There are pasta dishes, beyond the classic salad, that are perfect for hot days. This one, prepared with tomatoes at their best and mozzarella, is one of them.
Summer on a Plate
With good weather, we crave fresh and flavorful dishes that are complete and don’t require too much work. Italians solve a summer meal with the sacred trio of pasta + tomato + mozzarella; for example, with a crudaiola.
To give a small twist to that recipe, I propose a version that requires a couple of extra steps. On the one hand, we’re going to prepare a tomato water in which we’ll cook the pasta, which will absorb some of the green and acidic notes of the tomato plant. It’s important that the tomatoes are ripe and flavorful, so those notes come out well accentuated in the water. The pulp left over after extracting the water is not wasted – we can add it to a tomato sauce or stew.
I also change the way we incorporate the mozzarella: by blending it with a little of its preservation water, I get a cream that will evenly coat the spaghetti. The final result of the dish will be a creamy, not exaggerated, dairy base, over which the cherry tomatoes will stand out – fresh, sweet, and acidic at the same time – and the aroma of basil.
Time: 70 minutes
Difficulty: You’ll need to press the blender button
Ingredients:
For 4 people:
- 600g ripe tomatoes
- 200g cherry tomatoes
- 400g long pasta (such as spaghetti)
- 2 mozzarellas (normal or buffalo)
- Fresh basil leaves
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
Instructions:
- At least an hour before, prepare the tomato water. In a food processor, blend the ripe tomatoes, collect the pulp in a clean kitchen cloth, place it in a colander over a bowl, and let the tomato water drain.
- Place a weight (such as a plate with a packet of rice on top) on the cloth with the tomato pulp to facilitate draining and wait for about 40 minutes.
- Remove the mozzarellas from their bag and leave them in their preservation liquid at room temperature for half an hour.
- Boil water for the pasta: while it cooks, we’ll make the dressing.
- In a blender, put one and a half mozzarellas, broken into pieces, three tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, and about six tablespoons of the mozzarella preservation liquid. Blend at maximum speed until you get a cream. If necessary, add a little more of the mozzarella water.
- Cut the cherry tomatoes into quarters and season with a pinch of salt. Reserve them in a bowl.
- Cut or break the remaining mozzarella into small pieces with your hands.
- Drain the pasta three minutes before it’s fully cooked. Sauté it in a pan with the tomato water for three minutes, so it absorbs the flavor.
- Turn off the heat, remove excess tomato water, and dress the pasta with the mozzarella cream, mixing well. Add the cherry tomatoes with their juices, the remaining mozzarella pieces, and some fresh basil leaves.