Pepper relish with Pasta

Now in our household we love a bit of pasta.We have spaghetti, we have tagliatelli, fusilli, penne, vermicelli,  the list goes on and on. There are so many types but they all become a real treat with a pasta sauce. We have all been to the shop and seen the jars and packets, tins and cartons of pasta sauces, These all have their place in the kitchen but nothing is as tasty a homemade pasta sauce. Charlotte made this one recently and I enjoye it so much that i thought we needed to share it with you. Unfortunatly i can't take the credit for this one as it is one of Delia Smiths taken from How to Cook Book Three and Delia's Vegetarian Collection.
I am sure you will enjoy Pepper relish with pasta.

Pepper relish with pasta

Serves 4                      Cook time 50 mins

Ingredients

• 1 lb (450 g) rigatoni or spaghetti

For the relish:

•  1 lb (450 g) mixed red and yellow peppers (about 3 peppers in total), quartered, deseeded and cut into ¼ inch (5 mm) strips
•  4 medium-sized ripe tomatoes
•  1 rounded teaspoon cumin seeds, lightly crushed
•  1 dessertspoon olive oil
•  5 cloves garlic, chopped
•  2 medium-sized red chillies, deseeded and chopped
•  2 tablespoons sun-dried tomato paste
•  4 sprigs fresh basil, to garnish
•  salt and freshly milled black pepper

You will also need a lidded frying pan with a 10 inch diameter.

Method   First, skin the tomatoes. To do this, place them in a heatproof bowl, pour boiling water over them and count 60 seconds. After that, pour off the water and slip off their skins (protecting your hands with a cloth if the tomatoes are hot). Roughly chop the tomatoes. Watch How to Skin Tomatoes here. Next, dry-roast the cumin seeds in the frying pan for about a minute, until they become fragrant. Now add the oil and when it’s hot, stir in the peppers, garlic and chillies and turn the heat down as low as possible. Then cover and cook slowly for about 40 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the peppers are really soft. After that, add the tomatoes and the sun-dried tomato paste to the softened peppers. Season and continue to cook, uncovered, over a highish heat, until the mixture is reduced and thickened slightly – about 5 minutes. Next, keep the sauce warm and cook the pasta – for a minute less than the pack instructions advise. Then drain it and quickly return it to the hot pan, along with the sauce, and place it over a gentle heat. Watch How to Cook Perfect Pasta here Stir, and continue to cook for about another minute, to allow the pasta to absorb the sauce. Serve straight away in hot bowls, garnished with the basil.

Get stuffed

Here we are, another week has gone by and it’s Meat free Monday again. You may have a favourite you like to make, or a favourite ingredient that you like to use. For me it always seems to be mushrooms or something mushroom based, so I am delving into my cook book to find you something that is not mushroom based. Hmmm I thought now what can I give them, something not to hard as nobody wants to get in from work and do loads of kitchen stuff, defiantly something tasty, and most of all something nutritious. Eureka! Quinoa stuffed peppers with Feta.

I found this recipe on the net some time ago on the Hemsley & Hemsley website, it ticks all the boxes for me and guess what? No mushrooms either. The ball is with you now. Go ahead and enjoy Quinoa stuffed peppers with Feta.

Quinoa stuffed peppers with Feta

Time 35 mins                               Serves 2

Ingredients 

• 2 large Romano red peppers (or 4 small ones) or the darker more rustic bell peppers 
• 100g quinoa - soaked overnight or for 8 hours in double the volume of water with a pinch of salt. Drain and rinse thoroughly before cooking. (If you can't soak it, thoroughly wash and rinse the quinoa and follow packet instructions)
• 100ml good-quality vegetable stock - if you can't make your own buy organic, gluten-free stock
• 1 handful of green olives, pitted and diced 
• 1 small red onion, finely diced
• 1 large pinch of dried thyme or 1 tsp of fresh thyme leaves
• 2 large handfuls of parsley, finely chopped, or you could use a mix of herbs like parsley, mint, dill or coriander
• Juice of ½ lemon
• A little fresh red chilli, sliced
• Sea salt and pepper to taste
• 1 small handful of quality feta, crumbled or roughly chopped.

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200C.
2. Lay the peppers flat-side-down and slice in half lengthways – this makes a less wobbly base and makes them easier to fill.
3. Roast cut-side-up on a baking tray for 12 minutes.
4. Place the soaked and drained quinoa in a pan, cover with the stock and bring up to the boil. Simmer on a low heat for 12 minutes until the quinoa is tender.
5. Meanwhile, prepare the remainder of the ingredients. Combine them with the cooked quinoa and taste for seasoning – remember the feta will be salty.
6. Preheat the grill.
7. Stuff the pepper with the quinoa mix, top with crumbled feta and grill for 3-5 minutes until golden and bubbling.