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Creamy Tomato Basil Pasta is our favorite way to use all those garden tomatoes! Fresh tomatoes and cream form this Italian "pink" sauce with garlic, basil, and other garden extras like onion and zucchini. Add a protein or keep it vegetarian, this simple tomato basil cream sauce is full of summer garden flavor and ready in 25 minutes!
The Garden Bounty
It's mid August and our garden is overflowing with all the summer favorites, tomatoes, zucchini and loads of basil! This simple creamy tomato basil sauce dents the produce pile on my counter!
If you don't garden, the farmer's market has it all too! The juiciness of the tomatoes and a little cream makes this quick summer harvest pasta sauce and comes together in the time it takes you to cook the pasta!
If you LOVE easy creamy pastas, be sure to try my Creamy Farfalle with Prosciutto and Peas, Pesto Alfredo Pasta, and this Creamy Tomato Pink Sauce Pasta with Italian Sausage!
And if you really have more tomatoes than you know what to do with, make a pot of Freezer Marinara Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes or this Roasted Tomato Basil Soup!
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Ingredients & Substitutions
- Fettuccini - You can really make this tomato basil fettuccine using any pasta shape, long or short. Spaghetti, linguine, penne, or bowtie are great substitutions. Refrigerated ravioli or tortellini would be great too!
- Zucchini - This turned into a Tomato Basil Zucchini Pasta because when you grow zucchini you end up with so much, you throw it in everything! However, this creamy vegetable pasta is versatile! You can substitute other veggies for the zucchini such as red bell pepper, mushrooms, spinach or kale.
- Fresh Garden Tomato - The amount doesn't need to be exact, but I chopped about 4 cups from the basket of various tomato varieties harvested from my garden. Use what you have, a handful of cherry tomatoes and any combination of larger tomatoes are all fine. All that liquid in the tomatoes is what combines with the cream to form your "pink" pasta sauce!
- Garlic - Use fresh if you can!
- Basil - Tomato and basil are a match made in heaven! I love having lots of basil to use all summer. Buying a small starter plant is just not enough! I've found the best way to grow basil is to buy a packet of seeds for a few dollars and plant the whole pack! I fill up a whole window box and enjoy fresh basil all summer. Extras go into Freezer Pesto and Mixed Herbs and Garden Greens for the Freezer.
- Heavy Cream - Cream is a magical ingredient in pasta sauce making! It thickens as it reduces and brings together the juice from the tomatoes and a little bit of the reserved starchy pasta cooking water to bring the whole dish together. You can use half & half for a lighter sauce, but it won't be as rich and wonderfully creamy!
- Parmesan Cheese - I always recommend buying a block of Parmesan cheese and shredding it yourself for the best quality and flavor. It blends into the sauce for delicious Italian flavor!
Instructions
Step 1 - In the time it takes to boil water and cook your pasta, this creamy tomato basil fettuccine sauce can be made, before tossing it all together!
Set water to boil and cook your pasta with a pinch of salt, following the cooking time on the package.
Before you drain the pasta, use a measuring cup or coffee mug to scoop out a cup or so of the starchy cooking liquid to save for the sauce.
Step 2 - Meanwhile, set a large skillet, large enough to toss with the pasta, over medium heat and saute your onion and zucchini.
When they start to brown and soften, add the chopped tomatoes and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Let the tomatoes simmer a few minutes until they start to release their liquid.
Step 3 - Add cream to form the sauce. It combines with the juice of the tomatoes, giving you a silky pink sauce, thickening as it reduces.
When the sauce has thickened and the pasta is ready, add a handful of garden basil and use tongs to toss with your drained pasta and Parmesan cheese.
You can add some of the starching cooking water to thin and stretch the sauce as needed. If the pasta sits awhile, it may need a bit more of the liquid to loosen back up!
Chef Tips
- Adding Protein - I kept this recipe simple and vegetarian, but you could easily add grilled or Cast Iron Skillet Chicken Breast, shrimp or sliced Italian sausage to make it a heartier meal.
- Save your Starchy Pasta Water! - Before you drain your pasta, pull out a cup or so of that starchy liquid gold! Pasta cooking water is one of the secrets to sauce making! The starch from the pasta helps your sauce adhere. It stretches the cream and brings everything together to coat every noodle.
