Roasted Pepper Pasta

I was hanging up some laundry in my closet the other day and noticed my Food Network magazines stacked up against the wall. Staring up at me was a picture of this pasta dish. It was the cover recipe from an old issue--July/August of last year. It looked so good, I couldn't believe I hadn't tried it yet. I finished up the laundry, headed into town for the ingredients, made it for dinner that night and...

Wow.

I could've been eating this since last year?! Not fair! It was great but I did make a major change to the original recipe--I served it hot instead of cold. Delicious.

Roasted Pepper Pasta (original recipe here )

16 oz box rigatoni
3 bell peppers, halved, stemmed and seeded
6 cloves garlic, unpeeled
1/2 cup almonds
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 lemon
8 oz bocconcini (small mozzarella balls)
1 bunch fresh basil, leaves torn
salt and pepper

Preheat broiler.
Cook rigatoni as directed.
Place garlic and peppers (cut side down) on a foil lined broiler pan or cookie sheet. Broil for 8 minutes or until peppers are charred. Put garlic and charred peppers into a container and cover for about 5 minutes.
Toast the almonds in a a dry skillet over medium high heat. When browned and fragrant remove from skillet, let cool then chop.
Peel roasted peppers and cut into strips. Squeeze garlic onto a cutting board and mash with 1/2 tsp salt.
Add peppers and garlic paste into a bowl with olive oil and lemon juice. Add bocconcini, almonds, basil, pasta and toss. Add salt and pepper to taste.