Recipe: Diffusion de Tomate Provençal (Provençal Tomato Spread)

Makes about 2 ½ cups

4 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium red bell pepper, peeled, finely chopped

1 large onion, finely chopped (1 ½ cups)

3 to 4 large cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 medium tomatoes, concassé (see note)

6 to 8 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (¾ cup)

12 Niçoise olives or another rich black olive, chopped

¾ tablespoon capers, chopped

2 cups chopped fresh basil

Coarse sea salt, black pepper

In a small sauté pan, warm oil over medium heat. Add bell pepper, onions and garlic, and cook until soft. Add chopped tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, olives and capers and cook gently. Remove from heat. When cool, add basil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Note: Concassé refers to peeled, seeded and finely chopped tomatoes. Use good tomatoes; do not substitute canned tomatoes or the texture will be mushy and the flavor flat.

Serving note: This spread is great with crackers or bread, or seared or grilled fish.

From "The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry: Love, Laughter and Tears at the World's Most Famous Cooking School" by Kathleen Flinn.