Italian Sweet Pepper Pesto Amalfi Coast Style Food

ITALIAN SWEET PEPPER PESTO, AMALFI COAST STYLE

Steps:

• Clean the peppers; slice off the tip and stem, then make a slit down the side. Scrape away the seeds and membranes, then thinly slice the peppers crosswise.
• In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, combine the peppers, basil, and garlic and pulse a few times just to incorporate the ingredients. Add the almonds, Parmigiano, and salt and continue to pulse until coarsely chopped, scraping down the sides as necessary.
• With the machine running, pour in the olive oil in a slow, steady stream and process until the ingredients are creamy and well-blended. Taste for salt, and adjust to taste, if necessary.
• Once finished, scrape the pesto into a small bowl and pour a thin layer of olive oil over the surface to prevent oxidation before use.

SWEET PEPPER PESTO

Steps:

• Grill or bake the peppers till the thin skins are black; this usually takes about 20 minutes.
• Take them out and put them into a plastic bag; they will soften and become moist, and the skin will peel off. Rinse the peppers to get rid of any flakes of burnt skin.
• Process the peppers, the pine nuts, and the olive oil in a blender till you obtain a creamy paste; thin it to a looser paste if you want, with more olive oil. If adding fresh basil, make sure the leaves are washed and patted dry before adding to the blender jar.
• Add salt and ground pepper to taste.
• Keep in a well-covered jar in the fridge, and use it up within two weeks.

PASTA WITH BELL PEPPERS, PESTO AND SWEET ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Remove casing from sausage links. Heat skillet, and add links. Break up meat while cooking (like ground beef consistancy) Cook until nicely browned.
• Place on paper plate with paper towel to soak up extra grease. Place aside until needed.
• Wash tomatoes and slice up into workable size. Place in food processor.
• Peel garlic cloves and place in processor with tomatoes.
• Cut lemon in half, squeeze juice from one half on top of tomatoes and garlic on food processor.
• Wash basil and cilantro. Place herbs in food processor as well.
• Process until all tomatoes are chopped up - NOT until smooth. You want a little chunkiness. Sauce will be a little watery. (I have thought about adding a small can of tomato paste or something here to thicken the sauce and make it more like what you would get out of a jar, however I have never tried it so I'm not sure how it would work/taste.).
• Wash and cut up pepper. Cut into slices and then cut the slices in half.
• Place tomato sauce in pan and add in meat. Heat for 5-10 minutes over medium heat until warm. Add in pepper for a few minutes and cook until desired firmness. (I only put them in for about 2-3 minutes as I like them just warm, and still crunchy.).
• Mix sauce with warm pasta, stir in pesto and serve ENJOY!