Peppery Vegetarian Pasta

PEPPERY PASTA IS AS ITS NAME SUGGESTS. It's an easy way to prepare a spiced-up vegetarian pasta meal with terrific taste and eye appeal.

Pasta selection. Select pasta shapes like farfalle (bowties), rhombi, gemelli or similar that tend to hold the onions and peppers while enhancing the overall appearance of the dish.

Pasta cooking time. If you add the pasta to the sauce (in the sauté pan, for example), the pasta continues to cook for another minute or so while you're stirring everything together. To prevent overcooked pasta, drain it and add to the sauce while it's just short of "al dente" (nearly, but not quite done).

Total time 30-45 minutes. Serves 4-5.

SHOPPING LIST:		Bell peppers (green, red, yellow) Oregano Chicken stock Bay leaf Parmesan cheese
	Pasta Onion Chile pepper flakes Garlic
Prepare pasta       14 to 16 oz pasta Cook ALMOST to al dente in at least 4 quarts boiling, salted water (follow package directions)
Prepare sauce
1	In large pan, sauté until onions are translucent (4-5 minutes)	1 tablespoon olive oil 1 medium onion, thinly sliced 1/8 tsp dried red chile peppers, crushed (or to taste)
2	Add and cook, uncovered, while stirring often (about 5 minutes)	2 garlic cloves, minced 1 each green, red, and yellow bell peppers, cored, de-seeded and thinly sliced 1 tsp dried oregano leaves, crushed, or 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
3	Add and simmer 8-12 minutes, uncovered stirring occasionally	1-1/2 cups (12 oz) hot water from pasta pot 1/2 cup (4 oz) chicken stock 1 bay leaf Salt and fresh ground black pepper
4	Remove bay leaf. Drain pasta, then combine pasta with the sauce in the sauté pan. Stir gently to coat pasta.
Serving
	Sprinkle servings with fresh grated Parmesan cheese.