Stuffed Piquillo Peppers with Fresh Cheese, Sardines, Olive Salpicon & Pesto

• 8 Piquillo peppers
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped (1 crushed + 1 minced)
• 40 g fresh white cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives
• 80 g tapenade
• 4 sardines in oil
• 4 tablespoons pistou
• 2 tablespoons tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon chopped basil
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons diced tomatoes
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt and ground pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons pitted and diced black and green olives
• 1 chopped shallot

Cut the Piquillo peppers into 5 cm squares, reserving the scraps.

Mix the pepper scraps with tapenade, fresh white cheese, 1 crushed garlic clove, a squeeze of lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Set aside.

Assemble two stacks per plate: pepper square, spoonful of mixture, sardine, pepper square, spoonful of mixture, sardine, topped with a final pepper square.

Surround with olive salpicon.

Add a drizzle of pesto and tomato coulis, garnish with chopped chives.

Pesto: Crushed basil + minced garlic + olive oil + salt.

Salpicon: Chopped green and black olives + chopped shallot + olive oil + diced tomatoes + chopped chives + salt and pepper.