50 mins
Not Too Tricky
serves 4
About the recipe
This pasta dish is made by roasting the veg and ricotta together until soft and caramelised, then mixing it all together for a creamy, veg-packed sauce. The garlicky, herby pangrattato topping adds a wonderful crunch, too!
Ingredients
1 bunch of fresh basil (30g)
2 cloves of garlic
extra virgin olive oil
500g ripe mixed-colour cherry tomatoes
1 yellow pepper
1 courgette
250g ricotta cheese
1 lemon
300g dried wholewheat pasta – fusilli, rigatoni or penne
1 large handful of baby spinach
optional: balsamic vinegar, to serve
optional: Parmesan cheese, to serve
Pangrattato topping
1 clove of garlic
1 sprig of rosemary
olive oil
2 handfuls of coarse stale breadcrumbs (approx. 50g)
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4. Pick a handful of basil leaves and keep to one side, then pick the rest and pound to a paste in a pestle and mortar with a small pinch of sea salt. Peel and bash in the garlic, muddle in 2 to 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, then season with black pepper.
- Halve the cherry tomatoes, halve, deseed and roughly chop the pepper, and trim and cut the courgette into half lengthways then into 2cm chunks. Add it all to a large roasting tray, making a little well in the middle of the veg. Drain the ricotta and place it in the middle, with the largest side facing down. Zest ½ a lemon over the ricotta and pour over half of the flavoured oil. Toss the rest of the oil with the mixed veggies.
- Add a splash of water to the tray, then roast for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the tomatoes and veg are soft and just starting to caramelise.
- Meanwhile, to make your pangrattato topping, peel the garlic, strip the rosemary leaves, then finely chop them both. Drizzle a little oil into a frying pan on a medium heat, add the breadcrumbs, garlic and rosemary and fry for 3 minutes, or until golden and smelling delicious. Tip into a bowl and set aside.
- Ten minutes before the veg is ready, cook the pasta in a pan of boiling salted water according to the packet instructions, then drain in a colander, reserving a mug of the starchy pasta water, and leave to steam dry.
- Remove the veg tray from the oven, add the spinach and gently mix everything together, breaking up the ricotta a little.
- Tip the drained pasta into the tray, adding a little splash of the pasta water and gently shake to loosen all the sticky goodness from the bottom. Toss everything together, taste then add a squeeze of lemon, if you like.
- Divide the pasta between your plates, pick over the remaining basil leaves and a little balsamic vinegar, if you like. Grate over a little Parmesan, if using, and serve.
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