Pasta Caprese Recipe – tomato mozzarella basil pasta

Light summer dinner, ready in about 20 minutes, it’s all you need on a hot summer day!

📝 Ingredients

• 6.5 oz fusilli pasta (185g)
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 4 large cloves garlic
• 4 medium tomatoes (1 lb (450g))
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice (or to taste)
• a few tablespoons pasta cooking water
• 7 oz mozzarella (200g) (preferably mozzarella di bufala)
• a small handful of fresh basil leaves
• salt and pepper (to taste)

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1Cook the pasta al dente (it should have a little bite to it but be cooked through). Drain, reserving about 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water (!).
2. 2Place the tomatoes in a large bowl. Using a sharp knife, slice a shallow X into the bottom of tomatos. Pour boiling water over the tomatoes, leave them for a minute in hot water, then drain. Peel the tomatoes and cut into ½ inch (1.5 cm) cubes.
3. 3Peel and cut the garlic into thin slices.
4. 4Heat the olive oil and butter in a large frying pan, add the garlic, cook over medium heat for about a minute.
5. 5Add the tomatoes with their juices, pasta cooking water, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Cook for a few minutes until the tomatoes form a sauce but are still chunky.
6. 6Remove the pan from the heat, add the cooked pasta, torn into small pieces mozzarella, and basil leaves. Toss everything together, season with salt and pepper to taste.
7. 7Enjoy!