Almond Orange Mole Recipe

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Roast tomatoes on a sheet pan until blistered.
• Place garlic cloves with the skin on in an aluminum foil pouch with a drizzle of olive oil and roast in the oven. Check them after about 15 minutes to see if they have softened. This is pretty high heat, so it won't take long. You want them soft, not blackened. Allow to cool and then squeeze the garlic out of the skins.
• Remove seeds, stems and ribs from guajillo peppers. Heat a dry skillet on the stove top, place chiles in the pan to toast lightly – just until they become fragrant and pliable. Do not let them get brown/black. This will ruin the delicate flavor. Remove from skillet and place in a large bowl. Pour the boiling water over the peppers until they are covered. Place a small plate over the pepers to ensure that they stay submerged. Let them soak for about 30 minutes. Do not discard soaking liquid.
• Meanwhile, blanch almonds in boiling water, let soak for a bit. Once water has cooled, remove skins. You can just grip one end and they will shoot right out of the skins easily. Be careful you don’t shoot them all across the kitchen! Heat some olive oil in large skillet and fry almonds until golden brown. You want enough oil in the pan so that they are swimming around in there, and deep frying. Not just a sauté. Drain and cool.
• Zest oranges, reserving zest. Slice in half and grill. Once cool, juice the oranges.
• Place almonds, peppers, tomatoes, orange juice, orange zest, roasted garlic, cinnamon, salt and honey in a blender and puree. Add the water from the peppers as needed to thin the sauce. Season again with salt to taste.