I’m trying to be more inspired in the kitchen but truth be told we’re eating a lot of frozen (but homemade) food that was stored in the freezer, simply grilling something, or (gasp) eating takeout pizza.
It’s just hard to come up with new ideas that don’t require a lot of brain effort.
Every other week, we receive a farm bag from OK Farm Local. I’ve never been disappointed.
Here’s just a few things from past deliveries.
They try to create a recipe to help inspire. Sometimes these are hit are miss. Honestly, the directions and the way the recipes are written are a but cumbersome and sometimes the recipes make a huge amount (too much for us). I have highlighted a few of my bag creations before (usually in an IMK post).
Here’s one that is a HUGE keeper, especially with this sauce. Basically, it’s a no cook pasta sauce (at least after the peppers are roasted). The recipe went along with all the produce that we received that week including the peppers, spaghetti squash and mushrooms. Really, keep this recipe for the sauce.
Roasted Pepper Spaghetti (with Spaghetti Squash and Mushrooms)
This sauce can be perfected to your own tastes and can be used in a number of ways. (Note the original recipe utilized Vegenaise instead of goat cheese. Not sure how I would have liked that but the goat cheese addition was genius!)
Ingredients
- 1/2 spaghetti squash, roasted
- 6-7 mini red bell peppers
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes
- 4 oz. goat cheese
- salt and pepper
- Aleppo Pepper
- 8 oz. spaghetti
- olive oil
- 8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and add the spaghetti squash halves. Drizzle with oil and pop into the oven to roast for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Once cooled, use a fork, and shred into spaghetti like strands. (I used the other half of the squash to make a cold salad, just tossing it with some vinaigrette and some arugula for later lunches.) Set aside.
- Next, place the oven on broil. Line a baking sheet with parchment and add the mini sweet peppers. Drizzle with oil and pop them into the oven, checking frequently. Once the peppers begin to char, about 5 minutes, turn them over and broil until charred on the other side, approximately 5 minutes more. Remove from oven and let cool. Once cooled, remove the tops and seeds. (At this point you could peel them if you wanted but since they’re bell peppers I didn’t see the need.)
- Add the roasted peppers, diced tomatoes, minced garlic cloves, goat cheese and a generous pinch of salt and pepper to a blender or food processor. Add Aleppo to taste. Blend until incorporated and smooth.
- Cook your pasta according to directions. While it is cooking, heat a sauté pan and drizzle oil over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and sauté until they begin to become crispy around the edges. – 5 minutes or so. Add the shredded flesh of one half of a spaghetti squash and toss to incorporate and warm. Add the roasted pepper sauce and hot pasta and toss to combine.
Yield: 4
This is not the best photo and if I had known how delicious this dish was, I would have worked harder plating it.
You can also toss in some arugula if you like.
I will be making this sauce again and again and throwing it on all sorts of pasta (or using it as a pizza sauce).
For my other farm bag inspired recipes, see these creations:
Delicata Squash and Spinach Salad
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Fajitas
Chicken Stir Fry with Celery and Green Beans
Today’s recipe was rescued from my “drafts.” I hope to go through those archives and post some more recipes that we deemed worthy.
Looks good! Also easy to make variations if your produce drawer has slightly different vegetables.
best… mae at maefood.blogspot.com
This sounds like a good recipe but I might just make it with the spaghetti squash for a smaller portion for just the two of us. BTW, when I char bell peppers, I then put them in a sealed paper bag or zip lock bag until they cool. The charred skin then can easily be peeled or rubbed off with your fingers.
that sauce sounds like the bomb!
I don’t use spaghetti squash much because I’ve never been able to get the texture right. You dish makes me want to give it another try. A tasty sauce that I think would be good on real spaghetti as well.
The sauce sounds really creamy and good.
I think we all rely on our freezers for dinner! We certainly do. 🙂 Anyway, when we’re not doing that, we should make this! Lotta flavor, really healthy. Winner! 🙂 Thanks.