In the kitchen: Roasted Red Pepper Pesto

Mom and Dad’s vegetable garden is doing wonderfully well this year, it appears, and they have been sharing the largesse.

The last batch was a bunch of bell (red, green and yellow) and chili peppers. Having just finished off the last of an epic batch of fresh pesto, I was trying to think of ways to use the peppers, flipped open America’s Test Kitchen and, hey presto, red pepper pesto. With a yellow pepper in for color, of course.

Tried a bit with orzo, roasted chicken and spinach. Delicious, if I do say so myself. And pretty- looks like fall, don’t you think?

Roasted Red Pepper Pesto(ATK’s recipe, tweaked a bit.)

2 tbsp minced garlic*
2 red bell peppers and 1 yellow*, roasted and chopped coarsely
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup packed fresh parsley
1/4 cup grated parmesan
8 leaves fresh basil*
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Toss the garlic in a sauce pan over medium heat until toasted slightly.
2. Process all ingredients together in a food processor until smooth (I like mine a bit chunky, personally).
3. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Try tossed with pasta. To “loosen the consistency of the pesto” ATK suggests adding some of the pasta cooking water. Also good on a sandwich!

(* My changes. I omitted chopped shallot and fresh thyme in favor of basil, both of which allowed the taste of the roasted pepper to come to the fore.)

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