Fusilli with Three Cheeses and Red Bell Pepper

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons butter 
• 1 cup fontina grated
• 0.8 pound fusilli 
• 0.3 teaspoon fresh-ground pepper black
• 0.8 cup mozzarella cheese grated
• 6 tablespoons parmesan grated plus more for serving
• 2  bell peppers red cut into thin strips
• 1 teaspoon salt 

Equipment

• frying pan
• pot
• baking pan
• aluminum foil
• broiler

Directions

1. In a medium frying pan, melt one tablespoon of the butter over moderately low heat.
2. Add the bell peppers and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and cook until soft, about 10 minutes.
3. Heat the broiler. Butter a large shallow baking dish.
4. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the fusilli until just done, about 13 minutes.
5. Drain and return to the hot pot. Toss the pasta with the remaining 3 tablespoons butter and 3/4 teaspoon salt, the sauted bell peppers, the fontina, mozzarella, 3 tablespoons of the Parmesan, and the black pepper.
6. Transfer the pasta to the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the remaining 3 tablespoons Parmesan over the top. Broil until the top starts to brown, 3 to 4 minutes.
7. Serve with additional Parmesan.
8. Browned and Bubbling: Cheese often turns stringy when tossed with hot pasta. Broiling the dish after tossing melts the strings into a smooth sauce. An added bonus: that irresistible brown crust.
9. Wine Recommendation: Creamy cheeses need a light red wine as a foil for their richness. A weighty Chianti Classico or Riserva would be overpowering here, but a basic Chianti, with its slight bitter-cherry flavor, will strike just the right balance.