Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Fettuccine with Creamy Red Pepper-Feta Sauce

Ready for the shock of your (and my) life. The boy really liked this. He ate all of it. Why is this shocking? Let me count the ways:
1- red peppers. They are a vegetable. They are also the PRIMARY ingredient here. The boy doesn't eat many vegetables, including bell peppers. He picks around the tiny pepper bits in the Chicken Caesar Casserole. Yet he ate these
2- Feta. Turns out he loves the stuff. He who thought my Greek salad was weird (because it wasn't Caesar with Parmesan) loves feta now. This makes life- and Greek salad making- much easier
3- It was fettuccine. The boy likes angel hair/cappellini. I love fettuccine and hate angel hair. Yet again, the boy still liked this.
Clearly this was some good stuff. And, not terribly bad for you, even with the cheese. Mmmmm, feta cheese....
Fettuccine with Creamy Red Pepper-Feta Sauce
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 to 3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
  • 1 (16-ounce) jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
  • 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken stock stock (can also use vegetable)
  • 1 cup crumbled feta cheese or a 6-ounce block
  • 1 pound whole-wheat fettuccine
  • Salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onion and garlic until soft, about 10 minutes. Add roasted peppers and saute until heated through. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Place mixture in the bowl of a food processor with stock and all but 2-4 tablespoons of the feta (recipe says 2, but I really like having more feta on top, so omit more now). Process until combined and smooth, about 30 seconds.

2. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water. Toss pasta with sauce (or as much sauce as you want. I don't think I added all the sauce), adding pasta water by the tablespoon, if needed. Sauce should cling nicely to pasta. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Divide among pasta bowls. Sprinkle with parsley and remaining feta cheese.

3 comments:

Widge said...

mmmmmmmm my mouth is drooling at this. I have to try it! thanks for sharing :)

ClarityDefinesYou said...

wow, this one looks yummy :) thnks for sharing :)

HereBeDragons said...

Wow. Interesting dish. Using a veggie in a pasta. Kind of reminds me of the spaghetti squash idea. I'm wondering if I would dig it.