Try as I might, I don’t often find the time to make it to one of the farmer’s markets in my neighborhood. This week however, I had the fortune of finding myself with a weekday morning off and a market just a few blocks away! I picked up some amazing goodies that included beautiful heirloom cherry tomatoes and fresh pasta. Naturally I spent the rest of my day thinking about  what I was going to make, and decided on a more traditional (and super easy) pasta sauce.

Mince garlic and slice 1/2 of the tomatoes.  In a large pan heat olive oil and sauté garlic until fragrant (this only takes a minute or two).  Add all of the tomatoes, season with salt, and cook on medium for about 7-10 minutes. The halved tomatoes should release all their juices and the whole should begin to shrivel.

Cook the pasta according to directions, making sure to reserve 1 cup of the pasta liquid before draining pasta.  Add 1/2 cup of the pasta liquid to the tomatoes, a small bit at a time, until it reaches the consistency that you like.

Add the pasta and 1/2 Tbsp olive oil to the tomato sauce.  Once the pasta is coated in the sauce, add the mozzarella and basil and serve immediately.