This easy roasted tomato and pepper sauce is perfect to pour over pasta, lasagna, or stuffed shells. It's made with just a few simple ingredients that are roasted in the oven and then blended to creamy perfection. You can use this tomato and pepper sauce in place of traditional pasta sauce in just about any recipe. It's full of flavor plus it's naturally vegan and gluten-free.
Jump to:
Roasting vegetables brings out their sweetness and flavor and turns boring old veggies into something amazing. My family loves roasted potatoes and Brussels sprouts, roasted root veggies, balsamic roasted veggies, and roasted cauliflower just to name a few.
❤️ Why make this recipe
- This recipe is great for using up fresh tomatoes from the garden.
- Roasted red pepper sauce makes a great dip for focaccia bread or zucchini fries.
- You can make a huge batch and freeze any unused sauce in a jar or freezer bag for up to 3 months.
- It makes a quick easy meal over plain pasta or it works well with vegan stuffed peppers, baked ziti, stuffed shells, ravioli, or lasagna.
🧾 Ingredients and substitutions
- Tomatoes - about 8 medium-sized ripe tomatoes. Tomatoes that are in season work best, the riper the tomatoes, the sweeter and more flavorful the sauce.
- Red Pepper - a red bell pepper works best, but you can use an orange pepper or yellow pepper instead.
- Garlic - for flavor. You can use 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder if you don't have fresh garlic cloves.
- Basil - or any other fresh herbs. About 1 teaspoon of dried basil or Italian seasoning will work if you don't have fresh basil.
- Olive Oil - this is important for making a rich and creamy sauce. You can make this sauce oil-free if you choose, but the olive oil mixes with the acidity in the tomatoes and makes the pasta sauce rich and creamy.
- Salt and Pepper - for flavor. A dash of red pepper flakes also gives it a little spice and a nice flavor.
🔪 Helpful tools
- Blender or food processor to blend the pasta sauce.
- Cookie sheet (sheet pan) for roasting the tomatoes and bell pepper on.
🥄 How to make roasted tomatoes and peppers
Step 1 - Preheat the oven to 350° F (176° C).
Step 2 - Wash and cut the tomatoes in half and remove the brown sections from the stem and place them cut-side down on a cookie sheet.
Step 3 - Cut the red bell pepper in half and remove the stem, seeds, and white membrane. then place it cut-side down on the cookie sheet.
Step 4 - Peel 4 cloves of garlic and place them on the cookie sheet along with the tomatoes and pepper.
Step 5 - Roast the veggies in the oven at 350° for about 30 minutes until the skin of the tomatoes is wrinkled.
Step 6 - Place the roasted veggies in a blender with olive oil, fresh basil, and salt and blend until smooth.
Step 7 - Pour over cooked pasta and serve hot. Sprinkle with some vegan parmesan cheese if desired.
You can use this sauce in your favorite Italian-style dishes like vegan stuffed shells or vegan lasagna too.
👩🏻🍳 Pro Tips
- Make sure that you don’t leave the tomatoes and peppers in the oven too long or they will dry out. They should have wrinkled skin and there should be juice on the cookie sheet.
- If the tomatoes get too dry, just add a tablespoon or two of water while blending until you achieve a smooth consistency.
- This sauce tastes best when it is made in the summer with fresh ripe tomatoes from the garden. If you make it with off-season tomatoes, you may need to add a pinch of sugar to the sauce.
- Don't fill your blender with more than 2 cups of tomatoes at a time to ensure that it doesn't overflow and burn you.
❓ Frequently asked questions?
This roasted red pepper and tomato pasta sauce is gluten-free, so as long as you put it over gluten-free pasta, the meal will be gluten-free as well.
No, if you simply want to use tomatoes, check out my roasted tomato pasta sauce instead.
🥡 Storage and reheating
Refrigerate: This roasted tomato and pepper sauce will keep well in the fridge for 3 - 5 days in an airtight container.
Freeze: Roasted tomato and pepper pasta can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Reheating: Reheat the tomato pepper pasta in the microwave for about 3 minutes or add a few tablespoons of water and reheat it in a saucepan on the stovetop.
🌟 More easy pasta recipes
- Vegan Baked Feta with Cherry Tomatoes
- Vegan Broccoli Pasta
- Simple Vegan Tomato Pasta
- Tahini Pasta
- Easy Vegan Beef Stroganoff
- Silken Tofu Pasta
📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!
📋 Tomato and red pepper pasta sauce recipe
Roasted Tomato and Pepper Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 (16 oz) package pasta (any size you shape that you choose)
- 8 medium tomatoes Roma tomatoes work well
- 1 medium red bell pepper
- 4 cloves garlic
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons basil or vegan pesto
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar (if needed)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° F.
- Wash and cut the tomatoes in half and remove the brown section from the stem and place them cut side down on a cookie sheet.
- Cut the red bell pepper in half and remove the stem, seeds, and white membrane. then place it cut side down on the cookie sheet.
- Peel 4 cloves of garlic and place them on the cookie sheet along with the tomatoes and pepper.
- Roast the veggies in the oven at 350° for about 30 minutes until the skin of the tomatoes is wrinkled.
- While veggies are roasting in the oven, cook pasta according to package directions.
- Place the roasted veggies in a blender with olive oil, fresh basil, and salt and blend until smooth.
- Pour over cooked drained pasta and serve hot.
Notes
- Make sure that you don’t leave the tomatoes and peppers in the oven too long or they will dry out. They should have wrinkled skin and there should be juice on the cookie sheet.
- If the tomatoes get too dry, just add a tablespoon or two of water while blending until you achieve a smooth consistency.
- This sauce tastes best when it is made in the summer with fresh ripe tomatoes from the garden. If you make it with off-season tomatoes, you may need to add a pinch of sugar to the sauce.
- Don't fill your blender with more than 2 cups of tomatoes at a time to ensure that it doesn't overflow and burn you.
Nutrition
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Click the stars above or leave a comment! I'd love to hear from you!
looks delish! I got to try it..
Great! I hope that you enjoy it! 🙂
I just made this sauce from the tomatoes from my garden. It was so delicious! thanks so much for this awesome recipe.
I'm so happy that you liked it, James! 🙂