Pasta with Creamed Vegetables & Red Pepper Pesto

 Each time I set out to make pasta, there’s this same internal debate that starts off. While one part of me, the most teeny weeny bit of it, wants to prepare one with a white base, the other wants to prepare a tomato-based one for the hubby. Even when we eat out, the Arabiatta has never even an option. Not that I mind. I love spicy food and I love tomato and I love spicy red gravy pastas!

But making the same thing always can be a bit boring and one does want to try out something different every once in a while. The few times I’ve ended up eating white pasta were when my sis-in-law prepared it for the nephews and I happily had some (never the kind to say no!). I did quite like it, but I never did come around making one myself.

But a fortnight ago we’d been to an American pizza chain and a friend of ours was suddenly struck by pasta-attack and she had to have pasta at the pizzeria. Thankfully, the chain happened to have quite a few things besides pizza, pasta for one, and our friend ordered something they’d called ‘Best of both worlds pasta’. “It has both white sauce and red sauce,” the waiter helpfully explained. But before I could sample the thing, the little son had a frantic crying fit and we had to rush home.

So, last Sunday, when I decided six months was too long a time to not have had pasta (the last I had pasta was on the day before I delivered!), I though I must try the two-in-one pasta. I had loads of fun preparing it and unlike the many times where it mess up the pasta (too mashed up) or the sauce (burnt!), it was quite good this time round. Only, that I under-spiced and under-salted the white sauce bit.

After the pasta, the creamed veggies and the red sauce were ready, I wanted to layer it all, topped with cheese and baked it a bit. I reckoned this would also work well for the Dishes with Spreads and Toppings that I’m blogging about this week as part of Srivalli’s Blogging Marathon. Funnily, I took step by step pictures as I layered the stuff, but forgot to add the red sauce! I plopped it right on top of the baked pasta once it was done. It was good! Next time, I’d use a slightly bigger dish so that I don’t end up piling the pasta too high and, of course, I’d add the red sauce too!

 

Pasta with Creamed Vegetables & Red Pepper Pesto

Ingredients:

Pasta – 200 gm (Any variety of your choice, cooked to package instructions in lightly salted water. I used Penne)

Finely diced carrots, yellow and red bell peppers/capsicum – 1/8 cup

Coriander/basil leaf for garnish

Cheese slices

For the creamed vegetables

Broccoli – 1 small, cut into florets

Carrot – 1 small, diced

Yellow bell pepper/capsicum – 1, diced

Brussels sprouts – ¼ cup, halved

Shallots – ¼ cup, halved

Garlic – 2 cloves, minced

APF/Maida – 1.5 tbsp

Milk – 2.5 cups

Oil – 2 tbsp

Black pepper – 1 tsp, crushed

Salt

For the Red Pepper Pesto 

Red bell pepper/capsicum – 2, diced

Tomato – 1, diced

Dry red chillies – 2

Onion – 1 medium, chopped fine

Oil – 1 tbsp

Salt

Method:

Preparing the Creamed Vegetables

Mix APF in ¼ cup milk into a smooth paste. Keep aside

Heat oil and add garlic and shallots

Add the other vegetables when shallots turn translucent

After a couple of minutes or so, add the flour paste and the rest of the milk and mix well

Add black pepper and salt and mix well

Cook, stirring every other minute till the vegetables are somewhat tender (about 5 minutes) and the milk is of creamy consistency

Add pasta and cook for a minute

Preparing the Red Pepper Pesto

Grind the red bell peppers, red chillies and tomato into a paste

Heat oil and add onions. Cook till translucent

Add red pepper paste

Cook, sautéing occasionally, till the water evaporates and the sauce thickens and comes together (about 5-7 minutes)

Layering and baking

Spread half the pasta and creamed vegetables at the base of your oven proof dish

Spread a thin layer of the red pepper pesto

Follow with the remaining pasta and vegetables and another thin layer of pesto (Reserve some pesto for serving on individual plates too)

Add layer of the finely chopped vegetables

Top with sliced cheese

Bake in a preheated oven @175 deg C till cheese melts (about 7 minutes in my oven)

Serve hot with some red pepper pesto on the side

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