I was at the Farmer's Market Saturday and noticed that the fall vegetables are starting to come in. There were lots of squash, leeks, cauliflower and other root type vegetables. This brought to mind one of my favorite recipes for the fall. I love to make Romesco sauce and serve it with roasted winter vegetables. I top it off with either slices of grilled pork tenderloin or pan seared fish like halibut or grouper. Romesco sauce originated in Spain and was made by the fishermen to eat with fish, but in addition to going well with seafood it is also good with pork or vegetables. For the roasted vegetables I like to use a combination of cauliflower, leeks, sweet potatoes and spinach. Here are the recipes:
Romesco Sauce (serves eight)(original from ask.com)
Ingredients:
1/4 cup blanched almond slivers
20 Hazelnuts
2 Garlic bulbs
2 Slices stale bread
4 Ripe roma tomatoes - quartered
4 Large roasted red peppers
2 Cups extra virgin olive oil
1 Cup red wine vinegar
1/2 tsps. red pepper flakes
Salt
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Rub excess dry skin off of the garlic bulbs and place them on a baking sheet. Drizzle with a little olive oil and roast the garlic for about twenty minutes or until the bulb is soft to the touch. When garlic is done remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Place almonds and hazelnuts into a food processor and process until finely ground.
Coat the bottom of a fry pan with extra virgin olive oil and fry the bread slices on both sides until they are brown. Remove from pan and set aside to cool.
Quarter tomatoes and sauté them in the same frying pan, adding more oil if needed. Sauté for 4-5 minutes. Remove pan from heat.
Tear bread into pieces and place in the food processor with the nuts. Process again until the bread is finely crumbed. Add the sautéed tomatoes. Squeeze the roasted garlic out of the skins onto a plate. Drain the roasted red peppers. Put garlic and peppers into the processor with the other ingredients and process until ingredients are a thick puree.
Leave processor running and slowly drizzle in the oil and vinegar. Season with salt and the red pepper flakes. It will take quite a bit of salt.
You can make this sauce a couple hours ahead of time and let it sit on the counter at room temperature.
Roasted Winter Vegetables (serves eight)
Ingredients:
4 Sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced in half from end to end. Each half then sliced into 1/4 " thick half moon shapes.
4 Leeks - white part only sliced into 1/4" rounds
1 head cauliflower - separated into florets
2 bags baby spinach
Extra Virgin olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
Preparation:
Pre heat oven to 425 degrees. Put sweet potatoes, leeks and cauliflower florets into a large bowl. Drizzle liberally with extra virgin olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Stir with a large wooden spoon to insure all vegetables are coated with oil and seasoning. Spread vegetables on a baking sheet with sides and bake for 20-30 minutes, until vegetables are tender and the cauliflower is browning on the edges. While vegetables are roasting, put a large skillet on medium heat. Add a couple TBSP of olive oil and wilt the spinach. Cook until tender. Season with salt and pepper.
To serve, place a ladle full (about 1/2 cup) of Romesco sauce in the bottom of a pasta bowl. Spoon a serving of the roasted vegetables over the Romesco sauce. With a tongs add a little of the wilted spinach into the vegetable serving. Top with slices of grilled pork tenderloin or a nice seared piece of fish. Drizzle the meat with a little more sauce and enjoy !!
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