Easy Cherry Tomato Burrata Pasta

This is a legit go-to recipe around here.

I churn out a lot of recipes on this site, and I love them all, but most of them have to be left behind once they are published so that I can move on to the new ideas. But this is one of the special ones that I do honestly make over and over again!

On the summer evenings when I am not testing new recipes, I can usually be found putting together a raw tomato sauce dish like this one. Because it is just too perfect. If you haven’t tried a raw tomato sauce yet, let this be your moment!

Making the case for raw tomato sauce

After I discovered Nora Ephron’s linguine alla cecca recipe, I was completely won over by uncooked tomato sauces. Here is my rationale:

• They allow us just enjoy that juicy sweetness of fresh tomatoes instead of always cooking them into something more intense and concentrated. If you love bruschetta and pan con tomate, this will be right up your street. (I also have a cherry tomato sauce recipe where I mix cooked and uncooked, which is fun too).
• On a hot evening, you will appreciate not having to stand over the stove cooking dinner (boiling some angel hair pasta only takes a few minutes!)
• Since the sauce is room temperature, the temperature of the final dish is a little cooler too (warm, but not piping hot) so it is more refreshing.
• For this recipe, I’ve kept it extra simple with cherry tomatoes, because there is no need to peel or de-seed those it comes together even more easily.

Q. What is the best pasta shape to use?

For me, angel hair is the BEST in this recipe. I love how delicate it is, and how it soaks up so much of that sloppy tomato juice and burrata cream.

It has come to my attention, however, that some people feel strongly against angel hair pasta. So no worries if you prefer more substantial pasta shapes, something like spaghetti, linguine or tagliatelle will do nicely.

What could I use instead of burrata?

Burrata is such a treat, but it’s pricey and not available in every shop year round. Luckily there are plenty of alternatives that work well in this dish:

• Fresh buffalo mozzarella (or just plain mozzarella), torn into smaller pieces before being added to make them more able to absorb the tomato juices.
• Whipped goat cheese or feta.
• A spoonful of ricotta.
• For something different, I love fried halloumi – I make it with halloumi about as often as I make it with burrata.

In an ideal world, this would be sitting out marinating for a few hours at least before you want to eat it (and then you will be able to get it on the table really fast once the time comes).

BUT I have on occasion made this with pretty much zero marinating time and I still enjoyed it plenty! If you are doing this, I would suggest you grab a potato masher and press on the tomatoes to get the juices spilling out and mixing with the olive oil. You still want whole pieces, you aren’t trying to actually mash the sauce, but just get them a little roughed up.