The Cozy Cookbook is here! This Tomato Basil Pasta recipe is made with fresh cherry tomatoes and basil in a creamy garlic Parmesan sauce with sausage, turkey, or ground beef!
Be sure to serve this with a side of Garlic Bread with Cheese!
Tomato Basil Pasta
If your garden is exploding with basil and tomatoes right now, I’ve got your back. And if you have no basil or tomatoes on hand but want to make this recipe anyway, I have some great substitution options for you!
You can even use different types of pasta- check out all of the info below!
How to Make it
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Brown ground sausage in a skillet with olive oil until cooked through. Remove and set aside. The brown specks left on the bottom of the pan will add great flavor to the sauce.
Melt 3 Tablespoons of butter. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in flour for 1 minute.
Slowly pour in the chicken broth and half and half. Whisk to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low.
Gradually sprinkle in the grated Parmesan cheese. Whisk until combined. Add cream cheese and stir until melted and combined. The sauce will continue to thicken as it simmers longer.
Add the tortellini and the tomatoes. Increase heat slightly and bubble gently, uncovered, until the pastas is cooked through. Refer to package for exact time frame, generally 4-7 minutes.
Add the ground sausage back to the pan and stir to combine.
Chiffonade the basil (see below for visual + instructions) and add it to the saucepan, stir to combine. The sauce will thicken even further upon standing. Serve and enjoy!
How to Make Perfect Cream Sauce
- Refrain from adding cold ingredients into warm sauce when you prepare it. This includes the Parmesan cheese, half and half, and cream cheese. The consistency will be super creamy if you follow this instruction.
- Purchase a block of high-quality Parmesan cheese. Always shred the cheese yourself, it will taste and melt much better.
- Let the cheese come to room temperature before adding it to the warm (not hot!) base.
- Add the cheese gradually as opposed to all at once.
How to Chiffonade Basil
To “chiffonade” means to shred or finely slice leafy greens like basil, lettuce, or cabbage.
To do it, create a stack of basil leaves. Roll them up so that they’re a tight and compact cylinder.
Use a sharp paring knife to create thin, even slices along the cylinder.
Separate the slices with your fingers and immediately add them to your dish as they will quickly begin to brown if left out too long.
More Pro Tips and Substitution Options
- Rana is my brand of choice for refrigerated tortellini and I highly recommend using that kind of pasta for this meal. I purchase a 20 oz. bag and use 12 oz. (or 3/4 lb.) for this recipe, then I freeze the remaining 8 oz. (or 1/2 lb.) for another day.
- Browning the meat in the skillet first adds tremendous flavor to the pan that transfers into the sauce.
- 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes may also be used instead of cherry tomatoes.
- Up to 2 cups of spinach may be used instead of basil. Frozen spinach that’s been thawed and drained works well too.
Using Dry Pasta
The amount of liquid in this sauce is based upon using refrigerated pasta. Dry pasta requires more liquid and cooking time.
To use dry pasta such as Penne or Farfalle:
- Boil 3/4 pound of pasta separately for 5 minutes less than instructed on package.
- Drain and transfer to this sauce.
- Let it gently bubble, uncovered, for the remaining 5 minutes, or until it’s reached your desired texture.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
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Did You Make This Recipe?
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Tomato Basil Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- ½ lb. ground sausage, hot or sweet
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon flour
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup half and half
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated and at room temp.
- 1 heaping Tablespoon cream cheese, at room temp.
- 3/4 pound refrigerated tortellini, see notes for other pasta options
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/3 cup firmly packed basil leaves, chiffonade
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes, optional
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the sausage, cook and crumble until brown and cooked through. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Drain any grease from the pan and reduce the heat to medium. Melt the butter. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the chicken broth and half and half. Increase heat and bring to a boil, then decrease heat to a simmer.
- Gradually sprinkle in the Parmesan cheese, whisking well to incorporate.
- Whisk in the cream cheese until incorporated. It melts smoothly when at room temperature.
- Add the tortellini and then the tomatoes. Stir gently to combine into the sauce.
- Let it bubble gently, uncovered, until cooked through. Refer to package for exact time frame, typically 4-7 minutes.
- Stir in the basil leaves and add the sausage back to the pan. Add red pepper flakes if desired.
- Turn off the heat. The sauce will continue to thicken upon standing.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Using Dry Pasta
The amount of liquid in this sauce is based upon using refrigerated pasta. Dry pasta requires more liquid and cooking time. To use dry pasta such as Penne or Farfalle:- Boil 3/4 pound of pasta separately for 5 minutes less than instructed on package.
- Drain and transfer to this sauce.
- Let it gently bubble, uncovered, for the remaining 5 minutes, or until it's reached your desired texture.
Other Substitutions Options:
- Ground turkey or beef may be used instead of sausage.
- Heavy cream may be used instead of half and half. I don't recommend milk as that can curdle during the cooking process and the sauce will be much thinner.
- 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes may also be used instead of cherry tomatoes.
- Up to 2 cups fresh spinach may be used instead of basil. Frozen spinach that's been thawed and drained works well too.
This looks great. Interesting that your Yummly photo shows ravioli, but your recipe photo shows the tortellini. I assume ravioli is an alternative? Thanks.
Hi Dennis, yes, ravioli may also be used!
Followed the recipe exactly… Would not change a thing. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen. When I find a recipe that I love; I print it out and put it in my binder. This one is going in my binder. Can’t wait to make again for family and friends. Yum!!! Thank you for sharing this gem.
I’m so happy this earned a spot in the binder Jessie, thanks so much for your support!❤️
This is so delicious!My kids love it! I made the tortellini separately and then added to the sauce at the end with the sausage. I let the sauce simmer for a while longer and the cherry tomatoes were basically falling apart in the sauce. So flavorful! Perfect combo again. Thanks Stephanie.
You’re very welcome Lin, sounds like you nailed it, nice work! Thanks so much for the great review!💗
If any other vegetarians see this: this recipe works great with Impossible sausage and vegetable broth! Delicious!
That’s so helpful Claire, thanks so much!💗