Charred spring onions & romesco
Make this moreish vegetarian dish as an easy starter for a dinner party. You can make it in 20 minutes and the sauce can be prepped ahead of time
- Prep:10 mins
Cook:10 mins
- Serves 4
- Easy
Nutrition per serving
- kcal 531
- fat 48g
- saturates 6g
- carbs 12g
- sugars 2g
- fibre 4g
- protein 12g
- salt 4.8g
Ingredients
- 100g blanched almonds, roasted
- 50g walnuts, roasted
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and roasted until golden
- 400g skinned roasted red peppers, from a jar
- 1 tsp tomato purée
- 1 slice sourdough bread, soaked in a bit of water
- 100ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for griddling
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp hot smoked paprika
- 2-4 tsp red wine vinegar
- bunch spring onions, outer layer removed
Method
Put the nuts in the bowl of a food processor, saving a handful to serve. Add the garlic, then blitz until you have coarse crumbs. Add the red peppers and tomato purée and blitz again to a rough paste. Add the sourdough and a glug of the oil to loosen the mixture, then blitz once more until you have a slightly smoother paste. Pour the sauce into a mixing bowl and add the cayenne pepper, paprika and some seasoning. Pour in the rest of the olive oil, stirring to incorporate it. Add the vinegar, 1 tsp at a time, until the sauce has the right acidity – it should make you salivate!
For the spring onions, brush them with olive oil, season with salt and griddle over a high heat, turning occasionally, until softening at the core and charred all over. Serve the spring onions with the sauce and a scattering of almonds.