Wednesday 21 August 2013

Recipe Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

Roasted Red Pepper PastaI love, love, love these things. You can find lots of different brands, lots of different sizes of jars. But jarred roasted red peppers are absolutely, positively something you should stock in your pantry or fridge if you don’t already. They’re just smashing in sauces like this one, but they’re also perfect cut into strips on a sandwich, chopped and spooned over a block of cream cheese with crackers, or just eaten on a plate for lunch with a pile of cottage cheese. 

Roasted Red Pepper PastaStart by grabbing any pasta you want. I got this in the big city, and it’s part of my Different Pasta Shapes collection, which I would someday bequeath to a museum if I didn’t have big ol’ plans to eat it all.
Pasta. It is everything.
Roasted Red Pepper PastaThrow it into salted boiling water and cook it till it’s al dente.
Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen chop up an onion…



Roasted Red Pepper PastaAnd mince up some garlic.



Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen pile some roasted red peppers onto the cutting board…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaAnd give ‘em a rough chop.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaNext, grab a couple of tablespoons of glorious, flavorful butter…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen throw in the onions and garlic.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaSaute them until they’re soft, about 3 to 4 minutes or so.

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
Next, throw in the chopped red peppers…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaAnd cook them around for a couple of minutes, just until they’re heated through.



Roasted Red Pepper PastaTransfer the mixture…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaTo a food processor or blender…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen puree it until it’s all…well, pureed!

Roasted Red Pepper PastaMmmm. This is divine right here. And even though it’s totally pureed, it’ll still have a great texture to it. Yum!

Roasted Red Pepper PastaNow, back to the skillet: Heat another couple tablespoons of butter…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen pour the pureed pepper right in.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaTurn on the heat and start to heat up the puree…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen pour in some vegetable or chicken broth to thin it a bit.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen stir it all around.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaAdd some salt and pepper…

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Add in some heavy cream.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaStir it around and see what it looks like, then you can always splash in a little more cream if you want it even richer.



Roasted Red Pepper PastaNext, mince up some herbs. I only had parsley, but if I’d had basil I would have gone crazy with it.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThrow it right into the sauce…
  
Roasted Red Pepper PastaAnd stir it around.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen taste the sauce and add more salt and pepper if it needs it.

Roasted Red Pepper PastaDrain the pasta and throw it into the sauce…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen in goes the Parmesan…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaA little more parsley…

Roasted Red Pepper PastaThen toss it all together, sprinkling in more Parmesan and/or parsley as you go!

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

yumYou can serve it with a grilled chicken breast or slice the chicken and mix it in with the sauce.

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
Recipe

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces, weight Pasta Of Your Choice (I Prefer Short Ones Like Rigatoni, Penne, Etc.)
  • 4 Tablespoons Butter
  • 1/2 whole Large Onion, Finely Diced
  • 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
  • 1 jar (15.5 Ounces) Roasted Red Peppers, Drained And Roughly Chopped
  • 1 cup Vegetable Or Chicken Broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt, More To Taste
  •  Freshly Ground Black Pepper
  • 1/2 cup Heavy Cream (more To Taste)
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan Shavings (more For Serving)
  •  Finely Minced Parsley
  •  Chopped Fresh Basil (if You Have It!)

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and saute for 2 to 3 minutes or until starting to soften. Add the chopped red peppers and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until hot.
Remove the skillet from the heat. Carefully transfer the contents of the skillet to a food processor or blender. Place on the lid and puree the pepper mixture until totally blended (there will still be some texture to the peppers.)
Heat the other 2 tablespoon butter back to the skillet over medium heat. Pour the pepper puree back into the skillet. Add the broth, salt, and pepper, and stir until heated. Splash in the cream and stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings if you need to.
Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet. Add Parmesan and parsley/basil, then stir it together to coat the pasta.
Serve in bowls with extra Parmesan and a sprinkling of parsley on top.