A&M's Testing Notes:
Expand Collapsepierino's Notes:
Expand2 or 4 dried peppers, your choice Ask a question about this ingredient
2 slices stale, crusty bread Ask a question about this ingredient
3/4 cup, light Spanish olive oile Ask a question about this ingredient
3-4 ounces marcona almonds Ask a question about this ingredient
1 tbs sherry vinegar Ask a question about this ingredient
4 cloves garlic peeled, and coarse chopped Ask a question about this ingredient
sea salt Ask a question about this ingredient
1/2 pound fresh picked or from the market, green beans Ask a question about this ingredient
spring onions, ramps or calcots Ask a question about this ingredient
Start your fire if you are cooking outside.
Ask a question about this stepFor your romesco, cut the tops off of the peppers which you have soaked for about two hours. Seed them and cut them roughly.
Ask a question about this stepLightly toast the almonds. You can do this on the stovetop or in a sheet pan in the oven. I told you this was easy.
Ask a question about this stepCut up your dried out bread into cubes, and then chop the garlic.
Ask a question about this stepBreathe deeply, this is not that hard
Ask a question about this stepPlace above ingredients in your food processor, and drizzle in olive oil and vinegar. Hit this with sea salt and give it a spanking. There's your sauce.
Ask a question about this stepBlanche your green beans in boiling water for perhaps two minutes and plunge into cold water to set color. Drain.
Ask a question about this stepIf you are using spring onions or calcots, give them a quick fire treatment on either a wood grill or an inside grill pan. You'll want some blackness on them.
Ask a question about this stepThis should all be close to room temperature at the end. Plate the beans and onions with romesco on the side. There you go. You can do this, right? Just taste for salt and pepper at the end.
Ask a question about this stepMade this last Sunday. What a great dish and we all loved the Romesco. All the flavors come together nicely and I think it is even better after it sits for a night in the fridge.
Thank you TH, and I totally agree with you on the overnight thing. There are a lot of things that improve with a good night's sleep.
First, Drbabs thanks for giving this a field test. Chipotle is a very aggressively flavored pepper, and NO! Bobby Flay, it doesn't taste like a spicy raisin. Dried anchos are probably your best choice. Something in the neighborhood of 4,000 Scoville units of heat. If I ever find a source for good quality dried Spanish peppers I'll pass it on. For a little perspective some dried peppers can get up to 40,000 Scovilles. Now that's hot!
Yes, fortunately the Scoville numbers were posted and you were clear that it wasn't supposed to kill you with heat. But I went to two stores and couldn't find Anchos, so I used what I found. (The roasted bell pepper added a nice smokiness anyway--don't know if that's authentic, but it was good.) My husband and I both LOVED the Romesco--I will make it again.
Romesco Sauce is indeed a wonderful thing! Check out my recipe for Spanish Garlic Soup with Romesco Sauce for a nice use of this sauce (which uses the more traditional hazelnuts).
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Enjoying your annotations, insights, and wit: all with such delicious edge!