Creamy Tomato Pasta

A skillet with creamy tomato paste topped with fresh parsley.

This Creamy Tomato Pasta recipe is an easy 20 minute meal that pairs perfectly with chicken, shrimp, garlic bread, spinach, mushrooms, and more!

Prep Time5

Cook Time15

Total Time20

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Italian

Servings: people

Calories: 375kcal

Author: Stephanie

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon garlic minced
14.5 oz. diced tomatoes undrained
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 Pinch red pepper flakes optional
1 cup chicken broth
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 oz. softened cream cheese equal to 1/4 cup.
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
8 oz. thin spaghetti see notes*

Instructions

Measure and set out all ingredients prior to cooking. Begin boiling salted pasta water for the spaghetti.
Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.
Add the undrained diced tomatoes, oregano, basil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, chicken broth, and tomato paste. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes.
Reduce the heat to low. Cut the cream cheese into smaller squares and whisk it into the sauce.
Whisk in half of the Parmesan cheese.
Let the sauce simmer on low, uncovered, while you boil the pasta according to package instructions. Keep an eye on the sauce, stir it occasionally, and cover it if it reaches your desired level of thickness.
Once the pasta is done, drain it and stir it into the sauce.
Serve alongside the remaining Parmesan cheese.

Notes

Pro Tips

I use slightly less than a 1/2 lb. of pasta because I love extra sauce.
Feel free to boil 1/2 pound of pasta and add it in gradually until you've achieved the sauce/pasta ratio that you prefer. The pasta continues to absorb the sauce as it stands.
You can also saute a finely diced onion in olive oil for 5 minutes at the beginning, prior to adding the garlic.
Additional ingredient options include spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers or cooked sausage/chicken.

Nutrition

Recipe Source: TheCozyCook.com - For pro tips, step-by-step photos, storage information, and to save it to your account, visit https://framework-keystone.live/creamy-tomato-pasta/%3C/strong%3E%3C/p%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cscript%3Ewindow.wprm_recipes = {"recipe-35527":{"type":"food","name":"Creamy Tomato Pasta","slug":"wprm-creamy-tomato-pasta","image_url":"https:\/\/thecozycook.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Creamy-Tomato-Pasta-Recipe-f.jpg","rating":{"count":16,"total":80,"average":5,"type":{"comment":16,"no_comment":0,"user":0},"user":0},"ingredients":[{"uid":0,"amount":"1","unit":"Tablespoon","name":"olive 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