Mediterranean Pasta

6-8 large vine ripened tomatoes (the redder, the better)
10 gloves of garlic (whole)
handful of fresh basil (roughly chopped)
1/2 cup good quality olive oil - more if desired
salt and cracked black pepper
1 tsp sugar
penne pasta or rigatone.
grated parmesan cheese

Method:
Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
Cut tomatoes into about 6 pieces and scatter into a baking dish, along with garlic gloves, herbs, salt and pepper and sugar. Pour over olive oil, adding more if needed. Toss until tomatoes are covered with the olive oil and all ingredients are mixed through.
Bake at 180 for about an hour or until the sides of the baking dish are a lovely dark colour from the baked tomato pasta sauce.
Cook pasta according to directions on packet, drain - but save a bit of the water you have cooked the pasta in for the tomato sauce. This gives the sauce a lovely “glossy” look. Return drained pasta to the pot. Remove tomatoes from the oven and pour into saucepan and stir with a wooden spoon until thoroughly mixed, adding the water from the pasta.
You will notice that the garlic cloves completely disappear into the sauce and the pasta is coated inside and out with the sauce.
Serve immediately into bowls sprinkled with parmesan cheese and a sprinkle of chopped basil.
Serves 4.

This recipe is a great base for many other options. You can add a can of tuna and some capers just as you are stirring the sauce through the pasta. Other options are olives, artichokes, marinated capsicums, roasted veges, chicken, prawns, fresh baby spinach, baby rocket, chorizo, pancetta or a good chunk of gorgonzola - all added at the last minute.
A great salad to serve with this is a simple baby rocket and sea salt flakes tossed with olive oil.
Hot crusty bread : ciabatta or a sourdough torn into chunks