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Baked Feta Pasta: A nostalgic, flavor-packed dish with creamy feta and sweet tomatoes.
It was my first weekend back at my childhood home after a long stretch away. My parents were on a mini-vacation, leaving me with full reign of the kitchen and the nostalgic flavors that come with it. I spotted a block of feta and a heap of grape tomatoes—ingredients that both comforted and inspired me. I decided to whip up a dish that both honored and transformed those everyday ingredients. Tossing the grape tomatoes with cloves of garlic and olive oil felt almost like a small homage to my mother’s way of making even raw ingredients sing. I nestled the feta bravely in the center and watched it toasty into perfection.
As the feta melted into the tomatoes, the kitchen filled with familiar Mediterranean aromas. I remembered how my dad would always say fresh herbs could fix anything. With that in mind, I decided to finish with generous handfuls of basil and parsley, getting them ready while the dish worked its magic in the oven. A sprinkle of red pepper flakes for a gentle kick completed the ensemble. I stirred in the short pasta, a favorite carried over from many family dinners.
One not-so-secret trick I learned is to save some pasta water; it gives just the right silkiness to the final mix without overpowering the flavors. This simple, delightful pasta became my go-to when I craved the joy of my childhood kitchen. The blend of the softened cheese and sweet tomatoes capped my weekend off with a warm, comforting note.
Ingredients
- 20 ounces grape tomatoes
- 5 medium cloves garlic peeled and halved
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 (7-8-ounce) block feta cheese plus more, to taste, drained and patted dry
- 10 ounces short pasta such as campanelle, rigatoni, rotini, penne, bow tie, or cavatappi
- 8 ounces spinach roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh basil thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley minced
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Add the grape tomatoes and garlic to a 3-quart baking dish.
- Toss the contents with the olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.
- In the center of the tomatoes, place 1 block of the feta and turn to coat generously in the oil.
- Place the baking dish in the oven on the center rack and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven. Carefully raise the rack to the top 1/3 of the oven.
- Return the dish with the feta to the upper rack and increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees F, baking until the tomatoes and the cheese start to brown, about 10 minutes.
- While the cheese and tomatoes are baking, cook the pasta al dente according to package instructions.
- With 1-2 minutes of cook time remaining, submerge the spinach into the water with the pasta.
- Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water, then drain the remainder.
- Remove the cheese and the tomatoes from the oven.
- Using the back of a wooden spoon, slightly mash the tomatoes and the feta. Add the pasta mixture, the basil, the parsley, and the red pepper flakes.
- Thin the pasta mixture with the reserved pasta water, a little at a time, until it reaches the desired consistency.
- Add more of the salt and the pepper, as needed.
- Serve immediately.
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