- Season as You Go! - This recipe calls for ½ teaspoon of salt, but it's usually best to season a dish as you go. Add a pinch of salt to the boiling water before adding the pasta. Add a pinch to the sautéing onion and zucchini. Then you can add the ½ teaspoon to the sauce when you add your tomatoes. Since the tomatoes are the bulk of your ingredients, they most need the salt. If you are adding grilled chicken to the top of your pasta, you will of course need to salt it before grilling.
- Storage - Store leftover pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can microwave a quick serving for lunch, or reheat a larger amount in a pan on the stovetop. Add a little milk or water to loosen it up and stir over low heat. This dish does not freeze well.
What to Serve It With
This tomato basil fettuccine is delicious in the summer with a big salad like this Italian Mixed Greens Salad with Crispy Prosciutto and some Italian side dishes and appetizers to make it a bigger meal!
A dish with crusty bread goes great alongside pasta like this Panzanella Bread Salad with Cherry Tomato, Bruschetta with Cherry Tomatoes, or this White Bean Bruschetta.
Adding a side with meat is a nice addition to this vegetarian pasta like this Melon Prosciutto Salad with Arugula or this Prosciutto Parmesan Salad with Basil Dressing.
Recipe FAQs
You can, but it won't be quite as rich and creamy! Heavy cream has the amazing ability to reduce and thicken into a sauce very quickly. Half & half would be fine to use, since it is half cream and half milk, your sauce will just be a bit thinner. I don't recommend using milk as it won't reduce into a sauce very well.
Yes! This creamy veggie pasta is extremely versatile! This is a basic cream sauce, an Alfredo sauce, it's just a sauce made by reducing heavy cream. We've flavored it with tomato and basil, but this is really just a blank canvas! You can add different veggies at the beginning when sautéing the onion. The zucchini could be swapped with mushrooms, bell pepper or eggplant. If you aren't trying to use up garden tomatoes, you could just throw in a handful of cherry tomatoes. Add artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes or kalamata olives from the fridge. Really any veggies, with garlic, salt, pepper, Parmesan and some herbs, can be a delicious creamy pasta sauce.
Yes! Give your creamy fresh tomato sauce a little kick by adding a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes to the sautéing onions. This goes especially well adding shrimp as a protein to the pasta dish!
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Creamy Tomato Basil Pasta
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Print Pin RateIngredients
- 1 pound fettuccine (or any pasta shape)
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- ½ onion chopped
- 1 zucchini chopped
- 4 cups fresh tomato, any kind chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ⅓ cup fresh basil chopped
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 grinds fresh black pepper
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese shredded, plus more for serving
Instructions
- You can make your fresh tomato cream sauce in the time it takes to cook the pasta. Set water to boil (add a pinch of salt before adding pasta) and cook pasta according to package instructions (12 minutes). BEFORE draining, scoop out a cup of the starchy cooking water (a coffee cup or measuring cup works great for this!) and reserve for the sauce.
- Meanwhile, chop all veggies. A full 4 cup pyrex glass measuring cup works well for measuring the roughly chopped tomatoes.
- In a large skillet, large enough to toss the pasta with the sauce, heat olive oil over medium heat. Saute the onion and zucchini with a pinch of salt and pepper, until starting to soften and brown. Stir often.
- Add tomato and garlic, season with ½ teaspoon salt and 8 grinds pepper. Let the tomatoes saute with the zucchini and onion a few more minutes until the liquid in the tomato starts to release.
- Add basil and cream and simmer on low, about 5 minutes until slightly thickened. Stir often until pasta is ready.
- Add drained pasta and Parmesan to the sauce and toss with tongs until well combined. You can add some of the starching cooking water to thin the sauce as needed. Sometimes when I come back to the stove for a second helping, the sauce has sat awhile and needs a bit of liquid to loosen it up.
- Serve with extra fresh basil and Parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Adding Protein - This recipe is simple and vegetarian, but you could easily add grilled or baked skillet chicken breast, shrimp or sliced Italian sausage.
- Switch up the Veggies for many variations of this recipe!
- Time your Pasta - Always check the cooking time on the box of pasta and start with the shortest amount of time it recommends. Set a timer! You want your pasta al dente, with a bit of firmness and never mushy! Taste a noodle to check.
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