Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

4.97 from 63 votes

This Roasted Red Pepper Pasta has a quick and delicious homemade sauce with cheesy tortellini in every bite.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 433kcal

Cost: 10

20 ounces tortellini , (the refrigerated kind), cheese or chicken
6 Tablespoons butter
1 large onion , chopped
6 cloves garlic , minced
4 large red bell peppers , cut in half vertically from stem to butt, stems and seeds removed
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
salt and freshly ground black pepper , to taste
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
4 cups fresh spinach leaves (or one 5oz bag)
1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
2-3 Tablespoons fresh chopped parsley , or 1 tablespoon dried

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside.
20 ounces tortellini
Roast peppers: Turn oven to HIGH broil. Place the red bell pepper halves, skin side up, on a foil lined baking sheet. Press them flat with your hand. Broil on the top rack of your oven for 10 minutes, or until the skins are mostly black. Remove from oven and transfer charred peppers to plastic bag. Close the opening and allow the peppers to steam in the bag for at least 10 minutes.
4 large red bell peppers
Blend sauce: In the meantime, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Transfer the mixture to your blender or food processor.
6 Tablespoons butter, 1 large onion, 6 cloves garlic
Remove the bell peppers from the bag and peel the outer blackened skins off the tops of the peppers--they should slide off easily. Add the peppers to the blender. Process everything until smooth.
Finish: Pour the mixture back into your skillet over medium heat. Add chicken broth and season with salt, and pepper. Stir in cream. Stir in spinach. Add the cooked tortellini noodles and toss to coat. Stir in parmesan cheese. Sprinkle parsley on top and garnish with extra parmesan, if desired.
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth, 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, 4 cups fresh spinach leaves, 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, 2-3 Tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

Make Ahead Instructions: To save time, make the roasted red pepper sauce in advance, then rewarm and add hot cooked tortellini.

Variations:

Pasta: Use any type of pasta you like, including penne and shell noodles.
Veggies: add additional chopped veggies including zucchini, mushrooms or whatever you like. Sauté veggies in step 3 with the onions and garlic.
Chicken: stir in chopped and cooked chicken at the final step of the recipe.
Vegan: substitute vegan butter, vegetable broth, and soy milk or coconut cream for the heavy cream. leave out the parmesan or add 6 Tbs raw cashews, 4 teaspoons, nutritional yeast, 1/4 tsp sea salt, and 1/8 tsp. garlic powder to a food processor, blend until smooth and stir in to pasta in place of parmesan cheese.

Recipe Link