Fusilli with Baked Tomato Sauce with Spinach & Goat Cheese

This recipe is from Mary’s boyfriend’s brother, Evan. He made this for us a couple of weeks ago and we LOVED it and so we decided to give it a shot for ourselves. He based his off of a recipe he found on Smitten Kitchen.  This recipe is SO simple and delicious. It is really quick and easy to make. You will love it. It has quickly become a favorite of ours. Thanks for introducing this recipe to us, Evan!

Ingredients

  • 3-4 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
  • 1 pound cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
  • 1/3 cup plain, dry bread crumbs
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
  • 2 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino cheese
  • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • a few handfuls of spinach
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1 pound dried fusilli (corkscrew) or farfalline (butterfly) pasta
  • 1/4 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, torn
  • 3 oz. Goat Cheese, crumbled

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease a baking dish/baking sheet with 2 to 3 tablespoons of the oil.
  • Place the tomatoes cut side up in the dish/baking sheet. Gather all of the tomatoes in the center so they are all touching.
  • In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cheeses, and garlic and toss with a fork to mix well. Sprinkle the bread-crumb mixture over the tomatoes, making sure that each cut side is well covered with the crumb mixture. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and then the final tablespoon of olive oil. Bake until the tomatoes are cooked through and starting to brown on top, about 20 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, in a pan, sauté garlic and olive oil. Add the spinach and season with salt and pepper.
  • Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente.  Reserve  1/2 cup – 1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Time the pasta so it finishes cooking about the time the tomatoes are ready to come out of the oven.
  • Combine the pasta, tomato mixture, spinach, and goat cheese.  Add the pasta cooking water until desired consistency.   Garnish with basil and sprinkle with more Goat Cheese, if desired.