Spicy Vegetable Fettuccine with Bruschetta

So this is a thing I made for myself!

An actual meal!

That wasn’t Kraft Dinner…or like soup or something.

Now mind you, every night I have the privilege of being fed whatever my mom makes, so it’s not like I’m some starving student who can’t afford anything or doesn’t know how to make a decent meal.

Well I am a student who can’t afford much, and isn’t that skilled when it comes to cooking actual meals (not baked goods) but that’s besides the point.

I wanted to make something out of this Gordon Ramsey cookbook I bought my mom for Christmas, but half of the ingredients I couldn’t find at the grocery store and the other half were way to expensive. Like who’s going to pay $15 for a small thing of sausage. Nope.

So I decided to improvise and just create my own cheap dish. The only thing I would change to this recipe is to add a tomato sauce. I knew my mom told me she bought a tomato sauce but I was honestly too stupid to find it in the cupboard so I had to opt out of using tomato sauce. But it was still tasty in the end, so up to you!

Ingredients: (makes enough for 2 people)

Pasta:

• 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 a small onion, peeled and finely diced
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and chopped
• 1 jalapeno, chopped
• 1/2 yellow pepper, chopped
• 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 box of your favourite fettuccine pasta
• Dash of salt and pepper

Bruschetta:

• 8 slices of a baguette
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 large garlic clove, peeled
• 8 cherry tomatoes, halved
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 ounces shaved parmigiano cheese

Directions:

Pasta:

1. Heat a large frying pan and add some olive oil. Cook the onions for 3 minutes and add the garlic for another 2 minutes, until the onions have softened.
2. Start cooking the pasta as per the packet instructions.
3. Add the chopped jalapeno, chopped pepper and halved tomatoes and a little seasoning to the pan and continue to cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes until the vegetables begin to soften.
4. Drain the pasta and add the drained pasta directly to the pan with the sauce. Season with salt and pepper to your liking. Serve hot with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Bruschetta:

1. Heat a grill pan until hot. Brush the baguette slices lightly with olive oil and toast for 1 to 2 minutes on each side until golden brown.
2. Remove the bread and, while warm, rub it lightly with the cut side of the garlic clove.
3. Just before serving, rub two of the cherry tomato halves, cut side down, into each slice of baguette, pushing the flesh against the bread to squash it into the surface.
4. Season the bruschetta with salt and pepper. Top with the remaining tomatoes, then scatter the parmigiano over the top.