Recipe

Much Ado Peppadew Pasta

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Photo by The Enchanted Cook

This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Red Pepper Recipe
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The Enchanted Cook's Notes: I've been a fan of peppadews (those little, round, red peppers from South Africa) for quite some time and often add them to my dishes. They really seem to add a savory depth of flavor that...
I've been a fan of peppadews (those little, round, red peppers from South Africa) for quite some time and often add them to my dishes. They really seem to add a savory depth of flavor that gives the dish an extra special "umph" and satisfies my "umami tooth", if you will. Peppadews are mildly sweet, mildly hot and come in a briny liquid giving them a mildly salty quality. I find the best ones are in the olive bar at my local market. Recently, I made muffins from a recipe I found in Bon Appetit magazine featuring peppadews, and with the left over ingredients I decided to make a pasta dish. It was heavenly. Warm cherry tomatoes bursting with flavor, fresh spinach and hearty whole-wheat pasta rounded out this dish. Topping it with Greek feta cheese took this dish from simple to sublime.

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Serves 4

16 ounces dry organic whole wheat capellini pasta Ask a question about this ingredient

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling Ask a question about this ingredient

2-3 large cloves of garlic, minced Ask a question about this ingredient

3/4 cups peppadews, chopped (reserve 2 Tablespoons briny liquid they're stored in) Ask a question about this ingredient

1 1/2 cup whole organic cherry tomatoes Ask a question about this ingredient

1 cup fresh organic spinach leaves, roughly chopped Ask a question about this ingredient

1/2 cup Greek feta cheese Ask a question about this ingredient

Kosher salt, to taste Ask a question about this ingredient

freshly cracked black pepper, to taste Ask a question about this ingredient

Prepare pasta according to directions and using heavily-salted water.
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Meanwhile heat skillet to medium and add olive oil. Add garlic, peppadews, and cherry tomatoes and saute for 1-2 minutes.
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Add drained pasta, spinach, and reserved briny liquid from peppadews to skillet containing peppadew mixture. Toss together and cook for another 1-2 minutes until spinach begins to soften and wilt. Remove from heat, add salt and pepper to taste and a drizzle of olive oil.
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Serve immediately with crumbled feta cheese on top.
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4 Comments on Much Ado Peppadew Pasta

The Enchanted Cook added about 1 year ago

Hey Kristin! I love the darn things! Btw, I just glanced at your profile and it appears we have given very similar answers to many of the questions - too funny! Glad to connect on here :-)

Kristin added about 1 year ago

I bought a jar of peppadews as an impulse buy and they've been hanging around in my pantry waiting to be used - I think this dish is what they were waiting for! Sounds great.

The Enchanted Cook added about 1 year ago

Hi Oui, Chef - It's truly delicious!