Roasting gives amazing depth to vegetables, especially peppers. The simplest way to serve these is to drizzle them with extra virgin olive oil, along with some salt and pepper, but you can also add a few drops of vinegar. The next step is to garnish with anchovies, capers, and/or herbs.

　　

Ingredients

makes 4 servings

　　4 large red bell peppers (about 2 pounds)

　　Salt and freshly ground black pepper

　　2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

　　

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 500°F. Line a roasting pan with enough foil to later fold over the top. Put the peppers in the pan and the pan in the oven. Roast, turning the peppers about every 10 minutes, until the peppers collapse, about 40 minutes.

　　

Step 2

Fold the foil over the peppers and allow them to cool. Work over a bowl and remove the core, skin, and seeds from each of the peppers. It’s okay if the peppers naturally fall into strips during this process. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and olive oil and serve at room temperature. (You can refrigerate these, tightly wrapped or covered, for a few days; bring to room temperature before serving.)

　　From Mark Bittman's Quick and Easy Recipes From the New York Times by Mark Bittman Copyright (c) 2007 by Mark Bittman Published by Broadway Books.Mark Bittman is the author of the blockbuster Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.