Pesto Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes and Garlic

What do you do with a bunch of big, beautiful tomatoes that are given to you, before they take over your kitchen?

This is the first of two recipes working to solve that "problem". I roasted chunks of tomatoes and minced garlic right in my cast iron frying pan, allowing the whole mixture and pan to heat up as the oven did. Everything timed out perfectly so the tomatoes were done roasting at the exact moment when they were needed for the pasta. It's an easy recipe that has a lot of flavor, since roasting vegetables is the best way to bring out their best qualities.

Ingredients

• olive oil
• 2 large tomatoes, cut into chunks
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb cut pasta (such as penne or ziti)
• 3-4 spoonfuls basil pesto, or more to taste (I like Classico's pesto)

Directions

1. Turn on oven to 425 degrees.
2. Drizzle olive oil in an oven-safe dish or pan. Add chopped tomatoes and garlic, stir quickly to coat, then place in oven while oven is still preheating.
3. While tomatoes are roasting, boil water and prepare pasta according to package directions.
4. Drain and rinse pasta; return to pan.
5. Add pesto to your desired taste.
6. Remove tomatoes from oven. Add to pasta and serve immediately alongside a chunk of crusty bread.