Pasta Ponza

This is a Giada De Laurentiis recipe, that is why it is sooo good! My sister and I love watching Everyday Italian.....anyway back to the food :) Perfect for a pasta craving and even though it is meat free, there is so much going on, you won't miss a thing!



Ingredients:

4 cups of cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
1/4 cup capers, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt, extra for seasoning
1/4 teaspoon pepper, extra for seasoning
1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1 lb. ziti pasta or any other short pasta
1/2 grated fresh Parmesan cheese or pecorino romano cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

1.Preheat oven to 375. Grease an 8x8 baking dish with nonstick butter spray.
2.Place tomatoes, capers, 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt, and pepper in the prepared dish. Toss to coat. Sprinkle all the breadcrumbs over the tomato mixture. Drizzle the top with a little olive oil and bake for 30 minutes in the center of your oven.
3.Bring a larger pot of slated water to a boil over high heat. Add the past and cook until tender, stirring occasionally. About 8-10 minutes. Drain and reserve about 1 cup of hot pasta water.
4.Place the pasta in a large serving bowl. Toss the pasta and cheese together. This will allow the cheese to start to melt and be delicious. Carefully spoon the tomato mixture into the pasta and toss well. You may need to add a little bit of pasta water so your dish isn't dry. I added about 1/4 cup or so in and it makes the pasta nice and saucy. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed. Sprinkle the tops with parsley and serve!

* I served up garlic knots and broccoli along side to complete the meal. But a salad would be great too.
* You can also use whole grain pasta in this dish too, to make it super healthy. Sometime I do half wheat noodles half white and no one can tell!
* If you want to incorporate some meat into this meal it would be really easy and yummy to add diced cooked chicken or cooked and crumbled spicy turkey sausage.