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Baked Feta Pasta with roasted tomatoes is a TikTok viral sensation, and for good reason! It’s super creamy, incredibly simple and requires just a few ingredients to make.
Why I Love This Recipe
I have been obsessed with Feta cheese for years. I’ve proclaimed my undying love in recipes like Whipped Feta Cheese Dip, Mediterranean Green Bean Salad and Strawberry Chicken Salad. Feta is salty, creamy and tangy – it’s a perfect pairing for pasta and salads.
This tomato and feta pasta is as special it sounds. It’s got tangy feta cheese, roasted tomatoes and a handful of Italian seasonings.
You bake the brick of feta right in a pan with some cherry tomatoes and it’s gets so soft and creamy, then you mix it all together and add pasta. The result is a fresh tasting pasta dish with vibrant flavor. It’s truly a one pot meal that everyone will love.
Ingredients for Baked Feta Pasta
When a recipe only has a few ingredients, you’ll find that quality is important for the best results. Keep that in mind when purchasing the ingredients for your Baked Feta Pasta.
- Feta cheese – the original recipe calls for a full block of feta cheese. For the best taste and quality, look for a Greek feta that contains part or all sheep’s milk, like this one. Don’t worry if you can’t find that, another brand will do.
- Cherry Tomatoes – You’ll need a pint of cherry tomatoes, and grape tomatoes can easily be swapped in. The fresher, the better. Feel free to double the amount if you’re looking for a saucier dish.
- Olive Oil – For drizzling over the tomatoes and cheese. This will end up mixing in to form the sauce, so you want a good quality oil. Epicurious has a great article on how to buy the best olive oil.
- Seasoning – Simple Italian seasonings will help ramp up the flavor. The original recipe didn’t have a lot of spices so we’re adding oregano, basil, red pepper flakes and a few cloves of garlic.
- Pasta – You can really go any way you want with the pasta. Small cuts work best, like rigatoni, ziti, or the penne I used. You could even toss with some fettuccine or spaghetti.
How to Make Baked Feta Pasta
This simple, rustic pasta recipe is solid gold in the flavor department. It’s rich in tone and vibrant in color.
Step One: Prep for baking. Place the block of Feta cheese in the center of a 9×13-inch baking dish and surround with the cherry tomatoes. Drizzle olive oil over the top, tossing the tomatoes a little in the oil so they’re well coated. Sprinkle all of the seasonings on top.
Step Two: Bake. Place the dish in a 400 degree oven and bake for 30 minutes. The baked feta should be golden in color so if it needs a few extra minutes that’s fine. The tomatoes will wrinkle and burst open while cooking.
Step Three: Make the pasta. While the tomato feta sauce is baking in the oven, boil your pasta of choice. Make sure to generously salt the water. Be sure to save about a cup of pasta water just before draining, in case you need it later.
Step Four: Mix it up! Pull the tomato feta sauce out of the oven and immediately start stirring it together, smashing the cheese and tomatoes as you go, until it’s melted into a creamy sauce. Stir in the pasta, tossing well to coat. If you want it a little saucier, add some of the pasta water.
FAQs
Feta cheese has a sharp, tangy flavor and creamy texture when baked. Chilled, feta has a crumbly texture.
Feta gets super warm and soft, but it doesn’t melt because of it’s high acidic content. It does give the illusion that it’s melted as you squish it down and mix it with the roasted tomatoes, creating a luscious, tangy sauce.
Serving Suggestions and Variations
This recipe is incredibly tasty on it’s own, but I love to garnish with Parmesan cheese for a nutty finish and fresh basil for brightness. I changed up the recipe a bit from the original, but you could go even further with these variations:
- Veggies: Add some sauteed or steamed spinach, asparagus, zucchini, mushrooms or broccoli at the end. Onions or shallots would roast beautifully with the tomates.
- Protein: Oven Baked Chicken Breasts, Italian sausage, salmon or grilled shrimp would make this a heartier meal.
- Fresh herbs: Feel free to flavor this the finished dish with anything you like. Toss in some fresh thyme, rosemary or oregano when you make the sauce.
Tips for the Best Baked Feta Pasta
- If you can only find crumbled feta, you can use that and pile it up in the center of the baking dish.
- For a smoother, thinner sauce, reserve a cup of pasta water and stir in a little bit at a time until your perfect consistency is reached.
- For a more intense garlic flavor, add a few more cloves and leave them whole, smashing them into the sauce.
- The tomato feta sauce makes a crazy good dip! Similar to my Goat Cheese & Marinara Dip, serve with some Crostini or a loaf of crusty Italian bread.
- Store leftover baked feta pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. I don’t recommend freezing, the sauce won’t likely survive well.
More Pasta Recipes
- Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta
- Authentic Pasta Carbonara
- Bacon Bowtie Pasta
- One Pot Pizza Pasta
- Easy One Pan Buttered Noodles
Baked Feta Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 ounce feta cheese block
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes optional, for heat
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 pound penne pasta or other pasta of your choice
- Fresh chopped basil leaves optional garnish
- Fresh grated Parmesan cheese optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
- Place the block of feta cheese in the center of a 9×13-inch oven safe dish. Arrange cherry tomatoes around the cheese.
- Drizzle the olive oil all over the tomatoes and feta cheese, tossing the tomatoes a little bit in the oil. Sprinkle minced garlic, dried basil, dried oregano, red pepper flakes (if using) salt and pepper on top of the feta.
- Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta to al dente per the package directions in well salted water. (Reserve a cup of pasta water near the end of the cooking time in case you want to thin your sauce a bit later)
- Mash the feta and tomatoes well with the back of a fork or a spoon. Toss with the cooked pasta until well coated. Garnish with fresh Parmesan cheese and fresh basil, if desired.
Notes
- If you can only find crumbled feta, you can use that and pile it up in the center of the baking dish.
- For a smoother, thinner sauce, reserve a cup of pasta water and stir in a little bit at a time until your perfect consistency is reached.
- For a more intense garlic flavor, add a few more cloves and leave them whole, smashing them into the sauce.
- Store leftover baked feta pasta in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. I don’t recommend freezing, the sauce won’t likely survive well.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
Made this tonight and it was DELICIOUS! I realized I only had an already opened box of Rotini in the house, so 10 ounces of pasta worked… it was just heavily sauced. Which wasn’t a problem because it’s awesome! Thanks as always for the delicious recipe!!
You are so welcome Jen! (awesome feedback) Thanks for stopping by.
YUM! Looks so good.
Thank you Rebecca! and thanks for stopping by.