Angel Hair Pasta with Red Pepper Tomato Sauce
This angel hair pasta also has spring vegetables making it extra delicious.
Recipe Details
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 450kcal
Ingredients
RED PEPPER TOMATO SAUCE
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 4 large (or 5 medium) red bell peppers, seeded and thinly sliced
- 2 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
- ½ canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce, coarsely chopped (add a whole one for more spice)
- 1 bunch fresh basil, coarsely chopped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
PASTA
- 1 pound thin asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1½ inch lengths
- 1½ cups frozen petite peas
- 1 recipe red pepper tomato sauce (above)
- 1 large peeled yellow bell pepper, cut into ¼ inch wide strips
- 1 pound dried angel hair pasta
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley (we used Italian flat-leaf)
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
RED PEPPER TOMATO SAUCE
- In a large non-aluminum saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, or until softened.
- Add the bell peppers, tomatoes, chile, and basil, cover partially, and cook over medium low heat for about 20 minutes, or until softened. Remove from the heat.
- Purée the vegetables in a food processor fitted with the metal blade for about 1 minute, until the mixture is smooth with some texture remaining. Add the salt and pepper, to taste.
PASTA
- Fill a saucepan with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Place the asparagus pieces in a kitchen strainer basket with a handle, lower into the boiling water, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Immediately transfer the asparagus to a bowl of ice water. Repeat the method to blanch the peas, draining well.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the pasta and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until al dente.
- Meanwhile, place the sauce in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Add the asparagus, peas and yellow pepper and heat just until sauce is hot and the vegetables are warmed through.
- Drain the pasta well and place in a serving bowl. Scoop out and reserve ¼ cup of the sauce and add the remaining sauce to the pasta. Toss to coat. Spoon the reserved sauce on top and sprinkle with the parsley and Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.
Notes
- If you'd like to prepare this recipe as Gluten-free, just make sure that the chipotles in adobo sauce you're using are known to be GF, and serve the sauce and vegetables over your favorite gluten-free pasta.
- To peel the yellow bell pepper, I preheated my broiler and set pepper on a broiler pan about 3 inches from the heat. I kept turning it until it was pretty well charred on the outside. Then I put the pepper in a bag and sealed it for 10 minutes. The charred skin slipped right off and I seeded and chopped the pepper.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 450kcal, Carbohydrates: 72g, Protein: 17g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Cholesterol: 7mg, Sodium: 368mg, Potassium: 670mg, Fiber: 8g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 1699IU, Vitamin C: 87mg, Calcium: 134mg, Iron: 4mg
