One Pot Marry Me Pasta (With Creamy Tuscan Sauce)

Name: One Pot Marry Me Pasta (With Creamy Tuscan Sauce)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 16 oz spaghetti* (455 g); 3 cups marinara sauce (24-oz jar, 710 mL); 3 cups water (710 mL); ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil, roughly chopped, 75 g); 4 cloves garlic (minced); ½ tsp each salt, oregano, crushed pepper flakes, smoked paprika, ground black pepper; 1 pint cherry tomatoes (halved, 300 g); 1 cup fresh basil (roughly chopped); ½ cup heavy cream (120 mL); ½ cup grated Parmesan (50 g)

By Sarah Bond, BS Nutrition, MS Sensory Science, Published Oct 20, 2026

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25 minutes

Serves 4 servings

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Spaghetti in a creamy tuscan pasta sauce with cherry tomatoes, basil, and grated cheese in a metal pan.

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Starches released in cooking thicken the sauce

This one-pot marry me pasta cooks dry spaghetti right in a pot of marinara, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, and fresh basil, then finishes with heavy cream and Parmesan for a rosy sauce that clings to every strand. Everything simmers for about 20 minutes, and the whole dinner comes together in a single pot!

Spaghetti with tomato sauce, cherry tomatoes, and basil leaves in a pan, lifted by metal tongs. — My one-pot marry me pasta is a creamy, tomatoey weeknight dinner that tastes like it simmered all afternoon. It’s vegetarian, and almost everything comes straight from the pantry.

This is my stovetop answer to a dump-and-bake dinner. Everything except the cream and Parmesan goes into the pot raw, including the dry spaghetti, and the pasta cooks right in the sauce.

The tricky part is the liquid. Too much and your noodles swim in tomato soup. Too little and the spaghetti stays chalky in the middle while the bottom of the pot starts to stick (fortunately, I did all the testing for you, so you can be sure it’ll work on the first try for you!).

If one-pot pasta is already your weeknight move, my One Pot French Onion Pasta works on the same idea.

A pan filled with dry spaghetti, cherry tomatoes, tomato sauce, chopped basil, sun-dried tomatoes, and seasonings.

Why You’ll Keep the Pantry Stocked for This One

One pot, dry pasta, no draining. The spaghetti cooks right in the sauce!
Cheap marinara works. With this much flavor layered in, the store brand does the job.
Short pasta shapes work too, with no changes to the liquid.

A bowl of tomato basil pasta topped with parmesan cheese, served with crusty bread on a blue surface.

Spaghetti with tomato sauce, cherry tomatoes, and basil leaves in a pan, being lifted with a fork.

Key Ingredients

Spaghetti: Long strands look gorgeous here, but only if your pot is wide enough for the uncooked noodles to lie flat. If it isn’t, grab penne, rotini, or a similar short shape and keep the liquid exactly the same.
Sun-dried tomatoes in oil: These are the backbone of any Marry Me dish.
Smoked paprika: I started adding this to all my Marry Me dishes, and I won’t go back. Marry Me chicken usually gets seared or grilled first, and that browning adds a smoky note. Half a teaspoon of smoked paprika brings in that same dimension of smokiness without any chicken.
Heavy cream: Heavy cream, not milk or yogurt, is what keeps this sauce silky. For a vegan alternative, use full-fat coconut milk!
Marinara sauce: Any brand works. I usually buy the cheapest store brand because the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, basil, and spices add so much flavor that a fancy jar gets lost. If you have a batch of my Homemade Marinara Sauce With Fresh Tomatoes on hand, that works too.
Cherry tomatoes: They burst as the pasta simmers and release their juices into the sauce.
Fresh basil: Yes, a full cup goes in at the start. I add it with everything else so it infuses into the pasta and the sauce.
Parmesan: Stirred in at the end so it melts smoothly instead of clumping. Traditional Parmesan is made with animal rennet, so look for a vegetarian-labeled Parmesan-style cheese to keep this meatless. Use nutritional yeast for a vegan alternative.

Cream can split with heat and acidity, and Parmesan clumps when it hits a pot that’s too hot, so wait until the spaghetti is al dente and the heat is off before adding either.

Ingredients for creamy tuscan Marry Me Pasta on a blue tile background, including water, marinara sauce, sun-dried tomatoes, cream, basil, seasonings, parmesan, garlic, cherry tomatoes, and spaghetti.

Making It Heartier With Beans or Tofu

You can stir drained chickpeas or white beans in at the same time as the cream and Parmesan so they warm through without turning mushy. Crispy air-fried tofu would work here too (sprinkle it on at the end).

And if you want beans to be the main event, my Marry Me Butter Beans put them front and center in a creamy Tuscan sauce.

A bowl of creamy tomato pasta with cherry tomatoes and fresh basil, served with sliced bread.

Food Science Tip

As pasta cooks, it releases starch into the liquid around it. Cooking the pasta right in the sauce concentrates that starch, which thickens the sauce and helps it cling to the noodles instead of sliding off.

What to Serve With One Pot Marry Me Pasta

This pasta is rich and creamy, so I like something roasted and a little sharp on the side. My 30-Minute Roasted Broccoli With Lemon and Parmesan brings lemon to cut through the cream, or my Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic and Garlic add a tangy, caramelized char.

Let's eat more plants!