| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 30 min |
| Prep: | 10 min |
| Cook: | 20 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- Kosher salt
- 12 ounces mezzi rigatoni or other short tube-shaped pasta
- 2 bell peppers (red and/or yellow), halved, stemmed and seeded
- 6 cloves garlic, unpeeled
- 1/4 cup almonds
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 lemon
- 8 ounces bocconcini (small mozzarella balls)
- 1 bunch fresh basil, leaves torn
- Freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the broiler. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook as the label directs. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. Shake off the excess water. Meanwhile, place the bell peppers cut-side down on a foil-lined broiler pan, add the garlic and broil until charred, 7 to 8 minutes. Transfer the peppers to a bowl, cover and set aside about 5 minutes. Heat a dry skillet over medium-high heat. Add the almonds and toast, shaking the pan, 4 to 5 minutes. Let cool, then coarsely chop. Squeeze the garlic from its skin onto a cutting board. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt; mince and mash the garlic into a paste with a large knife. Peel the roasted peppers and slice into strips; transfer to a large bowl. Add the garlic paste and drizzle with the olive oil. Finely grate about 1 teaspoon lemon zest into the bowl and squeeze in all of the lemon juice. Add the bocconcini, basil, almonds, pasta, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste; toss.
- Photographs by Antonis Achilleos
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 731 |
| Total Fat | 37 grams |
| Saturated Fat | 11 grams |
| Cholesterol | 41 milligrams |
| Sodium | 845 milligrams |
| Carbohydrates | 73 grams |
| Dietary Fiber | 6 grams |
| Protein | 26 grams |
Reviews
This is a great base recipe. I made several modifications & loved it:
I added a pint of cherry tomatoes, 1/2 an onion & asparagus on the sheet w/ the peppers & garlic. I tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper, then roasted. After toasting the almonds I cut up and browned 3 chicken sausage in the pan. Cut up all the veggies (except tomatoes) and added to the pan w/ sausage. Tossed the pasta (only made 1/2 the pasta called for) in the pan w/ everything when done, added the basil & other herbs, along with the almonds & lemon garlic dressing. I forgot the mozzarella (ugh!) but it still tasted great. Definitely DO NOT omit the almonds (as long as there’s no allergies)! It added a really nice texture of crunch and the toasted taste was nice. I’d def make this again.
I added a pint of cherry tomatoes, 1/2 an onion & asparagus on the sheet w/ the peppers & garlic. I tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper, then roasted. After toasting the almonds I cut up and browned 3 chicken sausage in the pan. Cut up all the veggies (except tomatoes) and added to the pan w/ sausage. Tossed the pasta (only made 1/2 the pasta called for) in the pan w/ everything when done, added the basil & other herbs, along with the almonds & lemon garlic dressing. I forgot the mozzarella (ugh!) but it still tasted great. Definitely DO NOT omit the almonds (as long as there’s no allergies)! It added a really nice texture of crunch and the toasted taste was nice. I’d def make this again.
I made this as directed, without changes. Though we liked it, we thought it would be better with smaller pasta. Penne would be nice. In another review, someone said it needed a dressing. Lemon juice and zest, olive oil, salt, pepper, roasted garlic, basil…that’s a dressing. Though a little balsamic does sound delicious. We’ll try that next time, along with the smaller pasta.
This is a yummy salad. I’ve made it twice and the second time, I did not roast the garlic, but rather used it raw. I personally do not like the flavor of broiled garlic. Also, it’s best to leave out the almonds and allow everyone to add them once they are ready to eat. It helps keep them crunchy, especially if you have leftovers.
One of our absolute favorites! It’s a great sophisticated spin on traditional pasta salad that all of our friends and family have loved!
Delicious, easy and healthy. What is there not to love?
This was a good start but missing dressing of some sort. Lemon was not enough. I ended up putting balsamic vinegar in to make it tastier.
Bland,Bland,Bland. Was it easy to make? Yes. Did it look delicious? yes. But when I ate it, all I could taste was a very overwhelming smokey flavor, and that was it. Not sure what could be done to change this up, but it just wasn’t for me. My boyfriend, however, really enjoyed it. So I guess it’s just all in preference.
This was a very simple recipe that produced nice results. I did roast the garlic longer than suggested to create a garlic paste that was really a paste. I also added 3 bunches of basil instead of one and let the dish sit for four hours before serving. I added chorizo for the meat eaters of the family and some cherry tomatoes. I omitted the almonds due to allergies and I don’t think it was missed. Overall a easy recipe that I would repeat, it would be nice with shrimp if wanting a meat source.
As our members have stated, I made this as a hot pasta dish. I used Pappardelle pasta instead of the tube pasta. After roasting the peppers and garlic I prepared the peppers and garlic, added them in a bowl with rest of the ingredients except pasta. Added mixed ingredients to a frying pan and heated through. Then I added the cooked pasta and heated until hot.
It was ok. A little bland. I would make it again, but I would double the sauce (or half the pasta, as others have suggested.