Pepper, Olive, and Anchovy Skewers (Pintxos Gilda)
Photo: Thomas J. Story
Pintxo means "spike" in the Basque language and refers to a wide variety of little snacks from that region. The Gilda gets its name--and its flavor inspiration--from the Rita Hayworth movie, in which the Spanish-descended actress plays a bold and saucy femme fatale. This recipe, from chef Ryan Pollnow of Aatxe ("Ah-chay") restaurant in San Francisco, requires sixteen 4-inch wooden skewers.
How to Make It
Making one skewer at a time, slide an olive to about 1 inch from tip of skewer. Slide on 1 end of an anchovy fillet, then a pepper followed by another olive. Slide other end of anchovy over olive. Slide a second pepper over the anchovy to finish the skewer.
*Since it's difficult to find plain Manzanilla olives without pimento stuffing, you can use the pimento-stuffed type and push out the filling with a toothpick if you like. Find spicy-sweet guindilla peppers at latienda.com and amazon.com. If you use peperoncino, rinse them first if you find them too sour.
Ingredients
Directions
Making one skewer at a time, slide an olive to about 1 inch from tip of skewer. Slide on 1 end of an anchovy fillet, then a pepper followed by another olive. Slide other end of anchovy over olive. Slide a second pepper over the anchovy to finish the skewer.
*Since it's difficult to find plain Manzanilla olives without pimento stuffing, you can use the pimento-stuffed type and push out the filling with a toothpick if you like. Find spicy-sweet guindilla peppers at latienda.com and amazon.com. If you use peperoncino, rinse them first if you find them too sour.