I love, love, love, lurve caprese... I'll wouldn't mind eating it every week if there's a chance and to have it with pasta is certainly a brilliant idea!
I sort of just tweak this recipe a bit because I read it's a bit bland so I say, add whatever you think you like to eat with pasta. I don't think you could ever go wrong with this recipe.
Tip: Just enjoy. It's soooo easy that there's really no need for any tip.
Takes 15 minutes, it can't be quicker than this.
Ingredient:
500 grams fusilli pasta (whichever pasta you're in the mood for)
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
340 grams or 12 ounces fresh mozzarella, diced
1/2 cup parmegiano regiano, grated
Serves 4-6
Procedures:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add a knob of butter or few drops of olive oil in the pot. Add the pasta and cook until al dente or cooked according to your liking (I'm the only one who appreciates al dente in my whole family, everyone else wants it on the verge of sagginess).
While pasta is cooking, start cooking your sauce. In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add cherry tomatoes, salt and pepper. After about a minute, smash the tomatoes with a fork. Continue cooking until your sauce becomes chunky, about 4 minutes. Add your crushed tomatoes and 1/4 cup parmegiano and continue stirring for another minute.
Drain pasta and transfer into a large bowl, make sure you reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid. Transfer the tomato sauce to the bowl with pasta. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup parmegiano, basil leaves and mozzarella. Toss until well combined. Add the reserved water if you want your pasta to be moist.
Serve with extra parmegiano on the side. We ate this pasta with "Packet of Baked Salmon" and it was a perfect combination. I'm sure this pasta will taste just as nice with grilled food, seafood, pork chop or breaded chicken. It's that versatile... so start cookin'!