Crudités with Carrot Dip and Romesco

This double-sauce eats like a romesco sauce, which has been called the “Spanish ketchup.” I love the idea of peanuts, carrots, and dipping back and forth. Think about this as a carrot-dip crudité plate—go ahead, bring in cucumber, apple sticks, radishes, and any other favorite veggies. You have two dip sauces—go ahead, this is your crudité party. This recipe is in honor of Devita Davidson, who comes from Detroit, where farmers are super connected to the city. The Eastern Market is one of the oldest farmers’ market in the country. This dish is inspired by the farm–city connection, with benne seeds and peanuts bringing it back to Africa.

By Yewande Komolafe

Gallery

Credit: Sarah Crowder

Recipe Summary

total:
1 hr 10 mins
active:
45 mins
Yield:
Makes about 4 1/2 cups dip
Advertisement

Ingredients

CARROT DIP (makes 3 cups)
GROUNDNUT ROMESCO (makes 1 1/2 cups)

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 400°F.

    Advertisement
Make the carrot dip

  • Scrub the carrots and rinse off any dirt. Trim the tops off and set aside to use in the romesco. Place the carrots in a large foil pouch, add the garlic and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, and season with the salt. Place on a baking sheet and roast until the car¬rots are tender and a knife inserted goes right through, about 40 minutes.

  • Transfer the contents of the foil pouch to a food processor and pulse to chop. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, the chickpeas, peanut butter, and lemon juice and puree the mixture until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Taste and season with additional salt as needed.(did not season with additional salt) Set aside.

Make the romesco

  • In a small skillet over low heat, toast the coriander and cumin seeds until fragrant, about 1 minute, shaking skillet often. Remove from the pan and set aside. In the same pan, gently toast the benne seeds until fragrant and a light golden brown, about 1 minute, shaking the skillet often. Remove from the pan and set aside. Toast the peanuts in the same pan until fragrant and a light golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes, shaking the skillet often. Remove from heat and once cool enough to handle, roughly chop.

  • Using a mortar and pestle, crush the toasted cumin and coriander seeds. Add the roasted red peppers and garlic cloves and crush by using the pestle against the side of the mortar. Add the carrot tops and peanut oil and lightly crush with the pestle. Transfer the rough-chopped paste to a bowl and stir in the lemon juice, paprika, and salt. Add the benne seeds and chopped peanuts and toss to combine.

  • Place the carrot dip in a bowl, spoon the romesco over the center, and swirl lightly across the surface. Serve with your crudités of choice.

Notes

Excerpted from The Rise by Marcus Samuelsson with Osayi Endolyn. Recipes with Yewande Komolafe and Tamie Cook. Copyright (c) 2020 by Marcus Samuelsson. Photographs by Angie Mosier. Used with permission of Voracious, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. New York, NY. All rights reserved.

Advertisement
© Copyright 2022 Food & Wine. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.foodandwine.com 05/28/2022