When the pasta is done, drain it right over the spinach. The hot cooking water and the hot pasta and beans will steam the spinach to perfection! Use a mixing spoon to stir the pasta, spinach, and beans together in the colander, so the spinach wilts evenly.
- When the tomatoes are done, transfer the pasta mixture from the colander right to that 9x12" pan. Toss everything together, and serve.
Video
Notes
- Can't find cherry tomatoes? Grape tomatoes will also work in this recipe. They'll take a bit less time to cook -- more like 20-30 minutes -- since they're smaller, but otherwise you don't need to make any changes.
- Rice vinegar or fresh lemon juice will work well in the roasted tomatoes if you don't have balsamic vinegar.
- You can use other white beans instead of Great Northern. You can also use chickpeas or kidney beans.
Have a question? Tried this recipe? Share your thoughts!