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Crockpot Brown Butter Tomato and Ricotta Pasta. A summery tomato pasta that’s full of fresh heirloom tomatoes and creamy ricotta cheese. Slow-cooked heirloom and cherry tomatoes are cooked with garlic, thyme, Italian spices, parmesan rinds, and chile peppers to create an effortless, chunky marinara sauce. Just before the sauce is finished, spicy Italian chicken is added with garlic brown butter. Toss the sauce with pasta and grated parmesan cheese, then serve up each bowl with whipped ricotta and fresh basil. It’s the perfect mix of comforting and bright.
I’m the girl who walks into Whole Foods and heads straight to the produce section, always looking (and hoping) for something pretty to cook with. When the store finally stocks the heirloom tomatoes, the figs, the peaches—I buy more than I need and definitely more than I have plans for.
This is me all summer long. I always end up with more tomatoes than I know what to do with. When they sit on the counter and start to become a little too soft, they always leave me with inspiration.
Sometimes I roast them and blend them into sauce. Sometimes I make pizza. But other times… pasta comes to mind.
Today’s pasta is effortless. No peeling, no chopping, no cooking ahead—just the right amount of effort.
All the tomatoes go into the crockpot. I left mine whole and didn’t even bother taking the stems off—I knew they’d fall off easily after cooking!
Once the tomatoes have cooked down, I crush them with a spoon and leave the sauce chunky. The only extra steps are cooking the pasta and browning the butter—both take just a few quick minutes.
Simple and delicious. Great for back-to-school season and especially perfect as we head into fall!
The Details
Ingredients
- heirloom or regular tomatoes
- cherry tomatoes
- garlic
- fresh thyme
- Italian seasoning
- parmesan
- crushed Calabrian chile peppers – or use chili flakes
- spicy Italian chicken sausage – omit if vegetarian
- fresh basil
- short cut pasta – use pennoni
- salted butter
- rosemary
- ricotta cheese – whip this to make it even creamier!
Special Tools
For this recipe, you will need a crockpot.
Steps
Step 1: Slow cook the sauce
In the crockpot, add the tomatoes, garlic, thyme, seasonings, parmesan rinds, and crushed Calabrian chile peppers—or use chili flakes if that’s what you have.
Cook the sauce on low or high, depending on how much time you have.
Step 2: Add the meat
Use a wooden spoon to break down the tomatoes right in the crockpot—or, if you prefer a smoother sauce, blend it up (just be sure to remove the stems from the tomatoes and the parmesan rind first). I always leave my sauce chunky and skip the blender.
After you break the tomatoes down, remove any stems left in the sauce.
Next, crumble the meat into the sauce and let it cook on high for another hour.
Step 3: Brown the butter
In a small skillet, melt the salted butter until it turns golden brown and smells nutty and rich. Pull it off the heat, then toss in the garlic and rosemary. Let the garlic sizzle in the butter for a minute or two.
Stir the brown butter into the sauce, saving a spoonful for serving if you’d like.
Step 4: Boil the pasta
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook your pasta according to the package directions.
Lately, I’ve been loving Pennoni pasta—it’s like a larger, ridged penne with angled ends that hold onto sauce beautifully. But really, use whatever pasta you love most.
Step 5: Toss the pasta
Add the hot, freshly drained pasta right into the sauce. Stir in the Parmesan and lots of fresh basil.
Serve
Spoon the pasta into bowls and top with whipped ricotta, extra basil, and a drizzle of the reserved brown butter. Stir the ricotta into the sauce and enjoy every creamy, cozy bite.
Add greens
Serve this with a simple side salad for a complete meal. Easy enough for a weeknight, but special enough to serve friends on a Friday or Saturday night as we start to ease into fall.
Looking for more summer recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Simple Roasted Sungold Cherry Tomato Pasta
Skillet Burst Cherry Tomato Summer Pasta with Lemony Breadcrumbs
One Pot Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Chicken Pasta
Pesto Chicken Saltimbocca with Burst Tomatoes and Burrata
Detroit Style Tomato Herb Pepperoni Pizza
Cherry Tomato Pasta Alla Vodka
Lastly, if you make this Crockpot Brown Butter Tomato and Ricotta Pasta, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love hearing from you and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crockpot Brown Butter Tomato and Ricotta Pasta
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 549 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 6 heirloom or regular tomatoes, halve and stems removed
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes
- 6 cloves garlic, smashed or chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- 1-2 parmesan rinds
- sea salt and black pepper
- 1 - 3 tablespoons Calabrian chile peppers in oil, or chili flakes
- 1 pound ground spicy Italian chicken sausage (optional)
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves
- 1 pound long or short cut pasta (I love pennoni)
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary
- 6 ounces ricotta cheese (I like it whipped)
Instructions
- 1. In the bowl of your crockpot, combine the tomatoes, 4 garlic cloves, thyme, Italian seasoning, parmesan rind, and 1 cup water. Season with salt, pepper, and chilies. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours or on HIGH for 2-3 hours.2. Crank the heat on the crockpot to HIGH. Crush the tomatoes using the back of a wooden spoon or an immersion blender (remove the tomato steams and parmesan rind before you blend). Discard any tomato stems if you left those on. 3. If using, crumble the raw sausage into the sauce. Add 1 cup basil. Cook another 1-2 hours.4. When ready to serve, cook the pasta according to package directions until it is al dente. Drain. Add the pasta, parmesan cheese, and 1 cup of basil to the sauce, stirring until smooth. 5. In a skillet, cook the butter over medium heat until browned, 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the garlic and rosemary. Stir the butter into the pasta.6. Divide the pasta between plates. Top with ricotta, additional brown butter, and basil. EAT and ENJOY.
