Only two more days until Thanksgiving, and planning is underway. You can feel it in the air, and see it on the streets, in the markets and supermarkets, busier than usual. For me, the planning depends on whether I’m hosting or I’m the guest, alternating roles that happen every second year. You see, for as long as I can remember —maybe almost as long as (more…)
I didn’t think I would be including the recipe for quince paste this early in the life of Mama Ía blog. Don’t get me wrong, I love quince paste, but I understand it might not be a dish my American friends would eat often, as it is the case in Spain. Quince paste is very popular in Spain, and it’s usually eaten with cured manchego cheese, or with fresh (more…)
As a child, I thought lentil soup was okay. Just okay. In fact, I wasn’t a soup person, or a stew person. I didn’t like anything that had much broth in it. I much preferred dry rice dishes, like paella or arroz al horno, baked rice. And beans, in particular, weren’t my thing. I still remember my mom’s singsong, “Las lentejas tienen mucho hierro. Y fibra”, lentils have so much iron, and fiber. And her lentil soup with chorizo and bacon not only had a lot of fiber and iron, but was full of flavor. (more…)
Bonus post this week! I happened to have a bowl full of pumpkin seeds, the remnants —or better, the byproduct— of last week’s jack-o-lantern making. Another great aspect of Halloween, and one of my favorites! Don’t get me wrong, I like the carving, it is a fun family activity. There’s lots of laughter, alongside (more…)
I have very good memories of my school. Which is interesting, because it contrasts with my sister Paula’s memories of the same school (I won’t elaborate, except to say that artists don’t fit easily in pre-made molds, and Paula was, and is, no exception!). Pureza de María was the name of the school, an all-girls school (more…)
When I set out to write this blog, my idea was to post the Spanish recipes I grew up with. Most of them are the traditional dishes cooked in the Valencian Community, or in Andalusia, the regions where my parents come from, and the dishes most made at my house. However, as I also mentioned (more…)
I find it interesting to see how this blog thing is working out. Take this week, for instance. I had a few ideas in my head as to what to make for this week’s post. I could choose from a number of recipes that included Fall vegetables —the beautiful pumpkins, or butternut squash, sweet potatoes, delicata or acorn squash. I hadn’t made up my mind yet, waiting to see what peaked my interest. (more…)
If you have been following my blog, by now you know that I like cooking. I like the process, and I like having my family enjoy a delicious meal. A home meal, cooked with love, from natural ingredients, can be very powerful. A family, around the dinner table.
Yet this daily, almost routine event (more…)
Making paella always wakes up my senses, every one of them. I’m sure it is because of all the sentiments it evokes, and the memories attached to the dish. Growing up in Spain, we used to have paella mostly on Sundays, when the after-meal time could linger for hours and well into the early evening. In the summer, the after-meal time (more…)
I didn’t think I’d be posting the recipe for paella valenciana, Valencian paella, this early in the life of Mama Ía blog. I don’t know, I thought I had to do a few more simple recipes first, ease into the paella, maybe get you acquainted with the blog, in particular with the section on paella and all the information there that I highly (more…)
