ROASTED RED PEPPER & LEEK PASTA

Salsa Macha inspired chicken tacos

4 red bell peppers, roughly chopped
2 leeks, tops removed, washed, and sliced
3 garlic cloves, peeled
½ cup oil of choice
kosher salt, to taste
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 lb pasta of choice - I used rigatoni, the grooves are great for sticking to the sauce

Pre-heat oven to 425 F
Place bell peppers, leeks, and garlic in a baking dish. Pour in the oil and toss to coat all the veggies. Roast for 45 minutes to an hour until everything is fully cooked and starting to caramelize
Start boiling your salted water around 10 minutes before your veggies are due out of the oven
Once veggies are finished cooking, let them cool out of the oven for 5 minutes before blending. Add the veggies and the oil they cooked in, to a food processor or blender - leaving space for steam to vent - and puree until you have reached a homogenous, saucy consistency
Leaving space for steam to vent is very important when blending anything hot! Pressure builds and can cause a hot-mess-mini-explosion.
Add pasta to the boiling water and cook to al dente according .
Add butter and red pepper flakes to a large saucepan over medium-heat, sauté for two minutes. Add in the blended red pepper & leek sauce, stirring to combine. Add salt to taste.
This dish will need a good amount of salt because we just spent an hour coaxing all the sugars out of our veggies.
Reserve 2 cups of pasta water and then add the al dente pasta to the sauce. Stir vigorously and add pasta water, a quarter cup at a time, until you get a beautiful glossy sauce.
Portion into individual bowls or plates and enjoy.

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