WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Sorrel is unique among herbs in the common herb garden—or forager’s sack. There’s nothing that can quite mimic its lemony tartness, and we wanted to capture that quality in a fresh sauce, which would thus allow us to add sorrel’s essence to a range of dishes. Many recipes for sorrel sauces or pestos cut the sorrel with another herb, like parsley, basil, or mint. While these were delicious, we found that the subtler flavors of the sorrel were completely lost, reducing it to simply a lemon juice substitute. Once we decided sorrel would be our sole herb, we knew we had to carefully balance our sauce, or it would come out too sour and astringent. Toasted almonds brought depth, and a touch of honey tempered the acidity. Mild toasted garlic and some red pepper flakes provided an aromatic background with a hint of heat. Now we had a bright sauce that showcased sorrel’s best qualities, and we decided to pair it with decadent crispy smashed potatoes. It was a perfect match—the fat, salt, and starch of the potatoes cried out for a tangy topping. While this sauce is excellent on many roasted or grilled vegetables, it also pairs wonderfully with fish and rich cuts of meat. Use small red potatoes measuring 1 to 2 inches in diameter. It is important to thoroughly cook the potatoes so that they will smash easily. Remove the potatoes from the baking sheet as soon as they are done browning—they will toughen if left in the oven too long.
SERVES: 6 to 8
TOTAL TIME: 1 hour 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
POTATOES
- 2 pounds small red potatoes, unpeeled
- 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper
SORREL-ALMOND SAUCE
- 1 garlic clove, unpeeled
- 3 ounces (3 cups) sorrel leaves, trimmed and torn into 2-inch pieces
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped toasted almonds
- ¼ teaspoon honey
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Salt
INSTRUCTIONS:
- FOR THE POTATOES:
- Adjust oven racks to top and lowest positions and heat oven to 500 degrees.
- Place potatoes on rimmed baking sheet, pour ¾ cup water into sheet, and wrap tightly with aluminum foil.
- Place sheet on lower rack and roast until paring knife slips in and out of potatoes easily (to check potatoes for doneness, poke knife through foil), 25 to 30 minutes.
- Remove foil and cool slightly, about 10 minutes. Wipe sheet dry with paper towels.
- Drizzle 3 tablespoons oil over potatoes on sheet and roll to coat.
- Space potatoes evenly over baking sheet and place second baking sheet on top.
- Press top sheet down firmly, flattening potatoes to ⅓-to ½-inch thickness.
- Season generously with salt and pepper and drizzle evenly with remaining 3 tablespoons oil.
- Roast potatoes on upper rack for 15 minutes.
- Transfer potatoes to lower rack and continue to roast until well browned, 20 to 30 minutes longer.
- SORREL-ALMOND SAUCE:
- Meanwhile, toast garlic in 8-inch skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and skin is spotty brown, about 7 minutes.
- When cool enough to handle, peel garlic.
- Pulse sorrel, oil, almonds, peeled garlic, honey, pepper flakes, and ¼ teaspoon salt in food processor until coarsely chopped, scraping down sides of bowl as needed, about 10 pulses.
- Add 2 tablespoons water and process until combined.
- Adjust consistency of sauce with extra water as needed.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- SERVING:
- Transfer potatoes to serving platter.
- Dollop evenly with sorrel-almond sauce.
- Serve.
