Preheat your oven to 425°F. Place the whole feta block in the center of a baking dish, then scatter cherry tomatoes around it. Drizzle everything with olive oil, sprinkle the oregano and red pepper flakes on top, then slide the dish into the oven. This creates an intense, concentrated flavor because the cheese and tomatoes roast together—I learned this beats mixing them cold.

Roast for 15 minutes until the feta browns lightly around the edges and tomatoes begin to burst. You'll smell the oregano release its oils, and that's your signal the first stage is almost done. Don't skip ahead even if you're impatient—those extra minutes are when the magic happens.

While the baked feta pasta crowd summer ingredients roast, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Cook the penne according to package directions until it's just barely tender—I pull mine at 8 minutes instead of the full 10 because the pasta continues cooking when it hits the hot feta mixture.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat, then add minced garlic and cook for exactly 90 seconds until fragrant. The garlic should sizzle gently but never brown, because burnt garlic tastes bitter in your finished baked feta pasta crowd summer recipe. I make this mistake constantly when I'm distracted, so set a timer on your phone.

Remove the baking dish from the oven and pour the garlic butter mixture over the roasted feta and tomatoes. Stir with a wooden spoon, breaking up the feta block into chunks as you go—this is when you'll realize why roasting it whole mattered. The edges stay slightly firm while the center becomes silken, creating texture that won't happen if you started with crumbled feta.

Add the drained pasta directly to the baking dish, then toss everything together until the pasta becomes coated in the feta mixture. The heat from the pasta finishes melting any remaining cheese pieces. Add the Parmesan and half the fresh basil, then season with salt and pepper to taste—go easy on salt since the feta is already salty.

Transfer the finished baked feta pasta crowd summer to a serving platter and top with the remaining fresh basil right before guests sit down. The basil stays brighter and more fragrant when you add it at the last possible moment instead of mixing it in earlier.