Knoblauch-Spaghetti mit Robiola, Basilikum-Tomaten-Sauce und Ofentomaten (garlic spaghetti with robiola, basil-tomato sauce and roasted tomatoes)
A layered tomato dish built from three separate tomato preparations, roasted cherry tomatoes for sweetness and char, a quick blended basil-tomato sauce for the base, and soft robiola cheese melted through at the end, all tossed with spaghetti and a generous amount of garlic confit in oil. Confiting the garlic slowly in oil rather than frying it hard is what keeps it sweet and spreadable instead of bitter.
Prep30 min
Cook40 min
Oven190°C
Servings4
Christoph's layered tomato spaghetti, three tomato preparations and confited garlic rather than a single quick sauce.
Ingredients
Written for a 4 L pot
Units
Temperature
Servings
Garlic confit
- 2 whole garlic bulbs, cloves peeled rounded
- 150 ml olive oil rounded
Roasted tomatoes
- 300 g cherry tomatoes rounded
- 20 ml olive oil rounded
- to taste fine salt rounded
Basil-tomato sauce
- 400 g chopped tomatoes rounded
- 25 g fresh basil rounded
- to taste fine salt rounded
To finish
- 400 g spaghetti rounded
- 200 g robiola or other soft, spreadable cheese rounded
- 15 g fresh basil, for the top (optional) rounded
Dietary labels are a guide, not a guarantee. If you have an allergy, read the ingredients yourself.
Method
- Combine the peeled garlic cloves and olive oil in a small saucepan. Warm over the lowest heat and cook 25 minutes, at a bare, occasional bubble, never a fry, until the cloves are soft enough to mash with a fork.
- Heat the oven to 190°C. Toss the cherry tomatoes with the olive oil and salt, spread on a baking sheet, and roast 20 minutes, until burst and lightly caramelised.
- Blend the chopped tomatoes and basil with a pinch of salt until fairly smooth, either in a blender or with a stick blender.
- Bring a large pot of well-salted water to the boil. Cook the spaghetti according to the packet instructions, reserving a cup of the cooking water before draining.
- Toss the drained spaghetti with the basil-tomato sauce, several cloves of the confited garlic mashed in, and a splash of the pasta water to loosen if needed.
- Dot the robiola over the pasta and fold through gently, letting the residual heat melt it into streaks rather than a fully uniform sauce. Top with the roasted tomatoes and remaining garlic cloves. Scatter with fresh basil.
Notes
- Confit the garlic at the lowest possible heat, never a hard fry. Fried hard, garlic turns bitter within seconds; confited slowly in oil, it becomes soft, sweet and completely spreadable.
- Do not blend the pasta sauce until glassy smooth. A little texture from the basil and tomato pieces is more interesting than a completely uniform purée.
- Fold the robiola through gently rather than stirring it fully smooth. Streaks of melted cheese through the pasta give more textural interest than a fully blended sauce.
- The garlic confit and its oil keep for 2 weeks in the fridge, and are worth making in a larger batch to have on hand for other dishes.
Ingredient substitutions
- Robiola can be any soft, spreadable cheese; a good burrata torn over the top at the end is a luxurious alternative.
- Cherry tomatoes can be halved larger tomatoes, though cherry tomatoes roast more evenly.
- The leftover garlic oil is excellent drizzled over bread or used in place of plain olive oil in other dishes.
From Christoph Mayer