Smoky Capsicum & Almond Romesco Sauce

My Smoky Capsicum & Almond Romesco Sauce is an easy & versatile sauce of oven roasted capsicums / peppers along with garlic & almonds. A cinch to whip up, and you can use it as a dip with basil & feta and some lightly toasted bread for scooping. (My lunch today!) Or you can use it as a sauce for cooked meats such as chicken, fish or lamb.

Basically you just roast it all in the oven, then whiz it up in the food processor and...eat it! Couldn't be easier. You can also adjust the level of spiciness to suit your taste.

I am in no way claiming this to be an authentic recipe...I just thought I would put my spin on the flavours of romesco and create a sauce that is simple to prepare and that I like to eat. Chef not required style...

Lee-Ann ♥

Suggested Mains/Accompaniments:

Oven Roasted Lamb Ribs with Youghurt Mint & Garlic Sauce

Homemade Chicken Sausages

Smoky Capsicum & Almond Romesco Sauce

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Makes about 2 cups | A spicy & smoky mix of capsicum, almonds & garlic

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Total Time: 1 hour

Servings: 6

Calories: 135kcal

Author: Lee-Ann Grace

Ingredients

• 2 large red capsicums / red peppers / field peppers approx 650 - 700 g / 1 ½ lbs total halved length ways, stalks & seeds removed
• 2 large roma tomatoes approx 250 g / ½ lb total - halved length ways
• 4 plump garlic cloves - tops trimmed & squashed slightly to just split the skin
• ½ cup raw almonds 90 g
• 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar
• ¼ teaspoon fine salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper see notes
• optional danish feta & fresh basil to serve see notes

Instructions

• Pre heat oven to 190 c (375 f) fan forced
• Line a low-rimmed baking sheet/oven tray with baking paper/parchment paper.
• Arrange capsicum & tomato halves, cut side down on prepared tray, along with squashed garlic & bake for 15 mins.
• After 15 mins, take tray out of the oven, remove garlic cloves & set aside.
• Add almonds to baking tray, as evenly spaced as you can.
• Return tray to oven and bake for a further 20 mins.
• Remove from oven & place capsicum & tomato in a small heatproof bowl & cover with plastic wrap for 3-5 mins to loosen the skins, then peel & discard the skins.
• Meanwhile squeeze garlic cloves out of their skins & place into a food processor, along with almonds and olive oil, and blitz until very fine.
• Add capsicum, tomato & remaining ingredients to food processor, continuing to blend until almost smooth (see note).

Notes

This recipe makes about 2 cups - I did actually experiment & froze some and it turned out great.

The amount of cayenne pepper I have put in this recipe is basically a starting point, you could add more if you like - just do it a little at a time and taste as you go, you can't take it out once it's in! I personally like just the ¼ teaspoon of cayenne, your choice!

The texture of this sauce isn't completely smooth. I purposely blended the almonds before the capsicum & tomato was added, so I could try to get the almonds (and the finished product) as fine & smooth as possible.

I REALLY enjoyed the flavour combination of feta & basil with this sauce. The feta (I use danish) gives it a real lemony edge and the fresh basil just sings with capsicum & tomato! SOOOOO GOOOOD!

My inspiration for this recipe came from here & here.

*Please note that the amount of calories per serve is provided as a guide only, as ingredients and cooking methods can vary greatly*