Tomato pepper olive pasta
Well, I’m back. I’ve learned something about myself this summer. The joy of cooking and writing for y’all is most deeply felt when the days are short and the nights are long. Because once it tips the other way, I’m outside. With the fall equinox passed and my shorts packed away, it’s time to cook like a mother. Let’s get at ‘er.
For those that joined our club since I posted last spring, welcome. Cook Like a Mother is a space for me to share my cooking and my love for family meals. I’m glad you’re here. Bring your friends.
Tonight I’m back into the pasta. Can’t help myself. I just love pasta so much. It’s so GOOD. SO GOOD. It was a bit of a pantry pasta. I stumbled into what I think is going to be a stalwart in all my future tomato sauce pastas though — sun-dried tomatoes. They amped this pasta up in the best way possible.
Tonight’s takes:
Husband: “Did you take pictures of this one? Yes? I wouldn’t change anything.” The highest praise I think I may have got from PK.
Helen: “This pasta is a 10/10. Make it again. It’s 100/100.”
Hector: “Good. I like the beans and sauce. Do you want to know my number is? 52 less 54.” So -2? That good, right? 😆
What I used:
3 cloves garlic
2.5 bell peppers (half a green and two purple)
1 28oz can whole tomatoes
2 heaping spoonful’s of sun-dried tomatoes
3 heaping spoonful’s of Kalamata olives
1 500g bag conchiglie rigate (medium-sized shells)
1 14oz can lentils, drained
butter
olive oil
salt
grated pecorino for serving.
What I did:
Got my sauce pot and my pasta pot set-up (two pot method explained in this post).
Smashed my garlic and added them to my sauce pot.
Cut my peppers into quarters and then diced.
Added the peppers into the sauce pot. Added a good pinch of salt.
Just as the peppers and garlic were beginning to brown, added in the tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives. Mixed the sauce up, brought to a pretty aggressive simmer. Let it simmer with the lid off.
Once the pasta water was boiling, added in the pasta. Set the timer for al dente package directions once it returned to the boil.
By now the sauce had been simmering for 25 minutes, most of the liquid was cooked down so I turned the temp way down and just held the sauce until the pasta was done.
After 11 minutes, added the pasta to the sauce. Made sure to bring lots of water along with the pasta. Added about 1 tbsp of butter and stirred and stirred until a nice sauce coated the pasta. Added in the lentils. Stirred to combine.
Served with some grated pecorino.
Also had a glass of Plot Merlot. Just joined the wine club as I’m in love with low-intervention, natural ferment wines lately and have had a bit of a time trying to find them in the Okanagan. It was gooood. I can’t wait to nip into the orange wine that came in the pack.
Next time:
This got pretty rave reviews. Don’t think I’ll change anything next time. What I will be doing more of though is adding sun-dried tomatoes to pasta. The sauce cooked for 35 minutes+ so they really broke down and imparted such amazing flavour. And the lentils were a good add — a bit of extra fibre and protein, so basically this was super healthy pasta.
😋😋😋
-Ellisa