Rockin' Romesco Sauce

Total Time: 20 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 slice country bread, lightly rubbed with olive oil
• 1/4 cup natural whole almond
• 1/4 cup hazelnuts
• 4 cloves garlic, to taste (or more)
• 1 -2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (see note)
• 4 fat plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 1 -2 tablespoon fresh italian parsley, roughly chopped
• 2 teaspoons sweet paprika or 2 teaspoons bittersweet paprika or 2 teaspoons spanish hot paprika
• 1 large red bell peppers or 1 large pimentos, roasted
• 1/4 cup red wine or 1/4 cup sherry wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup virgin olive oil, plus
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, preferably spanish
• salt, to taste
• fresh milled pepper, to taste

Recipe

• 1 in a large skillet over medium-high heat, toast the bread, almonds, hazelnuts, and peeled garlic cloves until fragrant.
• 2 alternately, you may roast these ingredients in a 450 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, watching carefully to make sure they don't burn.
• 3 when cool, grind them, along with the red pepper flakes, in a food processor.
• 4 add everything else but the vinegar and oil, processing until smooth (stop occasionally to scrape down the sides of the processing bowl).
• 5 with the machine running, gradually add the vinegar and then the oil.
• 6 taste and make sure the sauce has plenty of piquancy and seasoning.
• 7 cover and store the romesco sauce in the refrigerator.
• 8 note: for greater complexity and heat, use a more potent type of pepper flake such as maresh, urfa, or aleppo.