Tomato, basil and mascarpone pasta is a rich, delicious & quick vegetarian dinner featuring silky smooth & creamy sauce with a little chilli.
When I say quick, this recipe will go from your fridge to your table in around 20 minutes but the sauce tastes like it’s cooked for much longer!
Pasta in a Creamy Tomato and Basil Sauce
Mascarpone cheese is often thought of as an ingredient that is used in sweet dishes, but it has plenty of utility in savoury recipes too.
Here it’s the creamy “hero” in a mascarpone and tomato pasta recipe.
Usually, I use creme fraiche in my creamy pasta recipes because it provides a wonderful tartness in dishes like my ham and mushroom tagliatelle and canned salmon pasta.
However, tomatoes rarely need any more tartness and often benefit from a little sweetness.
This is where mascarpone comes into its own in this recipe, I double down on that slight sweetness with a fortified wine. The marsala adds a wonderfully complex flavour and it works exceptionally well in pasta sauces, I even use it alongside my mushroom ravioli recipe.
Then we get basil, loads of it! The tomato sauce gets some dried basil to provide a bedrock of flavour early doors. Then fresh basil gets wilted through the sauce when you stir the pasta through and it is finished with fresh basil as a garnish.
A touch of shallot, chilli, and garlic round out the flavours in this delicious recipe, and it can be all yours in well under 30 minutes!
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe does not use a whole tub of mascarpone, what can I do with the rest?
Well, arguably the most famous dish that uses mascarpone cheese is tiramisu. Another good idea on the dessert front would be to sweeten it up and serve it with some crepes and fruit compote.
If you are hunting for something altogether more savoury, how about this delicious lemon and mascarpone pasta or even this simple courgette tart?
Can I use anything in place of mascarpone cheese?
You can, however, you would then not be making a tomato and mascarpone sauce!
Creme fraiche makes a nice addition, but it is less sweet and has more acidity, a combination of creme cheese and sour cream or double cream also works fairly well.
What can I use in place of Marsala wine?
I think that the best substitutions for marsala in this recipe would be either sherry or vermouth.
Both would change the flavour of the sauce a little but would be delicious. You could also use white wine, which would change the flavour a lot.
If you want to omit the alcohol completely I would add a splash of white wine vinegar. You will probably also need a little more sugar.
Can I use different types of pasta?
Yes, I have covered this in the serving suggestions section a little further down the page.
Can I make this in advance?
No, this sauce is very much at its best when it is made and served fresh.
Serving Suggestions
Your biggest serving choice with this tomato and mascarpone pasta recipe is what pasta to use!
I love this with the much-maligned fusilli, that rich and creamy sauce coats the ribs on the spirals beautifully.
You could use shorter tubes like penne or rigatoni. The sauce is also great with broad long pasta like pappardelle or tagliatelle.
When it comes to side dishes, I like to keep it simple and some garlic baguette or cheesy garlic bread are both perfect!
Equipment Used
I only mention specific brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But, if you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.
- Hob/stovetop.
- 20cm or 8″ saucepan.
- 30cm or 12″ frying pan.
- Colander.
- Chopping board.
- Kitchen knife.
- Stirring spoons and kitchen tongs.
- A combination of weighing scales, measuring cups and spoons.
Easy Tomato, Basil and Mascarpone Pasta Recipe
A rich and indulgent pasta (fusilli) in tomato, basil and mascarpone sauce makes for a fantastic dinner that tastes delicious but is gloriously quick and easy to make!
Ingredients
- 200g (7oz) Pasta, I use Fusilli
- 35g (1 Small) Shallot
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 1 Medium Hot Red Chilli Pepper
- 25g (2 Tbsp) Butter
- 75ml (⅓ Cup) Marsala Wine
- 200g (¾ Cup) Tomato Passata
- 1 Tsp Dried Basil
- ¼ Tsp Salt Plus Extra to Boil the Pasta
- ⅛ Tsp Sugar
- 75g (¼ Cup) Mascarpone Cheese
- Handful of Fresh Basil Leaves
Instructions
- Begin by bringing a 20cm or 8" saucepan of well-salted water to a boil (I use 1½ teaspoons of salt in a pan this size).
- Cut the shallot in half, peel it and then dice it as finely as you can.
- Peel the garlic cloves and chop them into a dice as small as you can.
- Remove the stem and the seeds from the chilli and cut it into a small dice.
- Heat a 30cm or 12" frying pan over a medium-high heat and when it is hot add the butter.
- Once the butter begins to foam add the shallots, garlic and chilli, then cook for 1-2 minutes. You are not aiming to colour these ingredients, so if they begin to colour reduce the heat a little.
- Pour the marsala wine into the pan with the shallots and cook for two minutes.
- As soon as you add the wine throw the pasta into the boiling water and cook until al-dente, this should take 9-10 minutes.
- After the wine has cooked for 2 minutes and has been reduced a little, add the passata, dried basil, salt, and sugar then cook over a low to medium heat until you are ready to drain the pasta.
- Stir the mascarpone cheese through the tomato sauce just before you drain the pasta.
- Drain the pasta reserving some of the pasta water, then stir the pasta and most of the whole basil leaves through the sauce adding as much of the pasta water as required.
- Garnish with some small basil leaves and serve immediately.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 787Total Fat: 30gSaturated Fat: 17gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 78mgSodium: 782mgCarbohydrates: 108gFiber: 7gSugar: 10gProtein: 21g
Calorific details are provided by a third-party application and are to be used as indicative figures only.