Roasted Red Pepper Rotini Caesar

This pasta dish is so quick and easy, but the taste is kind of complex...a really good combination of flavors. This is Sam's favorite kind of pasta he's ever had...and I got the recipe off of the back of the Ronzoni rotini box! He was eating it for lunch at his lab one day, and the lab manager asked him for the recipe because she thought it looked/smelled so good. It's great for those nights when you need something quick to throw together!

1 13.25 oz. pkg. rotini noodles (I typically use whole wheat, although white is pictured above)

1 12 oz. jar of roasted red peppers, diced

4 cups of fresh or frozen spinach, chard, sugar peas, basil leaves, arugula, pesto, artichoke hearts, or broccoli florets

1 cup Caesar dressing

shredded parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

Cook pasta according to package directions. Heat a large saute pan with a light film of oil, toss in red peppers and spinach; heat until warmed (about 1 minute). In the large saute pan, toss cooked pasta with spinach and peppers. Add Caesar dressing, stirrin frequently until heated through (approximately 3-5 minutes). Top pasta with desired amount of parmesan cheese, cracked pepper, and salt (the cheese, salt, and pepper really do make a big difference).

To make things even faster, you can toss the dressing, spinach, and peppers in with the pasta without sauteing them. I've done it that way and it works beautifully.