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Wholesome Winter Spanish Dish

Filed under: Spanish Recipes — Tags: , , , , , — John @ 9:26 am January 18, 2011

Recipe: Estofado

Summary: Estofado is a traditional Spanish beef stew. The recipe was given to me by an elderly lady during the time we spent in Casarabonela.

Ingredients

  • 3 tblsp of olive oil
  • 500g stewing beef
  • 250g carrots – peeled and cut into large chunks
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 1 cup of peas
  • 1/2 tblsp of paprika
  • 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
  • 1 tsp of flour 500g of potatoes peeled and cut into large chunks
  • 1 wine glass of white wine
  • salt & freshly ground pepper
  • saffron or yellow food colouring

Instructions

  1. Heat half of the oil in a large flameproof cooking pot.Brown the beef in the hot oil.
  2. In a small frying pan heat the rest of the oil, add the onion and garlic and fry for around 5 minutes. Add the flour and the paprika and fry for a further 5 minutes, making sure not to burn the mix.
  3. Now add the onion mix to the meat in the cooking pot, add the wine, stock and water. Bring to the boil. Cook slowly for around and hour and a half.
  4. Add the carrot’s, chopped tomatoes and a little saffron to the pot and cook for about 25 minutes. Now add the potatoes, peas and a little more stock if required. Cook for a further 25 – 30 minutes until the potatoes are cooked.
  5. Serve from the pot with fresh crusty bread.

Cooking time (duration): 140 min’s

Number of servings (yield): 4

Meal type: dinner

Culinary tradition: Spanish

My rating:4 stars: ★★★★☆

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Traditional Tapas Dish

Filed under: Spanish Recipes — Tags: , , , , , , — John @ 11:11 am June 26, 2010

Recipe: Tortilla de Patatas

Summary: This fantastic Spanish omlette can be seen in almost every tapa bar in Spain. Can be served hot or cold. We often take tortilla as part of a tapas style picnic to enjoy on the beach or in the country side.

Ingredients

  • 600ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 500g white onions, thinly sliced
  • 700g  potatoes, thinly sliced
  • 6 Medium eggs

Instructions

  1. Put 50ml olive oil in a 26cm non-stick frying pan. Over a low heat, gently sweat the onions for 5 minutes until softened.
  2. Add the potato slices to the pan along with the remaining olive oil; it should just cover the contents of the pan. Season very generously, cover and cook gently over a low heat for 30–35 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  3. Lightly whisk the eggs with a pinch of salt. Drain and discard the excess oil from the cooked potato and onion mixture, then add the vegetables to the eggs and stir to combine.
  4. Return the ingredients to the pan and cook on a medium–low heat for 15–20 minutes. Once the top surface of the omelette top appears firm enough, free the sides using a palette knife, place a plate over the top of the omelette and invert the pan to release the omelette onto the plate. Slide the omelette back into the pan and cook on the other side for another 5 minutes until cooked.
  5. Slide the omelette onto a serving plate and leave to cool.

Cooking time (duration): 75

Number of servings (yield): 8

Meal type: hors d’oerves

Culinary tradition: Spanish

My rating:4 stars: ★★★★☆


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Tasty Lamb Chops

Filed under: Spanish Recipes — Tags: , , , , — John @ 10:39 am June 19, 2010

Recipe: Baked Lamb Chops With Tomatoes & Peppers

Summary: A lovely dish we enjoy out on the terrace on a late summers evening.

Ingredients

  • 4 large lamb chops
  • chopped parsley, to garnish

For the marinade:

  • 3 tblsp chopped fresh thyme
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the topping:

  • 1 large green pepper, de-seeded and finely chopped
  • 1 red onion, finely chopped
  • 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

Instructions

  1. For the marinade place the thyme, oil, vinegar and seasoning in a non-metallic oven dish. Add the chops and turn to coat. Cover and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
  2. Place the tomatoes in a bowl and pour over boiling water until covered. Leave for around 30 seconds then peel, de-seed and chop.
  3. Mix together the tomatoes, green pepper, onion and garlic, season well. Spoon the mixture over the chops. Bake for 35 minutes for medium cooked chops or 45 minutes for well done. Cover with foil and rest for a further 5 minutes. Garnish with parsley.

Cooking time (duration): 120 min’s

Number of servings (yield): 4

Meal type: dinner

Culinary tradition: Spanish

My rating:4 stars: ★★★★☆

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John’s Sangria

Filed under: Spanish Recipes — Tags: , , , , — John @ 11:09 am June 12, 2010

Recipe: Sangria

Summary: There is no fixed recipe for sangria, it is mixture of this and that to the makers choice. This version is one that I have developed and has become a summer weekly favorite.


Ingredients

  • Bottle Spanish red wine
  • 1/2 cup brandy
  • 1/2 cup peach schnapps
  • 2 pieces of  fruit, apple, pear or peach
  • 2 oranges
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 can lemonade
  • castor sugar
  • ice

Instructions

  1. De core the fruit and chop into cubes
  2. Half the oranges and take one slice aside to garnish. Grate the zest of one and add to the bowl with the juice of both and the lemon
  3. Place the fruit in a large mixing bowl along with 3 desert spoons of castor sugar
  4. Add the bottle of red wine, the brandy and the schnapps
  5. Cover and place in the fridge for a couple of hours
  6. Taste and add more castor sugar to taste if required Return to the fridge for another hour
  7. Just before serving add the lemonade and mix well
  8. Take a large jug and add lots of ice
  9. Ladle in the sangria and dress the jug with the orange slice

Culinary tradition: Spanish

My rating:4 stars: ★★★★☆

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Learning to Speak Spanish

Filed under: Business,Day 2 Day Spain,General — Tags: , , , , , , , , , — John @ 4:51 pm May 14, 2010

How many times have you been somewhere in Spain and wished you could speak the language? We’ve only been here for a relatively short period of time but have already lost count of how much we’ve missed because we can’t speak the lingo.Learn Spanish

Communication is a wonderful thing

Simple things like asking for something in a shop, or getting directions somewhere to more complicated things like having to see a Spanish Doctor and not being able to communicate. It can be a nightmare, not to mention being embarrassing.

I’ve heard people say “It doesn’t matter, everybody speaks English anyway”, well that may be true but how much nicer would it be if we could actually join in conversations with our Spanish friends and neighbours.

Interactive Spanish course

We’ve recently found a fantastic way to learn the language, it’s easy to understand and simple to follow. The course has 2 CD ROM with over 200 interactive lessons and activities that teach you how to build sentences, ask and answer questions, and communicate properly in Spanish. They even have a ‘true’ Spaniard teaching you how to pronounce the words, so you’ve got a chance of it sounding right.

You can complete the course at your own pace and more importantly for me, without the embarrassment of other people being able to hear you until you’re ready.

Try it before you buy it! Click here

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