Traditional Spanish sauce made in the style of Chef Suzanne Goin
Ingredients:
4 dried pasilla (ancho) chiles seeds and stem removed
1/3 cup raw almonds
1 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 slices sturdy country bread
1 14-oz can can peeled tomatoes in juice
2 peeled garlic cloves
20 leaves flat leaf parsley optional
1-2 tbsp Sherry Vinegar to taste
salt to taste
Instructions:
Leave the chiles to soak in warm water to cover while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Put the almonds on a small baking sheet and roast them in a 400 degree F oven just until the almonds expand a bit and the skins begin to pop off. You'll smell when they're right. Don't over roast. Set them aside to cool when done.
Heat the 1/4 cup olive oil in a skillet that will accommodate the bread slices. Toast the bread on both sides until nice and golden. Remove from pan and cool. Try not to eat it all.
Once the toast is cooled to the touch rip it into a few pieces to make it easier to blend. Combine with toasted almonds and garlic.
Process the bread, almonds, garlic in a blender or food processor so that it's crumble like but not too small. You want rustic here. Don't worry about the crusts. You can pick those out and eat them. Chef's delight!
Once the chiles are soft, drain them and pat dry. Heat a bit more olive oil in the same skillet you used to toast the bread and sauté the chiles until they darken and start to smell really good. Add the can of tomatoes with all the juice and cook over high heat, squishing the tomatoes as needed with the back of a spoon or a potato masher.
Cook the chile-tomato mixture until the tomato juices evaporate. Add salt to taste.
Add the chile-tomato mixture to the bread-almond mixture in the blender. Add the sherry vinegar and the parsley if using and puree to your favorite texture. I like it so I can still see pieces of almond.
- Recipe courtesy of Evan Kleiman