Sun Gold Tomato Pasta with Basil and Garlic

“There’s a moment in the summer when cherry tomato plants go crazy, producing so many tomatoes that it’s hard to keep up with them. This is the pasta for that moment!” explains Chef Joshua McFadden in his cookbook Six Seasons of Pasta. For this dish he strongly suggests using Sun Gold tomatoes, either ones you grow or can find at a market. The chef loves the gorgeous deep orange color and says their flavor is sweeter and fruitier than that of any other cherry tomato he has tasted. “I’m addicted,” he adds. Any variety works well in this recipe, and feel free to use a mix of colors.

Ingredients:

  • Kosher salt (preferably Diamond Crystal) and freshly ground black pepper
  • Extra-virgin olive oil
  • 3 or 4 garlic cloves, smashed
  • 1 pint (12 oz./340 g) Sun Gold or a mix of cherry tomatoes, halved if large
  • Large pinch of red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
  • Large handful of fresh basil leaves
  • 8 oz. (225 g) bucatini, spaghetti or linguine
  • 1/3 cup (1 1/4 oz./40 g) 50-50 cheese (half Parmesan and half pecorino romano), grated in a food processor, plus more for serving
  • 1 to 2 Tbs. unsalted butter
  • 2 Tbs. dried bread crumbs (optional)

Directions:

Fill a large pot (at least 6 quarts/6 l) with 1 gallon (4 l) water. Add 4 Tbs. salt, cover the pot and bring the water to a boil while you make your sauce. If the water begins to boil before your sauce is ready, reduce the heat but don’t let the volume of the pasta water reduce by boiling off.

In a large fry pan over medium-high heat, warm a glug of olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the garlic and cook gently until it is nicely toasted and fragrant but not too brown, 3 to 4 minutes, breaking it up a bit with your spatula.

Add a bit more than half of the tomatoes to the pan (watch out, as they probably will spatter a bit). Cook until the tomatoes burst open and get juicy, 5 to 8 minutes; you can encourage this by piercing them with a knife. Remove the pan from the heat and gently smash the tomatoes with the back of a spoon. Add the red pepper flakes and season generously with salt and black pepper.

Return the pan to the heat, add half of the basil (tear the leaves into a few pieces) and cook until you have a slightly thick sauce, about 5 minutes more. Remove the pan from the heat.

Bring the pasta water (back) to a boil, add the noodles and set your timer for 2 minutes before the shortest suggested cooking time on the package of pasta; this will ideally be 2 minutes before the pasta is al dente. Stir the noodles several times during the first 2 minutes of cooking to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pot or otherwise clumping together.

When the timer goes off, start tasting the noodles. When they seem like they are 1 1/2 to 2 minutes away from a perfect al dente, drain and transfer them to the sauce in the pan, reserving at least 1 cup (8 fl. oz./240 ml) of the pasta water.

Return the pan to medium heat and add the rest of the tomatoes. Continue cooking the noodles, tossing and adding plenty of splashes of pasta water, until they are perfectly al dente and the sauce is nicely juicy; the newly added tomatoes will keep some of their firmer texture. If the sauce seems watery, simmer for another few seconds to tighten it up, bearing in mind that the cheese will thicken it.

Reduce the heat to very low. Add the rest of the basil; toss to wilt the herbs a bit. Add the cheese and toss to emulsify it with the other sauce ingredients, adding a bit of pasta water to keep the consistency creamy and prevent the cheese from clumping. Add the butter and toss to blend. Taste and add more salt or red pepper flakes if you like.

Divide the pasta between 2 warm bowls, sprinkle with the bread crumbs and serve immediately, with more cheese to add at the table. Serves 2.

Adapted from Six Seasons of Pasta by Joshua McFadden (Artisan Books 2025)