Florence Fabricant's Rouille

Ingredients

• 1 small diced red chili pepper, deseeded
• 10 pistils saffron
• 1 tablespoon warm water
• 4 slices fresh white sandwich bread, crusts removed
• ¼ cup fish soup
• 4 garlic cloves
• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

About two-thirds of a cup

Preparation

1. To make the rouille, crumble the chili pepper and saffron into a small bowl and moisten with the water. Set aside.
2. Break up the white bread, place it in a food processor and process to make fine bread crumbs. Transfer the crumbs to a small bowl and moisten with fish soup. Do not rinse the food processor.
3. With the processor running, drop the garlic cloves in through the seed tube, then add the chili and saffron mixture. Turn off the processor and scrape the sides of the container. Add the bread and process to combine.
4. With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil and continue processing several minutes, until the mixture is thick and smooth, like mayonnaise.

20 minutes