Red Pepper and Walnut Crema

Reprinted with permission from Home Cooked: Essential Recipes for a New Way to Cook by Anya Fernald with Jessica Battilana, copyright © 2016. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC. Photography credit: Brown W. Cannon III © 2016. https://www.amazon.com/Home-Cooked-Essential-Recipes-Cook/dp/1607748401
July 18, 2016

Ingredients

  • 4 red peppers
  • 1 1/2 cups walnuts, finely chopped
  • 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs, toasted
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons ground Aleppo pepper
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • 1/2 clove garlic, crushed
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted, for garnish

Preparation

 

1. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Put the red peppers on a rimmed baking sheet or in a cast-iron frying pan and transfer to the oven. Cook, rotating the peppers occasionally, until they areblistered and blackened on all sides, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a plastic bag (or abowl covered with plastic wrap) and let steam until cool enough to handle.

2. Peel, stem, and seed the peppers, then rinse under cold water and cut out and discard anymembranes.
Put the roasted peppers in a food processor and add the walnuts, bread crumbs, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, Aleppo pepper, honey, and garlic and process until smooth. If the spread is very thick, add more olive oil.

3. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed, adding more salt, lemon juice, or Aleppo pepper.
4. Transfer to a bowl and garnish with a drizzle of olive oil and the pine nuts. Serve at room temperature with crackers, crudités, or toasts. The dip will keep, refrigerated, for up to 3 days.

Ingredients

  • 4 red peppers
  • 1 1/2 cups walnuts, finely chopped
  • 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs, toasted
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons ground Aleppo pepper
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • 1/2 clove garlic, crushed
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted, for garnish