Creamy and luxurious, this tomato mascarpone sauce will be your favorite weeknight pasta sauce! Tangy mascarpone cheese creates the most velvety pink tomato sauce and tastes like it's been simmering or hours!
This tomato mascarpone sauce is a quick pink sauce that is done in nearly 20 minutes and tastes like the sauce has been simmering for hours! What makes this simple tomato sauce so decadent is the addition of creamy and thick mascarpone cheese, which offers a slight sweetness and acidity to the tomato sauce. And if you have leftover mascarpone, use it in this colorful heirloom tomato tart with mascarpone!
Usually, when I make my pink vodka sauce, I roast the tomatoes for an hour, which gives a fantastic sweetness. But on a weeknight, when I am craving something luxurious, rich and without the fraction of the work, I make this quick and creamy tomato mascarpone sauce.
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🍝 Why You'll Love this Recipe
- Tomato mascarpone sauce is made in nearly 20 minutes.
- The sauce thickens and clings to pasta easily!
- Great flavors with minimal ingredients!
- The mascarpone makes the tomato sauce ulta luxurious, decadent and comforting.
🍅 Ingredients
- Olive Oil: The start of most pasta sauces. use a good quality olive oil and save some for garnish.
- Garlic: A few cloves, finely chopped and added to gently saute with the olive oil.
- Dried Oregano: A pinch of dried oregano balances the sweet and savory notes of the sauce.
- Tomato Paste: I love using tomato paste that comes in a tube for easy use.
- Crushed Tomatoes: Use canned crushed tomatoes or tomato puree for a smooth sauce.
- Mascarpone Cheese: Mascarpone cheese nis a thick Italian cream cheese that comes in a tub. You can often find it with the other cheeses in grocery stores. If mascarpone isn't available, substitute with American style cream cheese
- Parmesan Cheese: Freshly grated parmesan cheese is added to the sauce as well as for garnish.
- Fresh Basil: A few leaves of fresh basil freshen up the rich pasta sauce. You can also use fresh oregano which would be a nice flavor as well.
⏲️ Instructions
- Boil salted water and cook pasta 1-2 minutes shy of package directions. Once pasta is done cooking, reserve ½ cup of the starchy pasta water for later use.
- Bring a wide skillet over medium heat and drizzle with olive oil. Once shimmering, add the chopped garlic, add garlic and dried oregano and saute for 1 minute or until garlic is fragrant.
- Add the tomato puree and tomato paste and season with salt and pepper. Fill the tomato can halfway with water and add that to the sauce.
- Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes so the flavors come together.
- Whisk in the mascarpone cheese and parmesan cheese until well combined.
- When pasta is done, add the cooked pasta directly to the tomato and mascarpone sauce and toss to combine, so the sauce evenly coats all of the pasta. If sauce is too dry, add some pasta water and continue tossing.
- Serve pasta in bowls and garnish with a drizzle of olive oil, grated parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
Recipe Tips
- When cooking pasta, save 1 cup of of the starchy pasta water, to add to the sauce if the sauce is too thick.
- Boil the pasta for 1-2 minutes less than the box directions and finish cooking the pasta directly in the sauce.
🌶️ Variations and Substitutions
- If mascarpone cheese isn't available, substitute with cream cheese.
- For added heat, add ½ teaspoon of chili flakes or Calabrian peppers.
- Use this creamy mascarpone tomato sauce as a base for pizza.
- Serve the pasta with seared scallops or shrimp on top.
Mascarpone is a thick Italian cream cheese that is rich, slightly sweet and has a touch of acidity and is often compared to cream cheese.
Yes, mascarpone melts nicely when heated and is a great addition to a pink sauce for pasta. As the mascarpone sauce melts into the tomato sauce, it creates a lovely creamy pink pasta sauce.
What to Serve With
This recipe was made as part of a date night dinner menu. Here are some suggestions on what to serve alongside.
