This kid-friendly creamy roasted red pepper sauce is easy to make with just 6 ingredients and is delicious on pasta and with vegetables, potato wedges, or your favorite protein! (gluten-free)
This post has been written and medically reviewed by Kaleigh McMordie, MCN, RDN (Registered Dietitian Nutritionist).
Homemade sauces are a great way to add new flavor experiences and nutrition to little ones' meals. If you aim to expose your child to a variety of new flavors (which I highly encourage!) step outside the box of ketchup and basic tomato sauce. One of my favorite sauces to make is a versatile red pepper sauce. My family loves it, and I think yours will, too!
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Why You'll Love This Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
This creamy roasted red pepper sauce is simple to make with just a few ingredients. While it does take a little effort to roast the peppers, the reward is highly worth it! You'll love that this sauce is:
- Nutritious - Full of veggies, like vitamin C- rich bell pepper and antioxidant-rich garlic and tomato.
- Delicious - The subtly sweet and savory flavor of roasted red pepper and garlic in a creamy sauce is amazing and adds interest to otherwise plain meals.
- Versatile - It's can be used as a pasta sauce, or for dipping and drizzling on potatoes, vegetables, or your favorite protein.
- Flexible - Make it your own with the ingredients you have on hand, or make save time by making it ahead!
Ingredients
- Red bell pepper - If your peppers are small, use two. You can also save yourself the peeling step by using jarred roasted red peppers.
- Tomato - a plum or roma tomato; if you don't have one, just use a tomato on the small side. Or leave it out and use more red pepper!
- Garlic - You'll leave the skin on the cloves for roasting.
- Lemon juice - If you don't have lemon, you can also add a little acidity with white balsamic or red or white wine vinegar
- Cream - Heavy cream adds a thick lushness. You can substitute half and half but the sauce won't be quite as thick or creamy. (You can also fix that - see the notes section!)
- Paprika - I use regular paprika for a straight up red pepper sauce, or smoked paprika if I want it to lean a little more toward the flavor of romesco sauce.
Helpful Equipment: You'll need a baking sheet, a bowl with something to tightly cover it (or a plastic zip top bag), and a high speed blender.
Step by Step Instructions
For the full detailed instructions, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Place the pepper, tomato and garlic on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment - this makes cleanup much easier!
- Roast everything at 425°F for 20-25 minutes, removing the garlic and flipping the tomato and pepper after about 10 minutes.
- Immediately after roasting, place the pepper in a bowl and tightly cover with plastic wrap or a lid (or place it in a zip-top bag) and allow it to steam for 10-15 minutes. This will help the skin come off easily. Then use your hands to peel the skin away from the pepper. Discard the skin, stem and seeds.
- Add the peeled pepper to a high speed blender. Squeeze the garlic cloves to remove the flesh from the skin and add them to the blender, along with the remaining ingredients. Blend everything until it is nice and smooth.
Tips and Recipe Variations
- Jarred peppers: Save yourself some time and the peeling step by using jarred roasted red peppers! You'll need 1 large pepper, or about 1 cup. If you use jarred peppers, omit the lemon juice since they are already pretty acidic.
- Alternately, you can simply skip the peeling step after roasting, but your sauce won't be quite as smooth. It will still taste delicious, though!
- For a thicker, richer sauce pour the sauce into a saucepan after blending and simmer on the stove over low heat for 5-10 minutes. Stir in a small pat of butter for extra creaminess! This is a great way to add a little more creaminess and richness if you use half and half instead of cream.
- For dairy-free, you can use canned coconut milk or coconut cream, or soaked, drained cashews. Or simply omit the cream, though the sauce will obviously be less creamy.
- Feel free to play with the flavors. For a smokier flavor similar to romesco, use smoked paprika and double up on the amount. Or try swapping the lemon juice for white balsamic and blend in a few basil leaves. If you like more spice, add a pinch of cayenne or red pepper flakes.
Storage
This sauce stores well in the refrigerator for up to 5 days in an airtight container. You can also freeze it in a silicone cube tray so that you can easily take out a small portion as needed!
How To Serve It
- Use as a pasta sauce by stirring it into your favorite cooked pasta (here are the best baby-friendly pastas)
- Serve alongside roasted potatoes, meatball 'fingers', shrimp, crab cakes, or veggies for dipping
- Drizzle on steak, chicken, fish, or veggies
- Use it to add flavor to grain bowls
More Delicious Kid-Friendly Sauces
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Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
This kid-friendly creamy roasted red pepper sauce is easy to make with just 6 ingredients and is delicious on pasta or with vegetables, potato wedges, or your favorite protein! (gluten-free)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Steaming time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: about 1.5 cup 1x
- Category: sauce
- Method: roasted
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 large red bell pepper (or 2 small)
- 1 medium roma or plum tomato
- 3 cloves garlic, unpeeled
- juice from ½ small lemon
- ¼ tsp paprika
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- optional: ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper
Instructions
- Heat oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Place the pepper, tomato and garlic on the baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes.
- Remove the garlic. Flip the pepper and tomato and return to the oven to roast an additional 10-15 minutes, or until you start to see charred bits.
- Place the pepper in a bowl and tightly cover with plastic wrap or foil, or place in a sealed plastic bag, and allow to steam for 15 minutes. This will loosen the skin so that it removes easily.
- After 15 minutes, use your hands to peel the skin from the pepper. Cut in half and discard the seeds and stem.
- Place the peeled pepper, tomato, garlic (simply squeeze to release the cloves from the skin), lemon juice, paprika, cream, and salt and pepper (if using) to a high speed blender. Blend until smooth.
- If you need to reheat or thicken the sauce before serving, pour it into a saucepan and heat on low on the stovetop until warmed through and thickened.
Notes
- You can use jarred roasted red peppers if you'd like to skip the roasting and peeling step. You'll still need to roast the tomato and garlic, but the recipe will go quicker! You'll need about 1 cup, drained. Omit the lemon juice since jarred peppers are already acidic.
- Heavy cream substitute: You can use half and half, but the sauce will not be as thick. You can also use canned coconut milk/cream or leave it out for a vegan/dairy-free version.
- For a smokier sauce, use ½ teaspoon smoked paprika instead of regular.
- For thicker, richer sauce simmer in a saucepan after blending over low heat for 5-10 minutes until thickened and stir in a small pat of butter.
- For babies under 1 year, you can omit the salt.
- Store sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
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