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white plate filled with tagliatelle with cherry tomatoes and fresh basil
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Homemade Tagliatelle Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes, Garlic and Basil

Homemade tagliatelle pasta paired with a simple cherry tomato, garlic and basil sauce is the perfect summer meal!  This sauce comes together in minutes so you can take the extra time to make tagliatelle, one of the easiest fresh pastas you can make if you've never tried making homemade pasta before.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Keyword homemade tagliatelle pasta recipe, homemade tagliatelle pasta with cherry tomato, garlic and basil sauce
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 13 minutes
Resting time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 43 minutes
Servings 4 servings
Calories 721kcal

Equipment

  • Pasta maker

Ingredients

For the pasta dough

  • 400 grams all-purpose flour about 2 1/2 cups
  • 4 large eggs
  • pinch salt

For the sauce

  • 2 pints cherry tomatoes rinsed and dried
  • 4 cloves garlic finely minced
  • 1/2 cup olive oil plus extra for drizzling on top
  • pinch red pepper flakes optional
  • handful basil leaves
  • grated Parmigiano or Pecorino Romano cheese for serving
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Make the pasta dough:

  • Place all-purpose flour in a mound on a your counter. Make a well in the center, add eggs and a pinch of salt. Be sure to keep the eggs within the walls of the flour. Use a fork to carefully beat the eggs slowly incorporating the flour to begin forming a dough. 
  • When you have a shaggy looking dough, begin kneading the dough with your hands. Use the palms of your hands to apply pressure on the dough. Continue kneading for about 10 minutes until you have a smooth dough.
  • Cover and let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. Do not skip this step. The gluten in the flour needs time to rest in order to make the dough more malleable and easy to roll.

Roll the dough

  • Set the pasta roller at the widest setting. Divide the dough into 4 pieces and work with 1 piece at a time, keeping the rest covered in order to prevent from drying.
  • Flatten the dough with the palms of your hand in order to help ease it through the pasta roller. Roll the dough at this widest setting several times, folding the dough over on itself lengthwise a few times until you have a smooth strip of dough.
  • Begin decreasing the width of the pasta rollers, running the dough at each setting twice until you reach the second to last setting. I prefer tagliatelle that are not paper thin but have some bite to them. But if you prefer thinner pasta, continue on to the last setting. 
  • You'll notice the pasta sheets lengthen as you roll them through each thinner setting. As they become more difficult to roll due to their length, and especially if you're working alone, simply cut the sheets in half for more manageable sheets.
  • Cover the rolled pasta sheets to prevent from drying and roll the remaining pieces of dough.

Shape into tagliatelle

  • Attach the pasta cutter attachment to your pasta machine. Begin rolling each sheet of dough to cut into tagliatelle. Shape loosely into nests and place on a lightly floured sheet pan. If you have one, you may hang the tagliatelle on a drying rack. Continue rolling the remaining pasta sheets.

Prepare the cherry tomato, garlic and basil sauce:

  • In a large skillet heat olive oil on medium heat. Add whole cherry tomatoes and minced garlic cloves. Add red pepper flakes for a touch of spiciness. Cook stirring for about 5 minutes until the tomatoes begin to blister and soften.  
  • Use the back of a wooden spoon to gently crush the tomatoes so that they release some of their juices and thicken as well as flavor the sauce. Cook for 5 minutes longer. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
  • When the cherry tomato sauce is almost ready, add the tagliatelle to a large pot of salted boiling water and boil 2 minutes or until al dente.
  • Drain and the cooked tagliatelle into the skillet with the cherry tomatoes along with a ladle or two of pasta water to help the sauce adhere to the pasta. Stir in fresh torn basil leaves and an extra drizzle of olive oil.
  • Serve immediately with grated Parmigiano or Pecorino Romano cheese at the table.

Notes

Pasta dough making tips:

  • The general rule for making fresh egg pasta is 100 grams of flour and one egg per serving of pasta. Then you can multiply this as much as needed to feed your family. Or you can make extra and freeze it for later.
  • When you knead the dough, it will appear quite dry at first. Resist the temptation to add water to the dough unless absolutely necessary! Knead it for at least five minutes, then if it is still dry and you are having difficulty incorporating all the flour, add water one teaspoon at a time, as needed. You want to avoid having a wet and sticky dough.
  • Do not skip the step of letting the dough rest at room temperature for thirty minutes. The gluten needs to rest in order to make the dough more elastic and make it easier to roll.
  • For best results, allow the tagliatelle to dry for about 30 minutes before boiling.

Can fresh tagliatelle pasta be frozen?

Definitely! Place the tagliatelle nests flat on a tray lined with parchment paper and freeze for about an hour, until completely frozen. Transfer to a well sealed freezer bag and freeze for up to one month. 

Can I make tagliatelle without a pasta maker?

The answer is yes, but the task will be more laborious, of course. Use a rolling pin to roll out each piece of dough as thin as possible, about 3 mm thickness. 
Fold the dough into three, as you would an envelope and use a sharp knife to cut strips of dough to the width of your choice, usually about 1 cm for tagliatelle. Unfold the strips of tagliatelle, shape into nests and place on a tray  or drying rack to dry.

Can other ingredients be added to this simple cherry tomato sauce?

Why not! Other possible additions along with the cherry tomatoes include a diced zucchini, corn kernels, spinach or any other vegetable of your choice. This pasta dish is also delicious served topped with fresh burrata or diced mozzarella stirred in until it melts and is deliciously stringy!

What other sauces can tagliatelle be paired with?

Cherry tomatoes, garlic and basil sauce is ideal for for a summer meal. However homemade tagliatelle would be perfect enjoyed with my seafood pasta recipe; with basil pesto; pistachio pestoor a hearty meat sauce such as the one I prepared for my crepe lasagna.
  • Please note that the nutritional information provided is approximate and may vary according to exact ingredients used and portion size.

Nutrition

Calories: 721kcal | Carbohydrates: 87g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 33g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 22g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 186mg | Sodium: 100mg | Potassium: 704mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 1427IU | Vitamin C: 55mg | Calcium: 75mg | Iron: 7mg