this recipe was one of my first "all by myself" dishes i made several years ago. i didn't use a recipe - i just combined a bit of cooking knowledge and ingredients i love. i have made many variations of this pasta but this one i made this summer was one of my favorites.
i love the flavor of the grill. the smoky slow heat does magical things to vegetables. i often throw tomatoes on the grill just to slightly soften them and impart that smoky flavor. i also grill citrus to squirt over vegetable and pasta dishes. the heat makes the citrus swell with their juice and the grill marks are just to darn beautiful.
when tomatoes are not in season i make this with canned diced tomatoes. i obviously skip the grilling part and just put them in the sauce. it is suitable substitution for those times of the year when tomatoes look and taste like red rubber balls. i would encourage you to take advantage of this dish during tomato season.
spaghetti with grilled tomatoes and lemonspaghetti - cooked per instructions on package
4 - 5 tomatoes - cut into bite size pieces
1 teaspoon thyme - chopped fine
3 lemons - cut in half
zest and juice of two lemons
olive oil
salt
pepper
5 garlic cloves - minced
1 cup dry white wine - i use pinot grigio
parmesan
heat grill. make a tray out of foil by rolling up the edges. put tomatoes, thyme, salt and pepper on tomatoes. drizzle with olive oil. toss to combine.
in a bowl drizzle the lemons with olive oil. toss to combine.
put the tomatoes in the foil try on the grill and place the lemons directly on the grill grates. i usually leave them on until the tomatoes start to give up some juices and the lemons have grill marks and are swollen a bit. it depends a lot on how hot your grill is but i would guess it is usually around 5 - 10 minutes. just watch them.
heat a large pan over medium high heat and drizzle 1 - 2 tablespoons of olive oil. once the olive oil is hot, add the garlic and saute until fragrant. add wine and reduce by half. turn down heat to a simmer.
when the tomatoes are done - add them and their juices to the sauce. let simmer for 3 - 4 minutes. check the seasoning and add salt/pepper if needed. add pasta and let the pasta and sauce cook together for a couple minutes. turn off heat and stir in lemon juice and zest.
serve with grilled lemon halves to squirt on top and parmesan.
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oh my - talk about an improvement to pasta salad. the warm vinaigrette with the garlic, mustard and lemon juice - this is an instant hit in our house. i thought of calling it "clean out the produce drawer pasta" because you could really use any vegetables that you like raw. the best part about it - besides the taste - is it is so quick to make. 
this pasta dish of Ina's is to die for. it is a creamy and cheesy adult style macaroni and cheese with the volume turned up. the combination of all the cheeses give it an incredible flavor - and whatever you do - DO NOT skip the smoked mozzarella. 
