HelloFresh Canada Review: Rigatoni in a Blush Tomato Sauce

HelloFresh Canada delivers fresh ingredients and healthy, chef-curated recipes based on seasonal farm fresh ingredients straight to your doorstep each week. Every week HelloFresh members choose three meals from a selection of award-winning, constantly-changing recipes (say goodbye to recipe boredom!).

We recently reviewed our July HelloFresh Canada delivery and now we are showing you the first of three recipes from our monthly delivery.

Let’s have a look at today’s recipe:

Rigatoni in a Blush Tomato Sauce with Basil Oil and Torn Bocconcini

A rich and luscious pasta dish, this recipe does it depth of flavour to the balsamic vinegar and broiled tomatoes. The balsamic vinegar adds a savoury element while broiling the tomatoes brings out natural sugars and caramelizes them for added depth. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 170 g Rigatoni
• 10 g Garlic
• 56 g Red Onion, chopped
• 10 g Basil
• 227 g Cherry Tomatoes
• 2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 unit Vegetable Broth Concentrate
• ⅓ cup Sour Cream
• 100 g Bocconcini Cheese
• ¼ cup Parmesan Cheese, shredded
• 1 box Crushed Tomatoes

Directions:

1. Preheat your broiler to high (to broil the tomatoes). Start prepping when the oven comes up to temperature!
2. Wash and dry all produce.* Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Mince or grate the garlic. Pick the basil leaves from the stems. (Reserve the stems — we’ll use them to add flavour to the sauce!) Add the rigatoni to the boiling water. Cook until tender, 11-12 min. When the pasta is done, reserve 1/4 cup pasta water (dbl for 4 ppl), then drain.
3. Meanwhile, heat a large non-stick pan over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp oil (dbl for 4 ppl), then the onions and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the onions soften, 4-5 min. Add the crushed tomatoes, broth concentrate(s), reserved basil stems and 1 tbsp vinegar (dbl for 4 ppl). Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is slightly reduced, 7-8 min.
4. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine half the basil leaves and 2 tbsp boiling water (dbl for 4 ppl). (TIP: Use the boiling pasta water!) Drain the basil leaves and gently pat dry with paper towels. Wipe the bowl clean. Thinly slice the blanched basil leaves. In the same bowl, combine the blanched leaves with 1 tbsp oil (dbl for 4 ppl). Set aside.
5. On a baking sheet, toss the cherry tomatoes with 1 tbsp oil (dbl for 4 ppl). Season with salt and pepper. Broil in the centre of the oven, until the tomatoes are tender, 5-6 min.
6. When the sauce is slightly reduced, remove the pan from the heat and discard the basil stems. Stir in the pasta, reserved pasta water, sour cream and Parmesan. Season with pepper. When the cherry tomatoes are roasted, on the same baking sheet, toss the tomatoes with the remaining vinegar.
7. Divide the pasta and sauce between bowls. Top with the balsamic-tomatoes. Tear over the bocconcini and the remaining basil leaves. Drizzle over the basil oil.

Notes: I LOVE pasta but I rarely eat it. I save it for cheat days or when I am in need of something comforting. Well……today was the perfect day for a big bowl of yummy pasta. We’ve got some not so fun things going on in the family right now and this Rigatoni was exactly what the doctor ordered. It wasn’t as quick as some of the other recipes, simply because I had the oven going, water boiling, a saucepan cooking the sauce and a bowl for the blanched basil. But, once I got myself organized the process was smooth and the outcome was worth the wait. This pasta had the right amount of sauce, the right ratio of pasta/veggies and the flavour was nice without being too over the top. Once again I am happy with my HelloFresh Canada veggie recipe. Can’t wait for the next one……