Simple yet spectacular, this fusilli alla Caprese requires just a handful of ingredients, comes together quickly, and is delicious hot or cold.
Simple yet spectacular, this fusilli alla Caprese requires just a handful of ingredients, comes together quickly, and is delicious hot or cold.
Sometimes cooking weeknight dinners can feel like a chore, but when a dish is as simple and spectacular as this one, it can be therapy. Adapted from Giada De Laurentis, fusilli alla Caprese calls for just a handful of good-quality ingredients – and the sauce cooks in less time than it takes to boil the pasta! What’s more, it’s delicious cold, should you have any leftover. Thank you to my dear friend Kelly Santoro for sharing the recipe with me.
What You’ll Need To Make Fusilli Alla Caprese
Since the recipe calls for so few ingredients, it’s important not to skimp on quality. You’ll need good extra-virgin olive oil, fresh minced garlic (no jarred stuff!), sweet cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, and fresh mozzarella.
Fusilli is the ideal pasta shape for this recipe – because of its corkscrew shape, the sauce clings nicely to it. But if you’re unable to find fusilli in your store, rotini, penne, or farfalle pastas are all good alternatives.
If your store happens to carry packages of assorted colors of cherry tomatoes, I love the color they add to the dish; if not no worries – it will still be lovely.
For the cheese, I like to use mozzarella pearls; these are the tiniest mozzarella balls, named for their size. Most large supermarkets carry them conveniently packaged in 8-oz pouches but, if you can’t find them, simply buy a ball of fresh mozzarella and dice it into cubes.
How To Make Fusilli Alla Caprese
Begin by boiling the fusilli until al dente. You’ll need to reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water to use in the sauce. It’s easy to forget when you drain the pasta, so I always set out a liquid measuring cup as a visual reminder.
Next, use a small serrated knife to halve the cherry tomatoes.
Make the sauce: in a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes; do not burn.
Add the halved tomatoes, salt, and pepper and increase the heat to medium-high.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes start to soften and burst, 4 to 5 minutes.
Using a fork, smash the tomatoes into a chunky sauce.
Add the drained fusilli to the pan and toss to combine.
Right before serving, toss in the basil and mozzarella pearls. (It’s important to do this at the last minute so the cheese doesn’t melt too much.)
Taste and adjust seasoning, adding the reserved pasta water little by little if the pasta seems dry. Spoon into bowls and serve.
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