Deliciously rich, easy tomato sauce

This roasted tomato and basil pasta sauce is one of my favourite go to meals. It's easy to make and can be easily scaled and adapted depending on the number of people and personal preference. It has 5 basic ingredients, it's quick and cheap to prepare, its super healthy and most importantly absolutely delicious!

Prep time: 10 mins

Oven time: 1h 30mins

Cost: £

Difficulty: Very easy

Freezable ✓

Ingredients:

This serves 1-2 people depending on the ratio of sauce to pasta you desire

Use the measurements below as a rough guide, the amounts do not need to be precise, measure with your heart!

500g Cherry tomatoes (1 bag)

5 leaves of Fresh basil

1 clove of garlic

Olive oil

Balsamic vinegar (balsamic glaze also works)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees

2. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and put them in an oven proof dish, drizzle over the olive oil

3. Cook in the preheated oven for 15 mins to allow the tomatoes to release some of their juices

4. Shred the fresh basil into small pieces and grate the garlic and add them to the tomatoes in the oven along with the balsamic vinegar

5. Return to the oven for half an hour stirring half way through (whilst this is in the oven, cook the pasta/gnocchi)

6. Add to pasta/gnocchi and enjoy!!

Notes:

• Try saving about 50mls of the water from the pasta/gnocchi... When the sauce is finished I like to add it to the cooked and drained pasta/gnocchi along with about 50mls of the saved water and return to the hob for a couple of minutes. This allows the sauce to become thick and glossy so it fully coats the pasta (bare in mind the pasta will continue to cook as you return it to the hob so you might want to take a couple of minutes off the initial boiling time so it doesn't become overcooked)
• Try adding some cooked pancetta/bacon pieces to the sauce as you serve it for some extra flavour and protein
• ...If you fancy some greens, add some spinach to the sauce just before serving. It will wilt perfectly in the hot sauce so no need to cook separately
• Instead of the balsamic vinegar, you could use some red wine. This would also make this sauce lovely and rich