Roasted Red Pepper Pesto with Pasta
Roasted red pepper pesto is a fabulous, flavourful, contemporary Italian pesto recipe that is perfect with pasta, bruschetta, and even white meat or fish. It also makes a great dip!
Servings: 4
Calories: 663kcal
Ingredients
- 14 oz pasta I used casarecce made by Valle Del Grano Sicily
- 3-4 red bell peppers washed, tops and seeds removed
- 1-2 small garlic cloves peeled and cut into pieces
- extra virgin olive oil as required
- 3 ½ oz walnuts shelled
- 1 handful fresh basil leaves
- 3 ½ oz Parmigiano Reggiano grated. Vegetarians will want to use vegetarian cheese.
- salt for pasta and to taste
- ground black pepper to taste
- fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (355°F).
- Place the cleaned red bell peppers on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and roast in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the skins begin to blacken and blister.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.
- Peel the skin of the red peppers and cut into pieces.
- In a blender, combine the walnuts and garlic. Pulse until the pieces are finely chopped. Add the roasted pepper pieces, basil leaves, half of the grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, and a drizzle of olive oil. Pulse again until the mixture is evenly blended but retains some texture. If the pesto seems too dry, add a little more olive oil. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Now your red pepper pesto is ready!
- Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add salt to the water and bring it to a boil again. Cook the pasta until al dente, according to the package instructions. Reserve a cup of the pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta and return it to the pot.
- Add the roasted red pepper pesto to the cooked pasta. If the mixture seems too dry, add a bit of the reserved pasta cooking water to achieve the desired consistency. Mix well.
- Serve the pasta immediately, topped with additional grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and chopped fresh parsley.
Notes
You can also put this pesto on pizza, eat it on bread and add a little to grilled, baked or fried fish before serving!
Alternatively, it can be used to fill pasta such as cannelloni if you add some ricotta to give it more bulk and of course you can eat it with other types of pasta.
Using casarecce is not a rule! Fusilli are great too or tagliatelle and even gnocchi are a yummy pesto partner! This recipe can also be made with homemade casarecce.
Using casarecce is not a rule! Fusilli are great too or tagliatelle and even gnocchi are a yummy pesto partner! This recipe can also be made with homemade casarecce.
Nutrition
Calories: 663kcal | Carbohydrates: 87g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 13g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 448mg | Potassium: 569mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 3042IU | Vitamin C: 115mg | Calcium: 274mg | Iron: 3mg