November 4, 2013

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

There aren’t enough sauces, ingredients, shapes, cheeses, or styles in the world to burn out my love for pasta. If anything, it seems my taste for the stuff has only expanded since I started this blog; my childhood pasta preferences were limited exclusively to spaghetti with butter and parmesan cheese, and now I favor short, thick pasta dressed in zesty, flavorful sauces. There’s really nothing like writing a food blog to force me into trying new things. And as much as I want to make some of my favorites over and over again, then I’d have nothing new to tell you about! (However, if you haven’t already tried the Penne alla Vodka, you should really make it your top priority.)

Well, maybe your second priority. Because I’m pretty darn happy with this one, too.

Roasted red peppers are pretty easy to come by at the grocery store. Yes, I know that fresh red bell peppers are EVERYWHERE at this time of year (at least in North Carolina), but for a quick and filling weeknight dinner, I went with these. Plus I already had them in my pantry and it was time to use them up.

The red peppers pair up with garlic and onion to create the base for this sauce. After a quick sauté, I blended them with a bit of chicken stock and an immersion blender. My goal was to keep the sauce fluid, but to keep the texture as well. An immersion blender did just the trick.

The sauce finishes off with a generous swirl of cream, parmesan cheese, and chopped parsley before joining the rigatoni.

I love using rigatoni for this dish. The pepper sauce has a strong flavor, and it needs a hearty pasta to support it. Plus, the textured sauce loves hiding inside the tubes of this short pasta.

The result is a full pound of pasta dressed in a zippy, flavorful sauce. It’s great for a crowd but also works well if you’re really into leftovers, like me! A full week of delicious pasta lunches is my kind of week.

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman

16 oz rigatoni (or your other favorite short pasta)
2 T butter
half of a large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
one 12-oz jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1 c chicken stock
1/2 c cream
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 c freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus additional for serving
3 T chopped fresh parsley

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook to al denté.

Heat butter in a large frying pan. Add onions and garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add chopped peppers and sauté for 2-3 minutes more.

Dump the pepper mixture into a small pot and add the chicken stock. Blend lightly with an immersion blender, just enough that the mixture is fluid but there is still some texture. Return the blended mixture to the frying pan and add the cream, salt, and pepper.

Drain the pasta in a colander and then return it to the pot it was cooked in. Add the parmesan cheese and parsley, then pour the pepper mixture over the pasta. Mix well to coat all the pasta.

Serve sprinkled with additional parmesan cheese.