Romesco sauce is one of my secret weapon summer sauces. This classic Catalonian sauce seems to go with most everything and is a lot of fun to make. Traditionally made with dried Ñora peppers, I sub in red bell peppers and sometimes ancho if I have them around. Try it out!
Take a couple of red peppers, a half pint of cherry tomatoes (or a few larger ripe tomatoes), one small onion, a head of garlic broken into cloves and peeled, a few slices of torn rustic bread, a handful of almonds or hazelnuts and coat it all with a generous glug of olive oil. Roast the vegetables, nuts and bread in a 400F oven until everything is nicely caramelized and soft. Peel the red pepper, saving any juice that comes out. Place the contents of the roasting tray in a food processor or blender and puree with enough olive oil to form a thick sauce. Season to taste with smoked sweet paprika, sherry vinegar and salt. It should be delicious.
Act quickly, as most of the ingredients for romesco are available at the farmers market right now! It goes well with meat, fish, bread and vegetables (clasically served with char-grilled spring onions as seen above). Oh yeah, and eggs too.
This is magic sauce.
