Pasta, Peppers, Pomodoro and Passion

I decided to clean my fridge today before i went to the market to get my weekly grocery supplies. I found some mix peppers(capsicum), tomatoes, carrots, French beans and peas,all the fresh summer vegetables that can be grown in the garden or bought from the local produce markets. I thought of doing a quick, easy and tasty pasta dish using these vegetables and decided to use Fusilli. You can choose any kind of pasta you like. I prefer to add a bit of 'zing' to my dish so i decide to use red chili to compliment the sweetness of peppers and carrots and also cumin seeds to compliment tomatoes.This is so easy to make and tastes absolutely  fantastic. My flat mate Ben likes growing herbs in our living room balcony window where i  pick some fresh basil, coriander and parsley. Those who can't get hold of fresh herbs,there is always dried and packed herbs in the supermarkets.I personally like thyme, oregano and basil for my tomato based pasta sauce. OK, let's get cooking now.

THE ART OF COOKING PASTA...
Simple!! Get water into a stock pot and cover it with a lid. Wait until it starts boiling and add olive oil and salt.Make sure there is more than double the amount of water to the amount of pasta. Get the pasta into the boiling water and let it cook for 7-8 mins giving it an occasional  stir. Bite into it to check if its cooked. Pasta is no good if it's over cooked or under cooked. It has to be cooked 'al dente'.(literally means to the tooth.It has to be cooked through but still offer a resistance when you bite into it.) Once the pasta is cooked ,drain it with the help of a strainer and run some cold water through to stop further cooking. Add some oil so that pasta doesn't stick to each other. That's about it.


THIS IS HOW I DO IT... 
As i always say, you can use any vegetable you like but i like my dish to have a balance of flavors and colors.Hence, i choose my vegetables and other ingredients based on that balance. I used mix peppers, carrots, green beans, peas and tomatoes, garlic, red chili, thyme, basil and oregano and cumin seeds.
-While your pasta is on the stove, cut the peppers, carrots and beans. (you can blanch the carrots and beans in advance)
-Rough chop garlic and red chili and tomatoes.
-Heat a pan, add olive oil and when hot throw in the cumin seeds. Once they crackle, add garlic and red chili.Stir for a minute.
-Add your mix peppers and cook till they are half done(i always like my peppers to be crisp and not over cooked) and then add in the rest of vegetables(if they are pre-cooked if not add them along with the peppers).
-Get your chopped tomatoes(along with the juice) into the pot and then add herbs. Cover the pan/pot with a lid and leave it to cook for about 4 mins. Give it an occasional stir and then when you see that the tomatoes are pretty much dissolved and becomes a bit saucy , add your seasoning and take the pot off stove.
TIP-TOP TIP

Now, never mix pasta and sauce together in the same pot and leave it as pasta will soak all the sauce in and this results in a very dry looking pasta. Always. take only as much pasta as you want for the moment and enough sauce and mix it in the last minute just before serving.
THE GRAND FINALE
Take a sauce pan, take some of the pasta sauce and add in the cooked pasta (you must have enough sauce just to coat the entire pasta) and give it a quick stir till the entire pasta is coated with sauce.
*The sauce should coat  the pasta , the pasta should not float in the sauce.
Dish it out and sprinkle some fresh basil to finish. You can use some freshly grated Parmesan as well if you prefer a 'cheesy pasta' and finally like my Italian Friends say 'BUON APPETITO!'