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Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
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Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

This roasted red pepper sauce recipe, made with fresh red bell peppers and walnuts, is a nutritious and delicious plant-based sauce or dip.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Sauce
Cuisine: American, Italian
Keyword: Red Pepper Sauce, Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Servings: 1 batch
Author: Christi

Ingredients

  • 2 large red bell peppers or a 16oz. jar of roasted red peppers (well drained)
  • 1 cup walnuts Italian Herb Walnuts Recipe in Notes
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/4 cup olive oil plus 1 tablespoon for roasting peppers and garlic.
  • 1/4 cup nutritional yeast or grated vegan parmesan or grated regular parmesan for non-vegan.
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice or the juice of 1 lemon.
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper or to taste

Optional:

  • crushed red pepper to taste
  • fresh herbs as a garnish or added to the sauce while mixing.

Instructions

  • Please see notes regarding red peppers, garlic, and walnuts prior to making the sauce.
  • Roasted Red Peppers and Garlic:
    Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper. While the oven is preheating, slice and deseed the red peppers, then add the sliced bell peppers and whole cloves of garlic to the baking sheet. Drizzle the peppers and garlic with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and stir to coat or spray them with pure olive oil or avocado oil spray. Roast the red peppers and garlic for 15 minutes, or until they are cooked to your liking. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
  • Add the walnuts, salt, and pepper to the food processor. Secure the lid and puree for 15 seconds. Turn off and scrape the sides if needed.
  • Add the roasted red peppers and garlic to the food processor. Secure the lid and puree for 15 seconds, then switch the processor to the lowest setting and slowly pour in the lemon juice and olive oil through the feed tube. Add the nutritional yeast and blend in 10-second intervals, scraping the sides in between intervals, until it is blended to your liking. You can add more nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon at a time, if you want to thicken the sauce.
  • Once thoroughly blended, do a taste test and add additional salt and pepper if desired. You can also blend in a little crushed red pepper and fresh herbs or use them as garnish when you serve the sauce to add a little heat and extra flavor.

Notes

  • Roasted Red Peppers and Garlic: To make the roasted red pepper sauce, I roasted fresh red bell peppers and fresh cloves of garlic. As an alternative, or if you are short on time, you can use a jar of roasted red peppers that is well-drained and jarred minced garlic. However, fresh always tastes better in my opinion.
  • Walnuts: I used herb walnuts that I made in advance. You can use plain walnuts as a substitute but the herby walnuts add so much more flavor and texture and I believe are worth the extra effort. If you decide to use them in this recipe, make them first by following the instructions found here: Italian Herb Walnuts Recipe
  • Storage: This recipe will yield approximately 2 cups of sauce. If you will not be using all of the sauce immediately, store it in an airtight container, in the refrigerator until ready to use.