Rigatoni with Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
This creamy roasted red pepper sauce is fantastic on rigatoni (and plenty of other pasta shapes). But what you'll really love is how easy and fast it is to get on the table. It's a rich vegetarian sauce that's luscious and flavorful and coats the rigatoni without being overwhelming... and you can make it with common pantry ingredients!
Ingredients
Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
- 1 ½ cups roasted red peppers (large jar, roughly chopped, with liquid, or pureed, or 4-6 roasted whole sweet peppers, peeled and seeded)
- 1 small onion, peeled & diced
- 2 tbsp butter or extra virgin olive oil
- 4 large garlic cloves
- 2 tbsp tomato paste or concentrate
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ¾ tsp dried red pepper flakes (or to taste)
- ½ tsp dried thyme leaves
- ½ tsp dried garlic powder (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste
- ¾ cup heavy cream (pantry sub: canned table cream or evaporated milk)
Pasta
- 1 lb rigatoni (or other short ridged pasta)
- salt (to taste, for water)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil (cover for faster results). Assemble all of your ingredients, dicing the onions and peeling & chopping the garlic.
- In a medium saucepan, sweat the diced onions in the butter or olive oil over medium-high heat until they are translucent and beginning to color, stirring or shaking the pan frequently. Add the dried herbs, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes, along with a pinch of salt and some fresh black pepper.
- Add the chopped garlic and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and sugar and continue to stir and saute until they are combined.
- Add the roasted peppers (or roasted pepper puree) to the pot. For a smooth, creamy sauce, puree all the ingredients (except the cream) together with an immersion blender (or by carefully transferring them to a regular blender and then back to the pot).
- Simmer this sauce and let it reduce for 10-15 minutes to allow the flavors to combine. Stir regularly.
- While the sauce is simmering, cook your pasta for the time specified on the package.
- Drain your pasta, reserving and setting aside about a cup of the pasta water. If you like, toss the drained pasta with a couple tablespoons of butter or olive oil. If you aren't serving the pasta immediately, this will help keep it from sticking, and also adds richness and flavor.
- Add the cream to the sauce, stir, and then pour the cream sauce into your pasta. If needed, add a splash of the pasta cooking water as you mix the pasta together to get the sauce to coat the pasta evenly. You may not need the pasta water (Discard or refrigerate any unused pasta water)!
- Plate and serve your pasta immediately. You can garnish your pasta with grated Parmesan cheese or fresh basil, or just a bit of freshly grated black pepper or some red pepper flakes, if you like.
Nutrition
Calories: 441kcalCarbohydrates: 63gProtein: 12gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 44mgSodium: 569mgPotassium: 341mgFiber: 4gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 901IUVitamin C: 19mgCalcium: 67mgIron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!