Baked Feta Pasta
A block of feta roasted with cherry tomatoes, shallot, garlic, and olive oil until the tomatoes burst and the feta softens into a creamy sauce — tossed with pasta and fresh basil. The dish that broke the internet for good reason, made properly.
Ingredients
Produce
- 2 pints cherry tomatoes about 20 oz total
- 2 shallots halved and thinly sliced
- 5 garlic cloves smashed and peeled — not minced
- ¼ cup fresh basil roughly torn, for finishing
Dairy
- 8 oz block feta cheese one whole block — do not use crumbled
Pantry & Canned Goods
- 12 oz rigatoni pasta or penne, rotini, or any short pasta
- ⅓ cup olive oil good quality extra virgin
Seasonings & Spices
- ½ tsp kosher salt for the baking dish — plus pasta water salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes optional but recommended
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Add the cherry tomatoes, sliced shallots, and smashed garlic cloves to a 9x13-inch baking dish. Drizzle with half the olive oil, season with the kosher salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes if using. Toss to coat.
- Nestle the block of feta in the center of the tomato mixture. Drizzle the remaining olive oil over the feta block. Do not season the feta — it is already salty enough and additional salt will make the finished dish too salty once it melts into the sauce.
- Bake uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes, until the tomatoes have burst and are jammy, the shallots are soft and caramelized at the edges, and the feta is deeply golden on top and soft enough to easily crush with a fork. Do not underbake — the tomatoes need to fully collapse to form the sauce.
- While the feta bakes, cook the pasta in heavily salted boiling water according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining — this is important. Drain and set aside.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven. Use a fork to crush the feta block and burst any remaining whole tomatoes, stirring everything together into a rough, chunky sauce. The garlic cloves will be completely soft — smash them into the sauce as you stir.
- Add the drained pasta to the baking dish and toss to coat. Add pasta water a splash at a time — start with ¼ cup — and stir until the sauce reaches a consistency that clings to the pasta without being soupy. You may not need the full cup.
- Tear the fresh basil over the top and fold it in gently. Taste and adjust salt. Serve immediately directly from the baking dish.
Notes
Block feta only. This is non-negotiable. Crumbled feta has anti-caking agents, is drier, and will not melt into a creamy sauce — it will stay as dry crumbles in a tomato sauce. Buy a block. Greek or French feta both work; Greek is tangier and more assertive, French is creamier and milder.
Smashed whole garlic cloves, not minced. Minced garlic burns over 40 minutes at 400°F and turns bitter. Whole smashed cloves roast low and slow, become completely soft and sweet, and fold into the sauce when you stir everything together.
Save the pasta water. The starchy pasta water is what loosens the sauce and allows it to cling to the pasta properly. Olive oil alone won't do the same thing — the starch from the pasta water is an emulsifier. Start with ¼ cup and add more until the sauce moves the way you want it to.
Do not underbake. 35 minutes is the minimum. The tomatoes need to fully burst and collapse, not just soften. If they're still mostly round at 35 minutes, give them another 5 and check again.
Leftovers keep for 3 days in the fridge. The pasta absorbs the sauce as it sits. Reheat with a splash of water or broth stirred in, either in the microwave or a skillet over low heat.
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