Pasta Calabrese - Bell Pepper Sauce

This is one of my favorite dishes my husband came back from Italy making.  The bell pepper sauce is delicious and a nice change from your typical Tomato Sauce.

Image Credit:  Cooks Illustrated

On low-medium heat sauce 7 minutes:
1 large sweet onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 TBS olive oil
Add and sauté 7 more minutes:
3/4 tsp crushed Red Pepper flakes
6 yellow/orange/red bell peppers, diced
1/4 c. pine nuts
1 tsp salt
4 TBS olive oil
-Blend 1/2 of the pepper onion mixture in food processor (or blender).  Return blended mixture back to pan and mix in.  You can blend all of the sauce if desired or do the 1/2 method if you link a chunkier sauce.

-Stir in 1 pound of penne pasta cooked al dente into the sauce.

-Serve warm.

-Sprinkle with Pecorino Romano cheese and fresh basil if desired.