Red and Yellow Pepper Sauce with Fettuccine

I thought it would be fun to whip up some fresh pasta for dinner the other night, and I’ve made fresh pasta plenty of times. On one occasion, I even made beet pasta which was as delicious as it was pretty. Then, I realized I had never made fresh pasta into ribbons of any kind. Those rollers on my pasta machine that cut a sheet into long strands had never been used. The injustice. They’d been ignored for years. As I almost always do when making fresh pasta, I grabbed Marcella’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. Making the pasta dough gets easier every time I do it. Mix eggs into flour, knead, divide, flatten, and then make whatever shape you want. For a sauce for this first-ever ribbon-cut pasta of mine, I chose Marcella’s roasted red and yellow pepper sauce with garlic and basil. It includes an interesting technique of peeling the raw peppers before cooking them rather than roasting them and then removing the charred skin. The reason for this was so that the peppers would still be firm when added to the saute pan.

I should back up just a bit and explain what I learned about fresh pasta this time around. To make ribbons, you first have to roll the dough into sheets. Then, it’s important to let the sheets sit and dry for a few minutes before rolling them through the cutter. The sheets should be just starting to dry but not yet brittle. I could blame it on the humidity, but I probably just rushed it with my first couple of sheets. The fettuccine strands came out a little sticky and were difficult to place on a towel for further drying. Since the last sheet had sat a little longer, it went through the cutter much better and was easier to handle. The cut fettuccine was left to dry for a couple of hours before dinner. I started the sauce before boiling the pasta because everyone knows the sauce can wait but nothing and no one should wait for the pasta. Red and yellow bell peppers were peeled and then cut into large chunks. Olive oil was warmed in a large saute pan, and peeled garlic cloves were added. Marcella suggests only flavoring the oil with the garlic and removing it before adding the peppers. My love of garlic made discarding it impossible so I left it right there in the pan. The chopped peppers were added, and it all cooked together for 15 minutes or so. The peppers should become tender but not mushy. Salt and pepper were added. Meanwhile a large pot of salted water was brought to a boil, and during the last few minutes of cooking the peppers, the pasta was boiled. The fettuccine was drained and added directly to the saute pan along with torn basil leaves, butter, and shredded parmigiano.

Even though I defied Marcella by leaving in the garlic, I thought its nuttiness was delicious with the sweet and slightly caramelized bell peppers. The freshly made fettuccine which I left in nice, long lengths was a delight with this chunky, fresh sauce. A penne or rigatoni shape would have been very good with this sauce too, and that just made me realize I haven’t made a homemade, tube-shaped pasta yet.

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Fettuccine with Artichokes and Chicken

There was a great article in last month’s Saveur about artichokes, and that’s where I found this recipe. Here in Austin, I only ever see globe artichokes and on rare occasions a purple variety. So, when I noticed that this recipe was made with baby artichokes, I thought I would have to just go with large ones and cut them into smaller pieces once cleaned. Off I went to Whole Foods where I found some lovely, giant globe artichokes and as I piled them into my cart a nice woman struck up a conversation. She asked how I planned to use them and went on to tell me about the amazing stuffed artichokes she once enjoyed in Italy. I explained that I wished I could find the baby size but was going to make do. And, then she said that she just saw some baby artichokes right over there. Perfect. Today’s lesson: always engage in conversations with strangers when grocery shopping. You never know what you might learn. I was thrilled to bring home baby artichokes and got right to work on this dish.

First, the artichokes were cleaned, trimmed, halved and left to soak in acidulated water. If you click on the link above for this recipe, there is also a handy slideshow of the steps taken to clean baby artichokes. Next, oil was heated in a dutch oven and garlic, carrots, and dried porcini were added. Once cooked until soft, chopped pieces of boneless chicken were seasoned and added to the pan with some tomato paste. Chicken thighs were recommended, but I had boneless breasts in the refrigerator and used those instead. The chicken cooked until browned, and then white wine vinegar was added which began the sauce and deglazed the pan. The artichokes were drained and placed in the pan along with Mexican mint marigold (or tarragon) and chicken broth. This was brought to a boil and then simmered for 40 minutes. Near the end of the simmering time, fettuccine was cooked separately in boiling water. It was drained, some of the pasta boiling water was reserved, and the pasta was added to the dutch oven. Grated parmigiano reggiano was stirred in, and some pasta water was used to extend the sauce.

This was a fantastic, hearty meal that’s a little difficult to describe. It was earthy with layers of flavor, yet it was spring-like and not heavy. The sauce was not thick or rich, but the simmering had transformed all the parts into something quite interesting that paired very nicely with artichokes and chicken. The few mushrooms were just enough to provide a woodsy note, and the vinegar’s acidity played its part. I’m lacking a good way to sum up how great this actually tasted, so you’ll just have to try it. And, I’ll have to make it a few more times until I can figure out how to explain it better.

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