Penne with Red Pepper Parmesan Cream Sauce

A good dish to serve when you need something fast, cheesy, fairly nutritious, and filling -- for example, after a beautiful early-fall bike ride with friends on a chilly afternoon when you forgot to bring a snack and it's been eight hours since lunch.

Penne with Red Pepper Parmesan Cream Sauce

1 box penne rigati
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1/2 habanero pepper, chopped VERY FINELY (this is IMPORTANT)
2 tbsp butter
2 cups skim milk
2 tbsp flour
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 dashes nutmeg
paprika for sprinkling

Start the water boiling for the pasta. Make sure your habanero is diced very small -- you want some heat in the dish, but you don't want someone to eat a large or medium-sized piece of it and have to run and fill her mouth with bland crackers to cut the heat. Saute the habanero and red peppers over medium heat in 1 tbsp butter until the water boils, stirring often. Put the pasta in to cook. Add the second tbsp butter and nutmeg to the peppers. When the butter is melted, add the flour and stir carefully so that it coats the peppers. Cook over medium-low heat about two minutes, stirring to make sure it does not burn. Add the milk all at once, turn the heat up just above medium, and stir rapidly for minute or so; after that, stir frequently until the liquid is slightly thickened (coats the back of a spoon), which should be approximately when the pasta is done. Drain the pasta. Turn off the heat under the pepper/milk mixture. Add the cheese, and stir very well to make sure it melts and combines evenly. Combine the sauce and pasta, and serve immediately. Sprinkle each serving with paprika.

Serves 4-6 depending on what else you are serving.