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This roasted red pepper pasta recipe is smoky, creamy, and comes together in one blender and one pan! It’s the kind of dinner that tastes fancy but takes about 20 minutes start to finish.
Why you’ll love this quick pasta recipe
We make this easy pasta dinner on a REGULAR basis. It’s something my mom always made when I was young and I crave it regularly!
It comes together in about 20 minutes with very little effort!
Why you’ll love this:
- Great for meal prep – the sauce keeps well and reheats beautifully.
- So simple to throw together – the sauce is just a blend-and-simmer situation, no complicated technique required.
- Big flavor for minimal effort – jarred roasted red peppers do a lot of the heavy lifting here.
- Easy to make it your own – swap the pasta shape, add protein, or make it dairy-free (notes below!).
Ingredients needed
The ingredients for this recipe are listed fully down in the recipe card but let’s briefly go over the pantry staples needed including a few substitutions you can make as desired!
- Pasta. You’ll need 1 pound of your favorite short pasta. I like to use penne pasta, but you could use bowtie, shells or elbow noodles. Use gluten free pasta, as desired.
- Shallot + garlic. Adds delicious aromatic flavor. If you don’t happen to have shallot, sub with onion.
- Roasted red peppers. Jarred roasted red peppers are the main ingredient and so convenient + perfect in this recipe.
- Vegetable broth. Adds flavor and is the perfect amount of liquid for the sauce. If you’re not vegetarian, you can definitely use chicken broth.
- Heavy cream. Highly recommended for a super creamy, delicious sauce. However, to keep this dish vegan, use almond milk or coconut milk.
- Fresh basil. For fresh flavor!
- White wine. Optional, but I just love how it enhances the flavor of the sauce.
- Parmesan cheese. Highly recommend freshly grated parmesan cheese! You can find the highest quality blocks of parmesan cheese in the speciality cheese area in most grocery stores. If you’d like this recipe to be vegan-friendly, Violife makes a great parmesan cheese, or try my recipe for vegan parmesan cheese.
How to make this easy roasted red pepper pasta
Just a reminder that you can find the FULL written recipe down in the recipe card, but I want to quickly go over how to make them with visuals for you :)
- Blend the roasted red pepper sauce. Saute the shallot and garlic in a little olive oil. Add to a blender of food processor with the roasted peppers, broth, cream, and basil, then blend until it’s a creamy texture.
Cook the pasta in a large pot of water according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve a cup of pasta water to thin the sauce as desired. Drain and set aside.
- Simmer until glossy. Pour the blended sauce into your skillet over medium heat and let it bubble away for a few minutes – this is where all that smoky-sweet flavor really comes together.
- Add the pasta and parmesan. Toss in your drained pasta along with the parmesan.
- Toss until creamy. Stir everything together until the cooked pasta is fully coated in the creamy sauce and the cheese has melted right into the sauce. Add a splash of the reserved pasta water to thin the sauce as needed. Top with fresh herbs, a pinch of red pepper flakes, and enjoy!
Store leftovers in an airtight container.
Recipe Tips
- Blend it smooth. A high-powered blender gets the sauce silky – no chunky bits of pepper.
- Don’t skip the simmer. A few minutes on the stove after blending lets the flavors deepen and the sauce thicken slightly.
- Save your pasta water. A splash loosens the sauce if it gets too thick after tossing.
- Grate your own parmesan if you can – it melts smoother than the pre-shredded stuff.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Roast 2-3 large red bell peppers at 425°F until the skins are blistered and blackened, about 25-30 minutes, then peel before blending. Jarred is the shortcut version and works just as well.
Swap the heavy cream for a plant-based cream alternative and skip the parmesan or use a dairy-free version. The sauce base is naturally vegan without the dairy additions.
Definitely. Grilled chicken, shrimp, or white beans all work nicely stirred in at the end.
Serving suggestions
This roasted red pepper pasta is pretty much a meal on its own, but you may want to add a side, like crusty Pepperoni Garlic Bread, Soft Garlic Pretzels, or a light simple side salad. You can also beef up the recipe by adding some chicken, or browning some Italian sausage in the skillet in the beginning, before the shallot and garlic.
Roasted Red Pepper Pasta
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound penne pasta, or other pasta as desired
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 shallot, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 12 oz roasted red peppers, jar, drained
- ½ cup vegetable broth
- 1 ¼ cups heavy cream, can also use oat milk or coconut milk
- 6 large basil leaves, chopped or julienned
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt + pepper to taste
- Optional: ¼ cup of white wine
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, HERE is my vegan version or Violife is great!
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside. I like to save a little of the pasta water to thin the sauce as desired.
- In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add in the shallot and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring often.
- Add the shallot + garlic to a blender with the roasted red peppers, veggie broth, cream, basil, salt + pepper. Blend until creamy (it may need a few minutes to get creamy, so just let it run for a couple minutes as needed).
- Add the sauce + white wine to the same skillet you sautéed the veggies in. Mix in the white wine and cook for 5 minutes. Add in the pasta + parmesan and stir to coat in the sauce and continue to stir until the cheese is fully melted. Garnish with extra basil, if you’d like.
- Season with additional salt and pepper to taste, serve, and ENJOY!
Notes
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat on the stovetop or microwave with a splash of water or broth to loosen the sauce back up.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
My family loved this!