Bring a large, deep pan of water to the boil and salt it generously. Drop in 200g of pappardelle or spaghetti and cook for the time suggested on the packet – this will be roughly 8-9 minutes.
While the pasta boils, drain 150g of bottled, roasted peppers from their brine and put them in a blender jug. Add either 2 roasted garlic cloves or 2 tsp of roasted garlic paste, about 10 medium-sized basil leaves and 2 tbsp of chopped flat-leaf parsley.
In a dry, shallow pan, toast 4 tbsp of pine kernels until golden, shaking the pan from time to time. Add half of them to the peppers and herbs and set the other half aside for later.
Halve 3 medium-sized tomatoes, add them to the blender jug, then process to a thick, lumpy sauce. Season to taste with black pepper.
Drain the pasta and leave in the colander. Return the empty pan to the heat, transfer the sauce to the pan, scraping it out from the blender jug with a rubber spatula so not to waste any sauce, and let it bubble for a minute. Return the pasta to the pan. Stir in 1 tbsp of capers, then divide between 2 pasta bowls. Scatter over the reserved pine kernels and a little olive oil. Enough for 2. Ready in 15 minutes
This roasted pepper sauce is also a cracker with gnocchi. Toss cooked potato gnocchi in the sauce and tip into a small, oven-proof dish, scatter with grated parmesan and bake until thoroughly hot with the parmesan starting to turn gold.
The pepper sauce also works as an accompaniment to grilled lamb or tuna.
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