Plan Ahead: Prepare the sauce ahead of time. Prepare the pasta ahead of time. Dinner in 5 min.
Course
Main Course
Cuisine
Italian
Total Time45minutes
Servings2People
Ingredients
1red bell pepper sliced in ½ inch strips
1yellow bell pepper sliced in ½ inch strips
2Tablespoonsolive oil divided
1/2CupWater
½square chicken bouillon cube or 2 teaspoons instant bouillon
1Tablespoonchicken bouillon
1 ½cupswhite mushrooms thin
1cupheavy cream
2Tablespoonstomato paste (buy it in a tube)
8oz. (2 cups)penne pasta
Coarse salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Instructions
In a medium size saucepan over medium heat, sauté the peppers in 1 Tablespoon olive oil, water and chicken bouillon cube (or instant bouillon) until light brown and soft. About 30 min. Add more water as needed, ¼ cup at a time. Do not let the peppers go dry. (You don’t want to drown out the flavor of the peppers, that is why you only add a small amount of water at a time.) Cook down to about ⅛ cup water. Remove the peppers from the pan and put in a plastic bag for 10 min. to sweat. Peel off the skins. Discard.
Put 1 Tablespoon olive oil in a separate small saucepan. Add ¼ cup water and 1 Tablespoon chicken bouillon. Add sliced mushrooms. Cook down for about 15 min. adding in more water as needed.
Cook the pasta according to package directions. Set aside. Save some pasta water if needed later.
Put the peeled peppers in a blender. Add cream and tomato paste. Blend until smooth. Stir in the mushrooms. If too thick, add in some pasta water. May re-heat on top of stove at this point when ready to serve. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Pour over warm penne pasta. Top with grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
Serve with: Two Basic Salads page 258, Peasant White Bread page 237 or Steamed zucchini.
Variation: May add cooked Italian sausage. Use ground or rubbed sage.