Ingredients
1 box short cut pasta, such as penne, strozzapretti or casarecci (16 ounces)
4 large or 6 medium tomatoes (about 2 pounds), seeded and chopped
20 basil leaves, torn
10 sprigs tarragon, leaves removed and chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large garlic clove, grated
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
4 ounces ricotta salata cheese, crumbled. Ricotta salata is different from the regular ricotta cheese you use in dishes like lasagna. It is a dry, lightly salted sheep's milk cheese. If you can't find it, you can substitute another dry cheese such as feta cheese or goat cheese.
Directions
Place a large pot of water over high heat and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, add a generous amount of salt and the pasta and cook until al dente according to package directions.Reserve about one cup of the starchy cooking water and drain the pasta. While the pasta is cooking, add the tomatoes, basil, tarragon, salt and pepper to a large mixing bowl. Using a microplane or the fine side of a box grater, grate the garlic into the bowl. Add the cooked pasta to the bowl and drizzle with the EVOO. Add some of the reserved pasta water to create a sauce and toss to combine. Allow the pasta and tomatoes to rest a few minutes before serving. Top with crumbled ricotta salata cheese.
This is one of many "Yum-o!" recipes – it's good and good for you. To find out more about Yum-o!, Rachael's nonprofit organization, go to www.yum-o.org.
