Roasted Peppers {recipe}

Another quintessential Italian vegetable is the pepper. Red pepper, yellow peppers and even green peppers make their say into all sorts of dishes. I love them both grilled and pan sauteed. When given the option, I always ask for peperoni al gratin. [Italian language lesson: peperoni is the word for ‘peppers.’ If you ask for pepperoni on a pizza in Italy, you will not get a salami-like sausage. You will get a vegetable.]

Grilled Peppers au Gratin {peperoni al gratin}

Ingredients

• peppers of various colors
• 1/4 cup black olives, pitted and sliced (like kalamata, not canned)
• 2 tbsp capers
• 1 to 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 2 tbsp bread crumbs
• handful of parsely, chopped
• oil
• salt

Procedure

Pick as many peppers as you’d like. Err on the side of too many. You can use them in other recipes too. After washing, dry them and place on a hot grill.

You are aiming to char them without burning them outright. Keep the lid closed. Turn periodically until all sides are blackened.
Place them in a paper bag as they finish charring.
Then put the whole paper bag inside a plastic bag. This will steam the skins which will make peeling them much easier.
Leave them in there for a while, until they cool off. About 30 minutes.
Remove from the bag and peel the charred skin off with your fingers. Do NOT rinse the peppers under water. You CAN rinse your fingers though.
Tear the peppers open and clean the inside seeds and ribs out. Tear the peppers into strips. Repeat with all peppers. Those skins and seeds can go in your compost bin.When all peppers have been cleaned  you can add the remaining ingredients. In a baking pan, lay the the pepper strips out and top with chopped garlic and olives, capers, and parsley. Add salt and oil to taste. Sprinkle the bread crumbs on and bake for a few minutes to toast the bread crumbs. Alternatively you can put everything in a frying pan and saute’. I love these as a side dish, an appetizer or in a ciabatta roll as a sandwich. It also make a tasty pizza topping!