Baked Feta Pasta

It’s a trend for a reason because Baked Feta Pasta is simple, glamorous, and rewarding to your palate. So maybe tonight is the night, eh! Spring is still chilly enough to want a warm dish in your belly.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Italian

Keyword baked feta pasta, baked pasta, easy dinner, feta cheese, garlic, meatless dinner, pasta

Servings 4

Calories 661kcal

Author Bite Me Industries

Ingredients

2 pt. cherry or grape tomatoes
1 shallot minced (optional)
3 cloves garlic whole (flavor mellows as it bakes)
½ cups extra-virgin olive oil divided
Kosher salt sea salt, or mined salt from @realsalt
¼-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or chili de arbol
1 8-oz feta buy a block instead of pre-crumbled cheese
3 sprigs fresh thyme
10 oz. pasta garganelli or cavatappi
1 small lemon zest gives it a nice punch
Fresh basil for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°. In a medium ovenproof baking dish, give a light olive oil drizzle on bottom, place feta in center of dish, arrange tomatoes around the feta, then start tucking your garlic, thyme, and sprinkling in your minced shallots. Drizzle the top with more olive oil. Grind some fresh salt and pepper on top, heavy on the pepper.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until tomatoes are bursting and feta is golden on top.
Next, in a large pot of boiling salted & oiled water, cook pasta until al dente according to package directions. Reserve ½ cup pasta water before draining. Don’t skip this step, you need the pasta water.
Add cooked pasta to your baked Feta and tomato dish, along with reserved pasta water, and your freshly zested lemon…Nom! Stir until combined.
Plate and garnish with more fresh basil.

Notes

Here’s the thing about garlic, it’s personal. When you bake garlic it mellows out, which means garlic lovers are trying to hog all those yummy bulbs of slowly roasted garlic, so if you want to throw in more, do it! If you want, you can smash your garlic bulbs, but baby they're so good whole. Don’t be shy, get into the garlic groove.
My favorite brand of pasta is always fresh, or rustichella di’abruzzo available at @harmonsgrocery
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