Pesto Calabrese

Well as I was sitting here deciding what I should write down since it's been a few days, I thought I would do something nice.  I've decided to give out my recipe, or what I can of it, for my pesto calabrese.  If you don't know what this is, it is not the green pesto everyone thinks of when you say pesto.  That is pesto genovese, and this is pesto calabrese.  It comes from the Calabria region of Italy and not from the area around Genova.  While I have friends who live in Genova, and while Pesto Genovese is good (especially home made by real Italians), I've always liked this pesto made from bell peppers more.

So while it won't be the same as what I make, since I always cook it to taste and have moved away from any exact measurements, it should be good anyways.

Cook time:
about 15 to 20 minutes, maybe half an hour.  Start cooking the pasta (or at least start getting the water up to a boil) right away so it is done by the time you finish the other stuff.  I almost always end up waiting for my pasta to cook, and while the pasta can warm up the sauce, it is always nice to serve it while the sauce is still warm.

Ingredients:
2 large red bell peppers
1 clove Garlic
1/2 white onion
Crushed red peppers (Usually a pinch or two depending on how spicy you want it.)
5 cherry tomatoes or 1 medium tomato
Approximately 2 big table spoonfuls of Raccolta cheese (Ricotta cheese in English).
Approximately 4 cups freshly shredded Pecorino Romano cheese (Romano cheese.  My sister likes to use Parmigiano or fresh Parmesan cheese, but the real way is with Pecorino Romano which is Romano cheese made from sheep's milk.) 
Olive Oil (as needed, and you will need it!!).
Pinch of Salt
1 pound of pasta (I usually use rigatoni or penne rigatte).

Directions:
Cut up the red bell peppers, garlic and onion and crushed red pepper.  Onion powder and garlic powder can be substituted.  ( I do on occasion because in the past I've had some trouble digesting onions if not fully cooked.)  Sautee' in olive oil until peppers turn orange.  Blend this with the other ingredients except for half of the Pecorino cheese.  Add more Pecorino Romano and Raccolta cheeses or crushed red pepper as you like until it tastes right.  The taste should be a mixture of a strong bell pepper taste that is a little spicy and a little salty.  It's hard to say for sure what the taste should be unless you've had it before, but after a little experimentation you'll find what you like and what you don't.
Serve over about a pound of pasta cooked how you like but al dente is the best.

Variations:
On occasion I like to cook this with a little bit of pancetta (or bacon) and fresh portobello mushrooms.  If you cook those in a little bit of olive oil and some garlic and onion powder and then put it in when you put the sauce over the pasta and toss it, that's the best way.

Buon appetito.  Enjoy.