This post was originally published on August 6, 2025
So quick, easy, and good! I will say, I think 6 tomatoes makes too much sauce. I’ll try cutting it down to 4 next time!
Hey Mallory,
Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, love to hear it was a winner!
I made this exactly as is using my immersion blender to thicken the sauce just a bit. My family and I loved every bite!! Layers and layers of bright yet warm and cozy flavor. We are working our way through your Quick and Cozy cookbook before my daughter gets married next summer so she’ll be ready with an arsenal of good food go-tos (and a pretty book for her counter top)!
Hey Cheryl,
Thanks so much:) I am so glad to hear this dish turned out well for you! I hope you and your daughter have a great time making the recipes!
We have this recipe in rotation, but it does require a few adjustments to get it just right.
But don’t be scared of these because it really is good if you can get the right consistency.
TIPS:
– Having an immersion blender makes ALL the difference. I made it without one & like many reviews, it was very liquidy. Making it with immersion blender changes everything.
– Don’t add 1 cup of water. Instead do a dash of flour.
– I make the noodles on the stove in chicken broth, it enhances the flavor!
– I would start with 1.5 – 2 TBS of chilis.
– Our local Target sells a ground chicken with tomato, basil, & garlic, it goes great in this!
Hi Kelsey,
Awesome! Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I’m so glad it was a hit. Have the best week!
My sauce also came out incredibly watery. Basically tomato water. I didn’t cook my pasta in the crock pot because I tried that with her homemade crock pot hamburger helper and had bad results with gummy noodles.
Hi Colleen,
Thanks for trying this recipe and your feedback, sorry to hear it was not enjoyed!
This Recipe was incredibly flavorful! Perfect way to use up those end of season basil and tomatoes.
I simmered the sauce on low 4 hours, crumbled in a pound of ground turkey and simmered on high for 2 hours more. I chose to cook my pasta right in the crockpot—just stirred in the dry rotini during the last 15 minutes of cooking on high. The sauce cooked down around the pasta becoming thick and velvety. For those concerned about the sauce being too watery this is a great solution. I left out the chili, thyme and rosemary (just my taste preference).
I drizzled the browned butter over each serving and subbed mascarpone for the ricotta. A sprinkle of fresh basil and grated parmesan was the perfect finishing touch.
Thank you for another delicious gourmet recipe!
Hey Hope,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks for trying this recipe and letting me know it went well!
This recipe was a hit. The rosemary brown butter took this to the next level. I know how spicy the Calabrian chile flakes I use are so I used only about a tsp, knowing that the sausage I use is spicy too. Like many other folks, I found this to be a bit soupy at the end of the slow cooker cook time so I transferred it to the stove to reduce. I let it cook down quite a lot and it came out nice and thick. I’ll definitely make this again next summer when the heirloom tomatoes are back. Thanks for such a great recipe, I would never have thought to combine brown butter with tomato sauce like this. You’re a gem!
Hey Nicole,
Thanks so much! I love to hear this recipe turned out for you, thanks for making it! Thanks for sharing your notes. Happy Wednesday!
This dish is delicious!! I simmered the heirloom and cherry tomatoes with 2 boneless pork chops I had previously thawed and needed to use, and then I just used 2 Italian chicken sausages so it didn’t turn out too meaty. Pulled the chops out and shredded them when I pureed the sauce then put it back in with the sausage to simmer. The sauce definitely wasn’t as thick as jarred sauce is, but the flavor is 10/10 and the perfect consistency for dipping a little toasty garlic bread. Yumm, this one is definitely going in the rotation, thank you Tieghan!
Hey Jennifer, Big thanks for making this recipe and sharing back. So glad it hit the spot! Have a great Friday!
Okay I’m making this right now and it’s turning out more like a soup than a sauce. What did I do wrong??
Hi Ashley, So sorry to hear this! What step are you at? You could always transfer to the stove top and simmer the sauce down to thicken it. Sorry, I know that’s a pain but it’s hard to say without knowing where in the cooking process you are. I hope it’s delish! xx
Could the sauce be made ahead of time and then used the next day or finished the next day?
Hey Rachel, Totally, that will work nicely for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! x
Can I use sweet Italian chicken sausage instead? More kid friendly?
Hey Beverley,
Of course, that will be just as delicious! Please let me know if you give this dish a try, I hope you love it! xx
Made it on the stovetop and it was amazing!
Hey Spencer, Thanks so much for making this recipe, I’m so glad to hear it was a hit! Have a great day! xT
This was amazing! Great way to use herbs and tomatoes from the garden. The only change we made was to only put in half the peppers 🌶️.
Hi Marie! Thank you so much for trying out this pasta! So glad you loved it! 🙂 xT
The flavor of this was absolutely delicious!!! But like some others it was a bit soupy. Has anyone tried making it without the cup of water?
Also I used burrata at the end instead of ricotta and was very happy with my life choices. Haha.
Hi Pam! Oh wow, burrata sounds amazing! Thanks for trying out the recipe! xT
This was such an easy, cozy weeknight meal. A ton of flavor without a ton of effort and I loved that I was able to use my tomatoes from my garden because they just keep growing and growing. I will definitely make this again.
Hey April! Love to hear that you enjoyed this pasta! Thanks so much for giving it a try! xT