Herbaceous Charm

Sunday funday

It started out like most Sundays: Woke up, brewed a liter of French press coffee, read, and eventually pulled myself out of bed and into less-casual attire. It was time to 'adult'. You know, do the things you're required to do like laundry, pay bills, send important emails, and, if you're like me, run a business (which translates to always being busy). On this particular day, however, I decided to keep my adulting to a minimum and enjoy the rest of the lovely Sunday sun and do a bit of cooking before going on yet another food adventure. 

But what to make for breakfast? Biscuits? Soft-boiled eggs? Swirled poppyseed Babka? Wild mushroom frittata? I searched my pantry and refrigerator for ingredients that might grab my attention: "Choose me. No, no me!" They said, "You know you can't resist my fresh, herbaceous charm." And how could I ignore the herbs? They that spoke the loudest of my ingredients, just begging to be used in my next meal. One by one, I reached for them all: one bunch cilantro, two bunches parsley, two limes, and jalapeño and garlic. 

Into the blender the ingredients went with a pinch of smoked Hungarian paprika, toasted, ground coriander, just a pinch of citric acid (helps preserve the bright green color), a touch of kosher salt and cracked black Tellicherry peppercorn, and a large handful of toasted almonds. As I pulsed the ingredients to marry them in flavor, slowly streaming in the olive oil, I daydreamed of it's use as a dipping sauce for vegetables, accompaniment with mushroom, elk meatballs, and four bean salad. 

photo cred: Sun Basket

I call this creation: Green Romesco

If you're a romesco purist, I know I have you squawking, "This can't be romesco! Where's the tomato and red bell pepper?" True, there aren't any of those ingredients, but I can't help but think of this as it's younger, spicier sister. You can easily swap out one sauce for another, and it's good to challenge your palate. Sometimes, I'll even add mint, or other hot green peppers -poblano, say- to this recipe to further its complex flavor profile. Regardless, you'll end up drizzling, draping, dashing this sauce on just about anything - from meats to fish to vegetables, and everything in between. 

Prepares 2 cups.

Ingredients: 
1 bunch cilantro
2 bunches parsley
​1 lime, freshly juiced 
4 garlic cloves
1 tsp Hungarian smoked paprika
1 tsp toasted, ground coriander 
pinch citric acid
1 whole jalapeño (seeds can be removed)
kosher salt and cracked black pepper to taste
1/3 cup almonds, toasted
1/4 cup olive oil
water 

Directions: 
1. Combine all ingredients into a blender and slowly add oil and water until you've reached desired consistency.