MARINATED BELL PEPPERS

This vegetarian dish is a perfect complement to a grilled meat dish, delicious when stuffed into pita bread or just serve it as a mezze for a Mediterranean banquet.  It has piquant flavours with a punch coming from the fresh garlic but mellowed by the sweetness of the balsamic reduction and fresh basil leaves.

To feed 8 people you need:

 4 red bell peppers (we in OZ call them capsicums)

3-4 cloves of garlic

5 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp of red wine vinegar

2 tbsp of balsamic reduction

A pinch of salt and freshly cracked black pepper

A handful of basil leaves for garnish

 Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 250C.  Place bell peppers on a roasting tray and roast them turning them over for about 30 minutes or until they become black.  Remove from the oven, place in a bowl while still hot and cover with cling wrap for about 15 minutes to loosen up the skin.  Once the peppers are slightly cooled, remove the plastic and peel off the skin discarding the stalk and the seeds. 

Cut the peppers into strips about 2 cm wide and place in a serving bowl.  Peel and crush the garlic, then mix with the remaining ingredients and give it a taste.  The taste should be quite strong but it will be absorbed by the peppers, so make sure that you taste the garlic, salt and acidity of the vinegar.  Pour it over the peppers and place the bowl in the fridge to marinate overnight or for at least 3-4 hours.  If the dressing does not cover the peppers fully, give them a toss every now and then.

When you are ready to serve, dash some balsamic reduction over the bell peppers and garnish with basil leaves.

Enjoy!!!