Roasted Red Pepper Alfredo

Here is something we tried the other night when we were bereft of groceries and willpower, but not inspiration...no! Tyler wanted Fettucini Alfredo with roasted red pepper, and we thought, why not puree the pepper and fold it into the sauce? We were pleasantly surprised.

1 red pepper, roasted, skinned, seeded and pureed

1 cup heavy cream

2 Tbs. butter, unsalted

1/2 cup parmesan

1/2 pound fettucini

salt and pepper

variations

add fresh basil

try red chili flakes for a spicy dimension

add shrimp to the pasta

use fusilli instead of fettucini

or maybe cheese ravioli...

Under the broiler in the oven, roast the red pepper turning occassionally until the skin is burnt and blistered. Remove pepper from the oven and either place it in a sealed ziploc bag or simply in a bowl with a kitchen towel over top. This will trap the steam and encourage the skin to separate from the pepper. Leave it to steam for five minutes, then under running water (some would argue that this sacrifices flavour but I say, "boo!") slough off the skin, remove the stem and seeds. Puree the pepper in a Cuisinart with 1/2 Tbs. of butter. Begin boiling water for the pasta in a large pot, when at a boil add a generous amount of salt to the water. (Marcella Hazan says pasta should be cooked in water that tastes like the sea, she's right.) Add the pasta to the sea water. In a large saucepan warm the remaining butter and cream on medium heat. You are looking for the cream to lose a little moisture and thicken slightly. Fold in the red pepper puree, and parmesan cheese. Once your pasta is al dente add it to the saucepan as well and toss it to coat it in the sauce. Voila!