Creamy Bell Pepper Pasta

This bell pepper pasta is, like most of my savoury recipes, a collaboration between me and my wonderful boyfriend Simon who only gets involved in the kitchen when it comes to savoury stuff. This recipe turned out super delicious and I highly recommend making this as a warming winter meal, or even as a valentines dinner to impress a loved one seeing as Valentines day is just around the corner!

Pasta sauce: 2 red bell pepers

1 head of garlic

1tsp olive oil

½ cube vegetable stock

salt to taste

1/2tsp smoked paprika

1/2tsp chili flakes

½ tsp lemon juice

80g dry roasted cashews

100ml water

Roasted chickpeas

1x400g tin chickpeas (approx 250g drained)

a good sprinkle of salt and pepper

1/4tsp chili flakes

1/2tsp smoked paprika

Other:

200g fusilli pasta (or similar shaped pasta)

fresh parsley

pumpkin seeds

Core and slice the bell pepper in quarters and place outside facing up on a tray with aluminium foil. Slice off the top of a head of garlic and drizzle with 1tsp olive oil. Wrap in aluminium foil and place on the tray with the bell peppers. Roast the paprika and wrapped head of garlic in the upper half of the oven at 300 degrees Celsius until the paprika wedges are charred on top (approx 9-10 minutes in my case). Once the paprika is charred. Remove the bell peppers and turn the oven to 200C. Leave the garlic in and let it roast for another 10 minutes. Wrap the aluminium foil the bell peppers was roasted on around the peppers to trap steam around the peppers and soften them, releasing the skin. Once they have cooled peel off the charred skin and add them to a blender. Boil the cashews in a pot of water for a minimum of 10 minutes, drain and add to the blender. Once the garlic is finished roasting, leave it in the aluminium foil to cool for a few minutes before squeezing the cloves from the head into the blender. Add the rest of the ingredients for the pasta sauce into the blender as well and blend until completely smooth.

Drain chickpeas and toss in spices. Bake on a tray lined with parchment paper at 200C for 30 minutes. Boil pasta in salted water according to package instructions. Drain the pasta and place it back in the pot. Pour the sauce on top and stir to combine.

Transfer the pasta to bowls and sprinkle on roasted chickpeas. Serve with fresh parsley and pumpkin seeds. Enjoy!