Looking for a delicious new sauce recipe; one that’s actually very healthy and won’t have you feeling guilty? If so, then you will love this! Take a little piece of Barcelona home with you and serve romesco sauce for your friends and family! It is perfect for almost any vegetables and as a spread for your favorite type of bread. In a previous post we explained the Catalan tradition of eating chargrilled Calçots or leeks. These onions are typically harvested this time of year and are almost always accompanied with the romesco sauce. The sauce includes natural ingredients such as almonds, red bell peppers, tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, salt, vinegar and paprika!
In order to make the sauce, you will need to a food processor or blender to make sure the almonds and other ingredients are mixed to a creamy texture. This recipe makes 2 full cups of the sauce! The ingredients call for the following measurements: Bread or vegetables of your choice to dip (toasted French bread or grilled vegetables recommended) 1 large tomato 5 cloves of garlic 1/2 cup of almonds 2 red bell peppers 1/4 cup of olive oil 2 tablespoons of sherry vinegar 1 tablespoon of smoked paprika 1 teaspoon of salt 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
First, preheat the oven to 190°C. With a baking sheet, line the pan aluminum foil. On the sheet, place the almonds, garlic, bread and tomato on the baking sheet and put in the oven. Roast almonds until aromatic and bread is toasted; approximately 10 minutes. Remove almonds and bread and continue roasting the garlic and tomato until soft and tender; approximately 20 minutes longer. Then remove the sheet from the oven and let cool a bit. Afterwards, remove skin from tomato and peel the garlic. Second, while the other ingredients are in the oven, roast the peppers over an open flame gas stove or grill in a pan until the skins are blackened. Then place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and let sit until cool enough to handle, approximately 20 minutes. Then remove the blackened skin, seeds, and stems. Third, place the bread, tomato, almonds, peppers, olive oil, vinegar, paprika, salt, and pepper in the food processor and purée until smooth and creamy. Taste and season with additional salt and cayenne pepper until the sauce is just right!
Finally, once the romesco sauce is to your liking, place in a sealed container in the refrigerator until cool and ready to serve. This recipe stores well refrigerated for up to 5 days! We hope you enjoy this delicious recipe! This romesco sauce is perfect to serve at get-togethers as an appetizer. If you love it with toast and veggies, try it with grilled meat and shrimp…they all taste amazing!
