Knowing my limitations, I decided to make something that was not too complicated that I already had the majority of ingredients for. After looking through a few cookbooks for inspiration, I saw a recipe using roasted red peppers. I've always wanted to roast peppers for myself, but have never had an occasion to try it. This seemed as good an opportunity as any! So, with a couple of red peppers and a few groceries from the store, I give you:
What you need:
2 red bell peppers
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 cup frozen spinach
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)
1/2 cup half-and-half or heavy cream
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon butter
Salt, pepper to taste
2-3 ounces pasta (I used spaghetti noodles, but linguini or angel hair pasta would work well)
First you will need to roast your peppers. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the washed peppers on a roasting pan or baking sheet lined with foil. Roast the peppers for 15 to 20 minutes, then flip them and roast again for 15 minutes. The peppers will be very soft, and the skin will have blackened.
Once cooled, remove the peel. Next, slice open your peppers and remove the seeds. Pulse the peppers in a food processor and set aside.
Sauté the spinach with olive oil and minced garlic.
For the cream sauce, start by melting the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add in the flour. Next, add half-and-half and the milk. Allow sauce to simmer and stir until flour is completely blended. Add the processed peppers to the sauce, and salt and pepper to taste.
Once the pasta is cooked and strained, combine pasta with sauce and spinach. I added sautéed shrimp to the pasta, which was delicious!
