Angel Hair with Balsamic Tomatoes

Submitted by ThatBobbieGirl

"This tastes like something I once had at Olive Garden, except I think they made it with fresh tomatoes. That limits it to a seasonal dish, since winter tomatoes, frankly, stink. Since this recipe uses canned tomatoes, you can feel gourmet at anytime. It goes together pretty quickly, especially after the first time you prepare it."

 

• Ready In: 35mins
• Ingredients: 9
• Serves: 6-8

ingredients

• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• salt
• fresh ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons dried basil, crushed (or twice the amount of fresh)
• 1 lb angel hair pasta, uncooked
• parmesan cheese

directions

1. Open the can of tomatoes.
2. Do not drain, but dump the whole thing in a non-metallic bowl.
3. Stir in the balsamic vinegar, black pepper, basil, and salt if you really think you need it.
4. Most canned tomatoes have enough salt for this, and if you're using no-salt tomatoes, its probably because you're not SUPPOSED to have the salt.
5. So drop the salt shaker, buddy.
6. Let the tomatoes, et al, stand about 10 minutes.
7. Sauté garlic in olive oil until translucent.
8. Do not brown.
9. Remove skillet from the burner, leaving garlic and oil in pan.
10. Set aside.
11. If you haven't already, put on a pot of water to boil for the pasta.
12. A big pot, so it has lots of elbow room.
13. People should stick together, not pasta.
14. Hmmm, that should be a commercial.
15. Drain the tomatoes, catching the juice in the skillet with the sauteed garlic.
16. Bring this to a boil and then simmer until the liquid is reduced by about 1/3.
17. It needs to do this in order to concentrate the flavors a bit.
18. While the liquid is reducing, drop the pasta into the boiling water, and cook according to package directions, just until al dente.
19. When the pasta is done, drain and keep hot if the sauce is not done yet.
20. Once the liquid has reduced enough, add the tomatoes, and heat briefly.
21. You want them to get HOT, not MUSHY.
22. Pour all this over the hot pasta and toss.
23. Serve immediately, nice and hot, passing parmesan to let everyone top their own.
24. This goes nicely with my Green Bean Compromise and a tossed salad with my Extremely Bad Breath Garlic& Green Olive Dressing, but serve what you like.
25. I won't mind.

Reviews

[Papayaraya]

Made this for dinner and it was delicious. Also, like another reviewer said, it was even better 2 days later. I reheated and topped with grated cheese and it was delicious! Thanks BobbieGirl

 

[riana4152000]

I've made this so many times, and it just occurred to me tat I never reviewed it! I was sick of regular old spaghetti, besides the fact that it's summer, and I like a little lighter taste in the heat, so I tried this out. WONDERFUL! Nice light flavor, love the tang of the balsamic! Thanks for a great recipe!

 

[Chef Mommie]

really liked this. I made this exact and thought the directions were just great. I hope it will be good reheated since my dh wasn't ready to eat and I have so much left over since I didn't scale down. Edited -two days later- this is great heated up in the microwave if not better

 

[TheDancingCook]

Very good! I love the Capellini Pomodoro served at the Olive Garden and this was similiar....and the balsamic gave the dish a nice flavor (balsamic is not in the dish I usually get at the O.G.) I also added half a large onion, wedged; sauteed it first then threw in the garlic. I did make the 1 lb of noodles (capellini) and did find that there was not enough sauce for the entire pound. Next time I would cut the pasta down to 8 or 12oz. I served with steamed broccoli and garlic bread. Great recipe, light and healthy.

 

[Linda Graham]

I haven't tried the recipe yet, will do so asap, but I wanted to say how much I enjoyed reading the instructions. This sounds heavenly and I want to try her Bad Breath Garlic and Green Olive dressing.Thank you ThatBobbieGirl