Pasta With No Cook Cherry Tomato Sauce

• servings: 4

Ingredients

7 garlic cloves, finely grated

1½ Ib. cherry tomatoes (about 2 pints), halved

1½ cups (lightly packed) coarsely chopped basil, plus leaves for serving

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 Tbsp. Calabrian chile paste

2 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt, plus more

¾ tsp. freshly ground pepper, plus more

12 oz. dried lumache (snail shells) or other medium shell pasta

5 Tbsp. Unsalted butter, cut into 1/2” pieces

3 oz. Parmesan, finely grated (about 1 1/2 cups), plus more for serving

Directions

Combine garlic, cherry tomatoes, chopped basil, oil, Calabrian chile paste, 2 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and ¾ tsp. pepper in a large bowl. Using your hands or a potato masher, crush tomatoes to release juices and break up into small pieces. Let cherry tomato mixture sit at room temperature at least 10 minutes and up to 1 hour.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling heavily salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid.Shake pasta to remove excess water; return to pot.

al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid.

Shake pasta to remove excess water; return to pot.

Immediately add butter and 3 oz. Parmesan to pasta and vigorously stir until butter and cheese are melted. (If pasta seems dry, add some tomato mixture a spoonful at a time as needed and keep stirring until cheese is melted and emulsified.) Add tomato mixture and toss, adding reserved pasta cooking liquid a splash or so at a time as needed, until sauce is creamy and coats pasta. Taste pasta and season with more salt and pepper if needed.

Divide pasta among shallow bowls and top with more Parmesan and some basil leaves.