Summer is still in full swing despite the kids heading back to school and it being “Faugust” here in the San Francisco Bay Area. When the peppers are nice and sweet it’s great to make this Italian style relish and have it on hand. Traditionally it is made with tomatoes and basil but Laura omits these in her recipe and adds a little acid by using rice wine vinegar. You can use it on bruschetta, sandwiches, as a topping for fish or toss it with pasta. This little quick relish packs a flavorful punch!
Laura’s Peperonata
- Prep time: 10 minutes
- Cook time: 10 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 red bell peppers, seeded, sliced into 2 1/2 to 3-inch long strips
- 2 yellow bell peppers, seeded, sliced into 2 1/2 to 3-inch long strips
- 1 medium red onion, sliced into half-moons
- 2 garlic cloves, sliced thin
- 2 tablespoons capers
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon cane sugar
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
- Lemon juice
Method
1 Sauté the onions: Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan on medium high heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the onions. Sprinkle with a little salt and sauté for 2-3 minutes, until the onions just begin to color.
2 Add the peppers: Add the peppers and stir well to combine with the onions. Sauté for 2-3 minutes, stirring often. The peppers should be al dente—cooked, but with a little crunch left in them.
3 Add the garlic, capers: Add the garlic and capers, and sauté another 1 minute.
4 Add sugar, oregano, rice wine vinegar: Add the sugar,dried oregano and rice wine vinegar. Cook 1 minute.
6 Add salt, black pepper, lemon juice: Turn off the heat and adjust your salt amount. Grind some black pepper over everything. Right before serving squeeze a little lemon juice over the dish.
es are a known source for their vitamin c content. Here are some other fun facts about one of winter’s favorite fruits:
Birgitta is a long time (30 + years) shopper at our Berkeley store. For years, she bought the same superfood ingredients from our bulk bins. After chatting and recipe sharing with staff, she brought the team at Berkeley Natural (BNG) samples of her crackers. They were hooked. Birgitta and her partner Dianna credit Cory and the BNG team with inspiring them to start their small business.
Their label and logo designer lives on an island in the Baltic Sea between Sweden and Finland. The heritage (and inspiration) for these crackers points back to the majestic 
Together, they met the folks at Muffin Revolution and subleased kitchen space from them. That afforded them the chance (in a certified gluten-free kitchen) to produce more volume and become a registered business. When Muffin Revolution outgrew the space, they offered the lease to Cult Crackers. While it was a big jump, they accepted. And thank goodness they did! 
The crackers are delightful. At their kitchen, we snacked on them with Mitica 
While shopping in our El Cerrito store bulk section, I was tempted to try the organic oat groats instead of the rolled oats. I was both inspired by the current sale price ($1.19/lb) and want the healthiest option for our five year old son. Our bulk buyer, David gave me another reason. He said, “why not eat things as close to the way mother-nature produced them as possible.” I can’t argue with that logic so I bought a bulk bag of groats.
