Roasted White Bean and Tomato Pasta

Roasted White Bean and Tomato Pasta

Sweet cherry tomatoes roasted with garlic, herbs and lemon until they burst into a luscious sauce mixed with white cannellini beans and tossed with gnocchi or your favorite pasta.

Course Entree, Pasta

Cuisine Italian

Keyword roasted tomato pasta, white bean roasted tomato pasta

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 30

Total Time 40

Servings people

Calories 353kcal

Author Florentina

Ingredients

4 cups cherry tomatoes
4-6 cloves garlic
2 sprigs rosemary (or 10 sprigs of thyme)
1 lemon quartered
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp olive oil
14 oz can cannellini beans (drained + rinsed)
2 cups baby spinach packed
1 lb gnocchi (or your favorite pasta)
S & P to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400”F.
Cut the ends off of the garlic cloves to expose the flesh but keep the paper on.
In a high sided baking dish drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil. Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt and the red pepper flakes.
2 Tbsp olive oil, S & P to taste, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Add the tomatoes, garlic cloves, quartered lemons and rosemary sprigs or thyme to the baking dish. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and give everything a toss to coat.
4 cups cherry tomatoes, 4-6 cloves garlic, 1 lemon, 2 sprigs rosemary
Roast the tomatoes in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, until they have burst and released their juices. (Don’t cook them down too much to avoid evaporating the sauce).
Add the rinsed cannellini beans to the pan and give it a mix to coat. Bake another 5 minutes until the beans are heated through.
14 oz can cannellini beans
Add the baby spinach on top and turn off the oven. Allow everything to sit in the hot oven for another 5 minutes for the spinach to wilt. Remove the dish from the oven and using a spatula fold in the wilted spinach.
2 cups baby spinach
Discard the rosemary or thyme sprigs and transfer the roasted garlic cloves to a plate. (Note: If desired you can squeeze the garlic out of its paper while gently mashing it and mix back in with the tomatoes, it’s creamy and delicious).
Meanwhile bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Season generously with coarse sea salt and cook the gnocchi according to directions on the package. The general consensus is that gnocchi is ready as soon as it floats to the top.
1 lb gnocchi
Drain in a colander or use a spider ladle and transfer the gnocchi straight from the pot into the baking dish with the roasted beans and tomatoes.
Adjust seasonings to taste with salt and pepper, finish with a light drizzle of olive oil and serve with extra lemon wedges + red chili flakes on the side.

Notes

On Pasta - If using a different pasta than the Gnocchi, only use 3/4 lb and adjust ratios from there.
Cannellini Beans - You can go heavier on the beans if desire and up the quantity to 28 oz. The important thing to consider is not adding the beans until the tomatoes have burst.
Garlic - Whole cloves in their paper with just the ends exposed to steam nicely and flavor the dish. After roasting you can squeeze them out of their paper and mash before adding back into the sauce, or just save to enjoy on bruschetta.

Nutrition