Spicy Peppadew pesto pasta
And so we come to the end of Peppadew week! I hope you’ve enjoyed the recipes this week, and that I’ve given you a taste of how versatile these little piquante peppers are. If you haven’t yet claimed your discount voucher, make sure you do that now, and pick up a jar next time you’re in the shops. They’re a very handy thing to have in the cupboard ready for a quick dinner…
…like this spicy Peppadew pesto pasta! You’ve probably seen sun-dried tomato pesto lots of times, but switching the tomatoes for hot Peppadews gives the added bonus of that lovely sweet spiciness. When you’re eating something like pasta, which doesn’t have a huge amount of flavour itself, it’s so nice to have a real hit of flavour in the sauce, and this Peppadew pesto definitely delivers that.
The pesto is made from pine nuts, garlic, fresh basil, and hot Peppadews. I skipped the parmesan that’s usually found in pesto, because honestly I think it’s not really necessary.
There I go again, pretending I know more than the Italians who have been making pesto for centuries – but I actually prefer to make a vegan pesto. The pine nuts make it perfectly creamy, and this way people can choose how much cheese to add on top of their pasta instead. You taste it more when it’s sprinkled on top, rather than being hidden inside the pesto!
I served my Peppadew pesto pasta really simply with a few more fresh basil leaves and some roasted mushrooms. I don’t know why, but I’ve always thought that mushrooms go really well with pesto pasta – they add a little bit of juiciness that goes really well with the fairly dry sauce. If you’re not a mushroom fan, feel free to skip them, or go for some other veggies instead.
A really tasty, quick and simple weeknight dinner – perfect!
Spicy Peppadew Pesto Pasta
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Ingredients
- ~ 8 medium mushrooms
- 1 tbsp oil
- 200 g pasta
- 60 g drained Peppadew piquante peppers (1/3 of a 400g jar, or ~2/3 cup)
- 2 tbsp pine nuts
- 1 small clove garlic, peeled
- Small bunch fresh basil
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Black pepper
Instructions
- Slice the mushrooms, and toss them in a little oil. Roast at 200°C (Gas Mark 6 / 400°F) for 10-15 minutes, until soft.
- Boil the pasta until al dente.
- Meanwhile, add the drained Peppadew peppers, pine nuts, garlic, basil and extra virgin olive oil to a mini food processor, along with a good pinch of black pepper. Blitz until smooth.
- When the pasta is cooked, drain it, and stir through the pesto. Serve with the roasted mushrooms and more fresh basil.
Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on your exact ingredients. Please calculate your own nutritional values if you require accuracy for health reasons.
Note: Nutritional information is approximate, and will depend on exactly what ingredients you choose.
This sounds like a wonderful pasta dish. Nice and easy too :)
I’m a huge fan of peppadew peppers and have a jar in the cupboard! I’ll be making this tonight so we can have it for lunch tomorrow. Thanks for the recipe!!! (And the voucher :))
Ooh hope you enjoy it! :)
Love this! So much flavor in such a simple dish!
This looks delicious! So fresh and flavorful! Love all the veggies! :)
This looks perfectly delicious, I have to make it soon!!
This pasta looks very very delicious! Love homemade spicy pesto YUM
This looks fantastic! I’m not a big fan of sundried tomatoes, so swapping them out for peppers sounds right up my alley. I can’t wait to give this a try!
This pasta looks so tasty! I love Peppadew peppers – they sell them at the olive bar at our grocery store, and I always get them with the olives! They have a perfect amount of spicyness. I never added these peppers to foods, just ate them on their own, adding them to pasta is a great idea!
I always used to eat them on their own (especially the cheese stuffed ones!), but they’re so great for adding to meals too. Check out the other recipes I’ve posted this week for some other ideas :)
I’m not a massive fan of spice but this looks amazing and i do love pasta! xo
You can always use the mild Peppadews instead, they still have a hint of spice but are much subtler ;)
I love homemade pesto, so much nicer than store bought. Pasta and pesto is the perfect weeknight comfort food isn’t it?
It’s so quick, definitely a meal for occasions when you can’t be bothered to do anything fancy :)