For me, there is nothing more comforting than a big bowl of pasta. Maybe coffee on a rainy day. We’ll call in a tie.
This is a super simple, delicious pasta – fantastic when local tomatoes are in season. You can definitely mix and match the veggies, depending on your tastes and what’s available at your farmers market that week. Give it a go.
Pasta
500 grams pasta shells
3 cups cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup red pepper pesto
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup goats cheese
Handful of arugula
Red Pepper Pesto (see directions below)
2 red peppers, halved and roasted
1 garlic clove
½ cup of basil
¼ cup shredded Parmesan
⅓ cup of walnuts
1 red chili, deseeded and finely diced
2-3 Tablespoons of olive oil
salt & pepper
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, and cook pasta according to package directions (al dente, please). Drain & reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking stock. Drizzle your cooked pasta with olive oil to help stop it sticking together.
Preheat a pan on medium. Half your tomatoes. Add 1 tbsp. of olive oil to the pan to get warm. Add your tomatoes to the pan and cook for about 3 minutes. Add your pesto and cook one minute longer. Season with salt & pepper to taste.
Toss your pasta in your tomato sauce, adding the reserved cooking stock.
Top with goats cheese, arugula, and a good drizzle of olive oil.
Red Pepper & Chili Pesto
Preheat oven to 350. Half & deseed your peppers, and roast on a baking tray for 15 minutes. Flip the peppers and roast for another 15 minutes, until nice and charred. Allow the peppers to cool for a few minutes, then remove the skins and discard.
In a food processor, put your peppers, garlic, basil, cheese, chili, and walnuts, salt & pepper and blend until combined. With the processor running on low, drizzle the olive oil in to loosen.
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