Walnut & red pepper pesto pasta

It’s well worth making your own pesto – this one, with sweet red peppers and earthy walnuts, knocks spots off shop-bought jars. If you want to roast your own peppers, grill them until they are charred, then pop in a food bag to cool before peeling. If you want to make double the amount of sauce, it freezes really well. Serves 4 Prep 15 mins Cook 15 mins

400g strozzapreti or casarecce, or

another short pasta shape

100g walnuts

3 roasted red peppers, roughly chopped 25g parmesan or a vegetarian

alternative, plus extra to serve

1 small garlic clove, roughly chopped large pack of basil, plus a few leaves

to serve

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

50g mascarpone

1 Cook the pasta following pack instructions. Meanwhile, toast the walnuts in a dry pan for a few mins. Add half the walnuts to the small bowl of a food processor or a hand chopper, along with

the red peppers, Parmesan, garlic, basil, oil and some seasoning. Whizz to a paste, adding a splash of water from the pasta if it is a little dry.

2 Drain the pasta, reserving a cup of the cooking water. Return the pasta to the pan and set over a low heat. Add the pesto, mascarpone and 3-4 tbsp of the reserved pasta water, then stir until the mascarpone has melted, adding a splash more pasta water if the sauce needs thinning. To serve, crush the remaining walnuts in your hand and scatter over the pasta with a few more basil leaves and some extra parmesan. PER SERVING 589 kcals, fat 33g, saturates 8g,

carbs 56g, sugars 2g, fibre 1g, protein 19g, salt 0.2g