We’ll never say no to pasta night, but sometimes we want to add a new, fresh flavor to our noodles. Our best suggestion? Crack open a can of chipotle chiles. The smoky, slightly spicy chiles add a fresh flavor to pasta sauce, and are extra delicious when mixed up with some heavy cream (then again, what isn’t improved by cream?), making a dinner easy enough to make for a weeknight, but fancy enough to make for a crowd.
The sauce starts with garlic, bell pepper, jalapeño (for a little extra heat), and garlic. Once that tasty stuff cooks down, in go the chipotle chiles and the smoky adobo sauce they’re canned in, tomato paste, and some starchy pasta cooking water, which helps thicken the sauce. Stir in the cream for the the velvety finish to complete the dish.
To make it a meal, we’re adding some shrimp, which loves a creamy sauce. Penne is the pasta of choice here, but the shape is totally up to you. Farfalle is always fun, but even a standard strand, like spaghetti or linguine, would be great. Open your cabinet and imagine the pastabilities!
Made this? Let us know how it went in the comments below!
Kosher salt
penne pasta
large shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails removed
Freshly ground black pepper
extra-virgin olive oil, divided
large red bell pepper, seeds and ribs removed, coarsely chopped
scallions, thinly sliced, plus more for serving
cloves garlic, finely chopped
small jalapeño, seeded, 1/2 chopped, 1/2 thinly sliced
canned chipotle chiles in adobo, finely chopped, plus 2 tbsp. sauce
tomato paste
heavy cream
finely grated Parmesan
Laura Rege is a Food Stylist and Recipe Developer who regularly contributes recipes and styles videos and photos for Delish. If she isn't in the Delish kitchens, you'll most likely find her out on the town looking for the next food trends in the US and on her travels abroad.
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