Fire Roasted Piquillo Peppers

Alan came home Friday night, very pleased with himself, with a cloth bag of Bomba paella rice and a small jar of red peppers. I assumed he’d gone for a walk at lunch and found some new olive oil store in Century City (would somebody please explain to me the economics of the olive oil stores in the mall – is it a front?) But, no, that would not be the right answer. He smiled and said, “No, I bought them online.”

And he handed me a catalog from latienda.com!

I’m not really that big a fan of peppers. I mean, they’re peppers and we live in California where peppers are pretty plentiful and I like them but it wouldn’t occur to me to have them shipped in from Spain.

But we’d experimented, baking a whole sea bass in salt (sort of the way they do in Mexico or Italy.) We thought about barbecuing but the winds were too strong and it was cold out. And somehow sans grilling, the fish looked like it was going to be a little bland. So I opened the peppers and sliced a little soft sourdough to eat as an accompaniment.

They’re sweet and just a little spicy, tender but not the least bit mushy, in fact a little firm, (if something can be tender and firm). Fire roasted, so just a tiny bit smoky. And so light and delicate and seemingly fresh, that I truly suspect they might also be good for you. It is impossible to eat just one.

A tiny indulgence from Spain!