No-Cook Summer Tomato Sauce

This delightfully simply summer fare calls for the best peak season ripe tomatoes - perfect if you have a bumper crop, get some overflow from a neighbor, or score at your local market! We love Early Girls and other heirloom varieties best. The ripeness and flavor really matters here since the raw tomatoes and good olive oil are the stars of the sauce. (Ok, so you do still have to cook the pasta!) Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS:

1½ pounds very ripe tomatoes, any shape larger than cherry
1 clove garlic (for more pungent flavor) or 2 Tablespoons Garlic EVOO (for more mellow flavor)
4 teaspoons red wine vinegar
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or North Beach Blend spice
2 Tbsp Basil EVOO
¼ cup House Blend or Olio Santo EVOO, plus more for drizzling (optionally use a bolder oil like Reserve to really make it pop)
1 cup finely grated Parmesan, divided
Kosher salt
1 cup basil leaves, torn
12oz pasta, cooked (the sauce is no-cook!) -- try a fresh pasta to greatly reduce cook time!

Cut tomatoes in half through the equator (across the midline rather than through the core). Hold halves in your palm and gently squeeze out seeds and surrounding juice/jelly over a small bowl. If you love tomato juice, pour through a strainer to separate out the seeds so you can drink the juice that falls through - SUCH a treat!

Roughly chop the tomatoes - everything should be marble size or smaller. Transfer tomatoes to a large bowl and mash mixture several times with the back of a large spoon, fork or potato masher to release more juices (you can also just use your hands).

Add grated garlic clove or Garlic EVOO into the bowl with tomatoes, Basil EVOO, vinegar, red pepper flakes, House or Olio Santo EVOO, and half of the Parmesan. Season with several pinches of salt, then toss to combine. Cover bowl (we love our new silicone lids for this!) and let sit at room temperature at least 30 minutes and up to 5 hours. This lets the flavors marry and tomato juices exude to make a saucy pasta.

When you’re ready to eat, bring a large pot of water to a boil and add a small handful of salt. Cook pasta until al dente (follow package instructions). As soon as pasta is ready, use tongs to transfer pasta to the bowl with the tomato mixture and TOSS TOSS TOSS. You want the hot pasta to melt the cheese, which will thicken the sauce. Taste and season with more salt if needed, then toss in 1 cup torn basil.

Portion pasta into shallow bowls, then spoon remaining tomatoes and juices over. Top with remaining Parmesan, then drizzle with more olive oil of your choice and enjoy!

Adapted from Bon Appetite. Photo credit to Emiko/Food 52.