Easy pasta dinner alert! Creamy sun-dried tomato pasta is a next level pasta dinner to add to your weekly dinner rotation. Sun-dried tomatoes blend until smooth to create a creamy sauce that’s all sun-dried tomatoes. Need a dinner recipe that both adults and kids will love? This is it!
So why is this a next level pasta dinner? Well, many of the sun-dried tomato pasta dishes probably just chop them up and mix them into the sauce. This is so much more than that. In this recipe, after you saute the tomatoes with the garlic you blend them until you have a rough paste and this becomes your base for the sun-dried tomato sauce. This means every bite comes with that savory sun-dried tomato flavor!
This is one of the pasta dishes where you don’t even miss the meat. The sun-dried tomato flavor provides so much substance to this dish that you’re not wishing there was chicken or meatballs here.
I’m not a vegetarian, but I always find myself leaning towards dishes that are meatless. I love creating recipes that are filling, robust in flavor, and satisfying but don’t rely on chicken or beef. You can whip this up in under 30 minutes and have an easy meatless dinner the whole family will love!
Yes, this creamy sun-dried tomato pasta was toddler approved by Lilly. Now, Lilly isn’t really a picky eater, but sun-dried tomatoes isn’t something we eat all the time, and I’m not sure she’s ever eaten them before. But this dish, she ate it right up. I think that’s a great thing about sun-dried tomatoes…they’re robust but a little sweet too. Their flavor is strong, but not overpowering. This is truly a crowd-pleasing dinner!
Like sun-dried tomatoes? Then check out this pasta recipe you might want to try too!
Creamy Sun-dried Tomato Pasta
A creamy pasta sauce made with blended sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and lemon. Top with Parmesan and chopped basil for a family friendly dinner. The leftovers are just as good!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 3-4 portions
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Saute
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
3 and 1/2 cups dried Mezzi rigatoni pasta
10oz jar sun-dried tomatoes, drained
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, grated
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
2 cups half&half
1/2 cup of the boiling pasta water
1/2 cup chopped basil
1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Shaved Parmesan and chopped basil for garnishing
Instructions
1. Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the Mezzi rigatoni. Reserve 1/2 cup of the boiling water that you will use in the sauce.
2. In a large pan over medium heat, heat the extra virgin olive oil with the garlic and the drained sun-dried tomatoes. Heat for 1 minute, stirring. Turn off heat, then transfer everything into a food processor or other blending device. Pulse into smooth and the sun-dried tomatoes have broken down.
3. Next, in the same pan heat the butter until melted over medium heat, then whisk in the tablespoon of flour. Cook for about 30 seconds, then pour in the half & half. Heat for 3 minutes until the cream has slightly thickened. Pour in the blended sun-dried tomatoes, lemon zest, chopped basil, salt and pepper and stir until everything has combined. Simmer for 10 minutes, adding in the 1/2 of pasta water a little at a time as needed as the sauce thickens.
4. To serve, pour the cooked pasta into the sauce (a little at a time!) and stir to coat. I say add the pasta a little at a time so that you get the consistency you like on your pasta with the right amount of sauce. Top with more chopped basil and shaved Parmesan cheese.
This was so yummy! I’m lactose-intolerant (not Vegan), so I didn’t want to use half&half or real butter. Instead, I used twice as much flour, substituted the half&half with 2% Lactaid milk, used Earth Balance buttery spread instead of butter, and put some cashews in the food processor with the sundried tomatoes. I am very picky about substitution, and I LOVED this. Will definitely make again.
That sounds amazing!! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
This 8s the kind of recipe I’ve been looking for! Is it made with a jar sun dried tomatoes in oil?
Yes! The sun-dried tomatoes in the jar with oil!
This was delicious!! I made it exactly as she wrote it. I couldn’t stop eating it!
awesome! So glad you liked it!