red pepper pesto

pesto di peperoni

TOTAL TIME: 25 minutes

MAKES: 2 cups

The toasty flavor of roasted peppers makes a great sauce for pasta; use about 1 1/2 cups per pound of pasta. The pesto is also delicious with grilled and roasted meats. Or use it as a crudite dip or a spread for panini.

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Ingredients

2 red bell peppers
3/4 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup fresh marjoram leaves
2 tablespoons pine nuts
2 tablespoons minced shallot
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Char peppers over a gas burner set on high, turning frequently, until skin is blackened and blistered on all sides. Transfer to a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap; let stand 15 minutes.

Rub skin off peppers, rinsing hands under cold water as you go (do not rinse peppers); remove and discard core and seeds, then cut peppers in halves or thirds to make blending easier.

In a blender, purée peppers, almonds, oil, marjoram, pine nuts, shallot, salt and generous pinch pepper until smooth; adjust seasoning to taste.

August 2011

keywords:

pesto, roasted peppers, vegetarian

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Comments [1]

We have electric ovens so pepper roasting is done in a different manner. The core of the red bell peppers Is removed first by removing the stem. Next the top and the bottom are sliced off and reserved to be roasted. Then the barrel of the pepper sliced lengthwise into 3 or 4 sides. The peppers are placed on aluminum foil that has been placed on an oven shelf. The shelf is then placed about 3 inches from the broiler core. The peppers are allowed to completely charred before placing the pepper pieces in an empty 3-pound sized plastic ricotta container that has been saved specifically for the purpose of allowing the pepper to steam for about 10 minutes. (Saving of the ricotta container is known as recycling.) The charred skin of the peppers (I do 3 or 4 at a time) is removed under running water.

I subscribe to the Mario Batali dictum that Italians do not waste anything.

BTW, i miei genitori non erano italiani.

IL CUOCO

Posted: July 12, 2011 13:19 by ilcuoco