Griddled leeks with romesco and toasted hazelnuts

Griddled Leeks with Romesco & Toasted Hazelnuts

Romesco is a rich, smoky sauce from Catalonia which harnesses the sweet, charred flavours of roast tomatoes and garlic with nuts and chillies. The ancho chilli from Mexico is very similar to the Spanish Nora commonly used in this sauce so it feels like a natural step to give it a Mexican accent with the ancho. Red wine vinegar adds sparkle. A delicious sauce to accompany the leeks or any kind of char-grilled vegetable, including asparagus.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 2 red peppers, halved and de seeded
• 2 large ripe tomatoes, halved
• 6 unpeeled garlic cloves
• 6 medium leeks, trimmed
• Rapeseed oil or olive oil for brushing
• 1 small slice sourdough or other peasant-style bread, toasted in olive oil
• 60g hazelnuts, lightly toasted plus a tablespoon for garnish
• 2 ancho chillies, stem and seeds removed
• 2 tsp sweet smoked pimentón (paprika)
• 2 tbsp sherry vinegar
• 140ml extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp chopped tarragon leaves

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200c. In a baking tray add the red peppers, tomatoes and garlic cloves and roast them until charred and softened (approximately 20 minutes), and then remove from the oven and place another baking tray on top so the vegetables steam as they cool.

1. Once cool enough to handle, remove the skins from the vegetables and set aside. At the same time, place the trimmed leeks into a baking tray with ½ cm of water in the bottom, then tightly sealed with foil into the oven and allow them to poach and soften as the other vegetables cook.

1. To prepare the ancho chillies, simply remove the seeds and stalks and then dry roast in a pan for a few minutes on each side. Remove from the pan and place into a bowl and cover with boiling water for 15 minutes to soften

1. Take the sourdough bread and toast it in a frying pan with some olive oil until golden brown and crisp. Set aside.

1. Place the softened, drained ancho chillies into a pestle and mortar along with the toasted hazelnuts, some sea salt, and half the toasted sourdough roughly torn. Bash this together in the pestle and mortar until chunky. You can do this in a food processor if you prefer.

1. Meanwhile, take the poached leeks and drizzle with oil, salt and pepper. Then place onto a hot griddle pan to char them, popping a heavy pan on top to help secure contact between the leeks and the griddle and toast evenly. Check them every few minutes to turn them.

1. Now add the roasted garlic, tomatoes and peppers to the pestle and mortar and bash together again until it forms a textured paste. Add the sweet smoked paprika, sherry vinegar, pinch of brown sugar and the olive oil and mix through.

1. Now you can plate up. Pile the charred, griddled leeks onto a platter, then drizzle over the romesco sauce. Then roughly chop the remaining reserved toasted hazelnuts and scatter these over with the chopped tarragon and serve.