Pisto manchego and giveaway winner!

I didn't want to make a post just for announcing the giveaway winner, without recipe, that's why I've been absent for quite some time. I've been very busy and I haven't had the time for posting until today. Sorry for that. First of all, I guess you're all anxious (more or less...) to know the name of the winner of the Le Creuset giveaway. I'm acompanying the reveal with another of my very famous traditional Spanish recipes... yes, I have one of those high-self-esteem-days...

First things first: after substracting all the comments from people who were not interested in the giveaway and also the ones living outside USA and Canada, congratulations to Sinful Southern Sweets! You're the lucky one. The people from CSN Stores will soon contact you to send you your ramekins!

And now to the recipe. Pisto manchego is a thick and chunky sauce, made with a mixture of stir-fried vegetables and originating from the region of La Mancha (where Don Quixote was born and Manchego cheese is made...). It's easy to make and healthy, similar to the French ratatouille and absolutely nothing to do with Italian pesto! It's used as accompaniment in a lot of dishes, like grilled meat and eggs or even pasta, and also as filling for empanadillas. It's a staple in my household and it never lasts for very long... I'm giving you my take on pisto:

Pisto manchego
Yields 6 servings

• 300g onion
• 300g red bell pepper (the original recipe calls for half and half of red and green bell pepper, but I like red better, so choose whatever version you prefer)
• 300g zucchini
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 60g of virgin olive oil for frying
• 400g crushed or pureed tomatoes (I buy them canned here)
• 50g white wine
• Salt to taste

1. Finely dice the onion and the pepper. Cut the zucchini in bigger dice than the onion and pepper (let's say... hazelnut-sized?), set aside. Peel the garlic, slice it (you can mince it if you don't like to actually see the slices of garlic in your sauce) and set aside too.
2. Pour the olive oil in a large frying pan and put on medium heat. When hot, first add the onion, stir and fry till it begins to soften. Then add the pepper and garlic. Stir-fry till the pepper begins to soften, depending on the kind of veggies, around 7 minutes.
3. Add the zucchini and stir-fry the whole mixture for at least 15 more minutes, till all the vegetables are thoroughly wilted. The zucchini is added the last because it takes less time to soften than the others. Don't let it get soft enough to fall apart though.
4. Add the tomato puree and the wine. Let the whole thing simmer for 20-30 minutes, till the liquid of the tomato and the wine reduce and you get a thick sauce. It shouldn't be too runny neither too dry. Just look at the photograph.
5. When done, add at least a couple of teaspoons of salt, stir well and try for saltiness. Add more if necessary. Let cool.

You can enjoy it by a tasty Spanish tortilla like me... no, the recipe for Spanish tortilla will come soon, but only if you behave yourselves...