Roasted Red Pepper Seafood Pasta Salad

This amazing delicious pasta salad was utterly delectable! I savored every bite and could distinguish all the flavors in this dish.  Lately, I have been making my dishes gluten free, so the noodles I used were rice noodles.  If you cook them just right (al dente) they taste amazing.  This recipe is great for picnics and potluck lunches or dinners!  

What you need: 

•   12 ounces of gluten free pasta (You can find these at your Greenwise Publix or Whole foods)
•   2 bell peppers (red and yellow), halved, stemmed and seeded
•   8 garlic cloves (un-peeled)
•   1/4 cup of almonds (I bought the bag that has them pre-sliced)
•   1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil
•   1 lemon
•   1 ball of fresh mozzarella (the kind that comes in a ball in water)
•   1 bunch of fresh basil
•   1/2 lb of peeled and deveined shrimp
•   1/2 lb of large sea scallops 
•   Fresh ground pepper
•   Oregano

What you need to do:

Preheat the broiler;

Bring pot of salted water to boil.  Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions.  Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process;

Place the bell peppers, cut side down on a foil lined broiler pan.  Place the garlic on the pan and broil until charred, (7-8 minutes).  Once charred, place in a bowl, covered and set aside for about 5 minutes.  (this will facilitate peeling them);

Heat a dry skillet over medium heat and add the almonds (shaking) for aout 5 minutes.  Chop and set aside to cool;

Squeeze the garlic out of the peel and place on a cutting board over a 1/2 teaspoon of salt.  Mash the garlic into a paste with a large knife.  Peel the roasted peppers and slice into thin strips and transfer them into a large bowl.

In a skillet, add one tablespoon of olive oil, add the shrimp and scallops.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Sear the scallops and cook the shrimp all the way through.  Set aside.

In the large bowl add the pasta, garlic paste and drizzle with the olive oil.  Add the peppers, scallops and shrimp and stir.  Grate 1 teaspoon of lemon zest, and squeeze all the lemon juice over the dish.  Stir;

Break the mozzarella into chunks with your fingers and chop the basil leaves, add them along with the almonds.  Add oregano, salt & pepper to taste and toss!

Thats it!  Hope you all enjoy this light tasting meal.  I know I did.  I paired this dish with a very cold glass of Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio.

Bon Appetite friends!!  & Happy Cooking!