“Baked” Goat Cheese Pasta on the Grill

(Serves 4)

Perhaps you have seen the viral Baked Feta Pasta from Tik Tok?  Maybe you’ve even made it a few times.  The method is brilliant and couldn’t be simpler.  I had to try this out with a different cheese.  Move over feta, here comes the goat cheese!  If you are a fan of goat cheese, this pasta is for you.

When I planned to make this recipe, there ended up being a heat wave and it was outrageously hot.  There was no way I was about to turn on the oven!  I made the dish on the grill in an enameled cast iron Dutch oven.  It was so easy and turned out great without making the house hotter.  To make dinner come together even faster, I made the pasta ahead of time, so it is ready to dump and stir – if you make the pasta ahead of time, remember to reserve some of the pasta cooking water.

You Will Need:

• 1 pound penne pasta
• 10 ½ -ounce log goat cheese
• 2 12-ounce containers cherry tomatoes
• About 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling on pasta if making ahead of time
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• ¼ cup fresh basil, plus more for serving
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
• Grated parmesan cheese, for serving

Instructions:

• Preheat grill on high heat for about 5 minutes. 
• While the grill preheats, drizzle about 1 tablespoon olive oil into a Dutch oven. 
• Place the log of goat cheese in the center.  Put the cherry tomatoes (whole) into the pot around the goat cheese.  Drizzle about 2 tablespoons olive oil over the top of the tomatoes and cheese. 
• Add the Italian seasoning and some salt and pepper. 
• Gently stir the tomatoes to coat with oil and seasoning. 
• Place the pot on the preheated grill, close the lid, and lower the heat to medium.  Let cook for about 10-12 minutes until the tomatoes are bursting. 
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta for 1 minute less than the package directions in liberally salted water (about 11 minutes).  Reserve a cup of the pasta cooking water before draining. 
• In the meantime, stem and rough chop the parsley and chiffonade the basil leaves.  (Alternatively, you can just tear the leaves).
• Once most of the tomatoes have burst, stir the cheese and tomatoes together, adding a little of the pasta cooking water to thin it out.  Add the cooked pasta and the basil and parsley, stir to coat adding more pasta water as needed. 
• Serve immediately topped with more basil and some parmesan cheese.