Creamy, heavenly, scrumptious… 15 Minutes!!
Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Ricotta Pasta is a lot of words to describe one of the most insanely easy, yet crazy tasty, pasta dishes I’ve ever made. Delicious, saucy pasta tossed in a homemade ricotta pesto that’s loaded with roasted red peppers and sun-dried tomatoes. Fancy enough for entertaining and easy enough for a weeknight, but no matter when you choose to make it just know that everyone will be very, very happy.
Ricotta is one of my favourite ingredients because it’s so versatile. On it’s own it’s rich and thick, with a slightly grainy texture (which I love, btw), but throw it in the blender and it becomes ultra smooth and creamy. I often use it to replace heavy cream in a dish to get a very similar type of richness. This time I just used both. 🙂
I made this dish for Valentine’s Day this year, but before you get excited about how romantic that was of me I should tell you that my dinner dates were my daughter and one of my honorary daughters because my husband was playing squash. Which, I have to say, I was completely fine with because once I sat down with a huge bowl of this deliciousness I wasn’t even aware anyone else was home at all. Me + giant bowl of creamy pasta = true romance.
Ricotta Pesto Pasta with Roasted Red Pepper, the details…
This ricotta pesto sauce couldn’t be easier and requires little more than tossing most of the ingredients into the blender for a good whiz. And yes, before you tell me, I know that “pesto” means “to pound”, but in the name of speed, efficiency, and sheer laziness, I opted “to blend”. I also know it’s untraditional to cook the garlic separately, but friends, I am not traditional, I am sometimes particular about how I make things, and I am not Italian (not that there’s anything wrong with that).
So, now that we’ve blended, we’re going to sauté the garlic in a little oil to mellow it out a bit and then add in the sauce from the blender. We’re doing all of this while our pasta cooks, so by the time the sauce is all heated through, we’re just going to scoop our pasta into it with a little of the cooking water, and stir. Then we’ll add in some cheese. Then we’ll eat.
Looking for more insanely easy pasta recipes? Try these…
FAQs
Of course! If you are that keen to add extra work for yourself then who am I to stop you? (jk) This easy recipe will show you exactly how to do it.
As a general rule of thumb, I almost always add some pasta water to my sauces. It really helps smooth things out and give you a rich, glossy sauce. But, if you think the sauce is thin enough as it is then feel free to leave it out.
Recipe-ish…
Let me know what you think!
Ricotta Pesto Pasta with Roasted Red Pepper
Ingredients
- 1 lb pasta of choice
- 1 17 oz 500ml jar roasted red peppers, drained
- 1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes
- Red pepper flakes
- 1 cup ricotta
- 2 Tbsp heavy cream
- Sauté:
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan
Instructions
- Start your pasta cooking in salted water, remembering to reserve some of the cooking water.
- Add the roasted red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, red pepper flakes, and cream to the blender and blend until smooth.
- In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat and add in the garlic. Cook for about 2 minutes and then pour in the blender pesto mixture.
- Allow to cook until heated through and season with S&P.
- Scoop in the cooked pasta and mix well, adding some of the cooking water to thin, if needed.
- Remove from heat and stir in the parmesan.
- Serve with more parmesan and red pepper flakes.
Video
If you like this Recipe for Ricotta Pesto Pasta with Roasted Red Pepper please go try my Recipe for Gochujang Pasta with Vodka and Cream. Another quick, easy and absolutely delicious pasta.