- Pan Seared Pork Chops with Garlic and Thyme
- Spatchcock Chicken with Lemon and Butter
- Pesto Broccolini
- Homemade Caesar Salad
More pasta recipes
Creamy Tomato Mascarpone Sauce with Pasta
LittleFerraroKitchen.com
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound linguini or your favorite long noodle shape
- 2 tablespoons Olive oil + more for garnish
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes or tomato puree
- ½ cup mascapone cheese
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese + more for garnish
- Fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Boil salted water and cook pasta 1-2 minutes shy of package directions. Once pasta is done cooking, reserve 1 cup of the starchy pasta water for later use.
- Bring a wide skillet over medium heat and drizzle with olive oil. Once shimmering, add the chopped garlic, add garlic and dried oregano and saute for 1 minute or until garlic is fragrant.
- Add the tomato puree and tomato paste and season with salt and pepper. Add the tomato puree and tomato paste and season with salt and pepper. Fill the tomato can halfway with water and add that to the sauce.
- Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes so the flavors come together.
- Whisk in the mascarpone cheese and parmesan cheese until well combined.
- When pasta is done, add the cooked pasta directly to the tomato and mascarpone sauce and toss to combine, so the sauce evenly coats all of the pasta. If sauce is too dry, add some pasta water and continue tossing.
- Serve pasta in bowls and garnish with a drizzle of olive oil, grated parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
Victoria says
I made this tonight, it was absolutely delicious. I tweeked it a bit by adding a chopped shallot in with the garlic, then finely chopped asparagus, these in the last few minutes of cooking the sauce. I served it with oven roasted chicken thighs. Will definitely be adding this recipe to my cooking repertoire...👩🍳
Samantha Ferraro says
That Victoria is a great recipe evolving, You have great taste. Shallots, garlic and asparagus, Holy smokes what a wonderful combination. You got my wheels rolling. Have a Wonderful week, Samantha.
Mamalala says
We have made this twice. The whole family adores it. I serve with a Caesar salad and some toasted sourdough bread. A keeper for sure.
Samantha Ferraro says
Mamalala, so good to hear, Caesar is our Top favorite salad around our Home. Hubby's job to make the dressing. Have a wonderful week, Samantha.
Jan Bassett says
Sounds good but in US it says 1 pound of linguine (that’s a huge amount for 4) and a 28 ouce (spelled as the ingredients list) can of tomatoes; however, swap to metric and it drops to 226 g of linguine and a 15 ouce can of tomatoes for the same 4 people.
Samantha Ferraro says
Hi Jan! Thank you for the comment! The metric conversion does not look right, so I will bring that up to my web developer, since that looks like a technical error, thanks for noticing that! As far as the servings go, that is based on personal preference. The packages suggest 2 ounces of pasta per serving, however if the pasta is the main meal, I believe the average person would eat up to 1/4 pound or 4 ounces of pasta.
Jessica Macpherson says
Drooling. That looks/sounds SO good! Thanks!
Jenni says
I love swirling in some cheese, olive oil, cream cheese or heavy cream into my pasta before serving--it thickens into a beautiful emulsion and coats every noodle in silky goodness. Will have to try it w/mascarpone sometime!
I completely agree w/you about finishing your pasta in the pan w/the sauce. Nothing more depressing than naked noodles!
As to cooking the pasta, I have learned a thing that I will pass on to you. If you start the pasta in cold--yes cold--water w/just enough water to cover, it won't stick together, the water will come to a boil faster, and the pasta will finish cooking 2-3 minutes faster since it was in from the beginning. It has changed the way I plan for cooking pasta--take so much less time. And I promise, no stuck together noodles, even with a minimum of water. I think I learned that from Mark Bittman or someone like that. Try it; I think you'll be pleasantly surprised, even though it does fly in the face of everything we've ever learned about how to cook pasta. 🙂
Brandie (@ Home Cooking Memories) says
I'm totally gonna make this. I love how simple it is and while I love scallops, I don't think I've actually had them in a dish like this. Well done!