Great ways to use roasted red peppers in the jar

Okay, so maybe it's cheating to buy them in the jar, but the price of fresh red peppers is usually so high that the jarred version is oh-so-tempting. Keep some handy to make all sorts of dishes, include today's Pasta With Scallops and Roasted Red Pepper Pesto. This recipe would also be good with shrimp or chicken.

Food writer Susan Selasky of the Detroit Free-Press recently wrote a piece about the beauty of the cheating red peppers. Here are a couple of her suggestions for using them:

1. Puree the peppers in a food processor and serve as a dip. They're fat-free and extremely low in calories. (You could do this in a blender.)

2. Serve slices of roasted red pepper with fresh mozzarella, a drizzling of quality olive oil and some fresh herbs as an appetizer.

Read the rest of her story here.

Pasta With Scallops and Roasted Red Pepper Pesto
3 cloves garlic, unpeeled
¾ cup roasted red peppers, patted dry and coarsely chopped
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup low-fat ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 small shallot, peeled, minced
1 ½ teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
½ pound pasta (about 3 cups dry)
½ pound dry sea scallops (not soaked in water), patted dry

Place the garlic in a skillet over medium heat. Toast the garlic, shaking the pan often, until the skins are spotty brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the garlic, cool and then peel and coarsely chop.

In a food processor place the garlic, peppers, Parmesan and ricotta cheese, parsley, 1 tablespoon olive oil, shallot, thyme and ¼ teaspoon salt; process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and season as needed with salt and black pepper.

At this point the pesto can be covered with plastic wrap (press the wrap directly onto the surface of the pesto) and refrigerated up to 3 days.

Bring large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Season it with kosher salt. Add the pasta and cook, stirring often, until al dente, about 8 minutes. When done, reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water and drain the pasta.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the same skillet in which the garlic was toasted. Season the scallops with salt and pepper. Add to the skillet and sear until nicely browned on each side, 3 minutes each side for 1 ½- to 2-inch diameter scallops.

Add the pesto to the cooked pasta and toss to combine. Add reserved pasta water a little at a time until it is a sauce consistency. Place in serving bowls and top with seared scallops.

Serves two generously.

Adapted from Cooking for Two by the editors of America’s Test Kitchen (America’s Test Kitchen, $35).

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Comments

[Trisha]

Where can i buy roasted red peppers.. i have these recipes that call for them but i can never find them at cub foods or target????????

[Stir Crazy]

Hey Trisha,

Roasted red peppers are stocked in grocery stores in the aisles with pickles and olives. I don't know if they have them in a non-super Target. I don't know cub foods ... good luck.