Author: Pamela, romesco inspired by Dan Kluger's "Chasing Flavor"
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
For the romesco: (makes about 2 1⁄4 cups)
1 pound carrots (about 4 medium-large), cut into 1-inch pieces
1 Tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil (to roast the carrots)
Sea salt
1⁄2 cup blanched almonds, toasted
1 small garlic clove, minced (I do this on a large Microplane)
2 teaspoons tomato paste
2 Tablespoons fresh, flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
Big pinch of salt (about 1⁄4 teaspoon)
Pinch of cayenne (optional)
Olive oil or a combination of olive oil and almond oil- start with ⅔ cup and add more if needed
For the vegetables:
Suggestions: 8-9 cups of cut vegetables such as fennel cut into 1⁄2-inch wedges, cauliflower florets, red
onions cut into wedges or whole peeled shallots, halved brussels sprouts, halved endive, halved radishes,
delicata squash cut into 1⁄2-inch rounds or half moons or acorn squash wedges
3 Tablespoons olive oil or avocado oil to roast vegetables
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper.
Place the carrots on the prepared pan and toss with 1 Tablespoon of oil and sprinkle with a big pinch of salt. Roast until tender, about 45-50 minutes, flipping carrots halfway through. It’s ok if they get caramelized. Test tenderness by trying to smash a piece of carrot with a fork.
Place the almonds in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Process until finely chopped. Add the roasted carrots, garlic, tomato paste, parsley, vinegar, smoked paprika, and salt. Turn the machine on and slowly add the oil through the feed tube. Puree until slightly chunky. Add additional oil or room temperature water if needed. Taste for seasoning. Romesco can be made ahead and refrigerated up to 1 week.
Prepare the vegetables: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper. Toss vegetables in a large bowl with 3 Tablespoons oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven until tender and slightly caramelized, about 20-30 minutes.
Bring romesco to room temperature and spread it on a large platter. You can reheat it gently over low heat if you like. Give it a good stir before spreading on the platter. Arrange the vegetables on top and serve additional romesco on the side, if desired.
Notes
*You want enough vegetables that will fit onto your sheet pan in one layer. 8-9 cups fits onto a half-sheet pan. The key with roasting a mix of vegetables is to make sure the cook time of all the vegetables is as close to the same as possible. Factors that affect cook time are size of the pieces and density of the vegetables. The only vegetable I don’t recommend using for the roasted vegetables are carrots because they are in the romesco.
Recipe by Pamela Salzman at https://pamelasalzman.com/roasted-vegetables-with-carrot-romesco-sauce-recipe/