Rice stuffed red peppers, pimientos de arroz, is one of the dishes of my childhood and young adulthood (or the period prior to my moving to North America after I married). Medium grain Valencian rice, seasoned and cooked in a tomato based thick broth, bakes to perfection inside sweet red peppers that roast until almost caramelized.
It is a fact that many families in Spain make an effort at Christmas time to buy a leg of ham, and not just any ham, but the best ham they can afford. That might seem like a strange concept for my American audience, but most Spaniards would understand it. In Spain you can buy jamón serrano, cured serrano ham, of various qualities, all the way up to the crown jewel, what is considered a luxury product, a leg of Iberian ham.
I know, I know, two posts in a row with recipes for fish. Not only fish, but mollusks, so popular where I come from, Spain’s Mediterranean coast, but not so where I live, Indiana. There’s an explanation, I’m still on detoxification mode from sweets after Christmas, and hard on the Mediterranean diet, the tried and true. But don’t fret: Valentines is around the corner, then a number of family birthdays, and soon after, Easter. Lots and lots of opportunities for sweets. So tag along with me, follow the Mediterranean diet, and your heart (and your waist) will thank you.
The anticipation of Christmas break is always special, no matter what one’s age. As a child, it was a magical time in every sense —the miracle of the birth, the visit of the Three Magi, loaded with toys, and the school vacation! As an adult, the excitement doesn’t wane, but new layers are added: this year was the first one we had two of our children away at college, and therefore back home for Christmas. What better opportunity than to celebrate with special dishes they don’t usually eat?
Another birthday, yay! I’ve learned to embrace them, feeling blessed to be counting one more (thank you, Byron!). Because what’s better than adding one more year of experience to your biography? Spending one more year with your loved ones? Live life fully no matter what your age? So happy birthday to me, and to everyone who can count one more. To celebrate it, a super special cake: lemon layer cake with lemon curd buttercream and ginger cookies.
We are talking turkey today. I know, not a very typical Spanish dish. But like many others I have been cooking for years, this one had to be on the blog, because even though we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving in Spain, we do celebrate Christmas. And I have been eating turkey for Christmas since middle school. Seriously!
This post could be a continuation of my last one, as I am still trying out recipes for side dishes for Thanksgiving. So I will not expand too much, as you can refer to my last post to find out a bit more about how our family spends Thanksgiving.
With this recipe, I think I got another winner! This one, in fact, (more…)
I call the recipe I’m sharing today coliflor fritita con ajos, by its Spanish name, and would translate it as garlicky sautéed cauliflower. It feels like such a Spanish dish that it almost feels wrong to translate it.
Thanksgiving, also known as turkey day, is fast approaching. This year it is even more special than before, because my two college sons will be home. We haven’t been together as a family since August! They will be home for only a few days, I know, but at this stage of our family life, it will be great, and we’ll take what we can get.
Flan, or flan caramel, is one of those desserts I, and everyone my age, grew up with. Actually, it could be the dessert we grew up with. Every mom, every household, would make it, with just slight variations in the recipe. And not only at home, but every restaurant menu would have it, together with peach or pineapple “en almíbar”, in syrup, and different flavors of ice cream, most often chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. When I say this, I don’t mean that flan is an “old” dessert, made long ago, and that has been replaced by others in the 21st-century. Not at all! In fact, flan is a classic that never goes out of style, and shares restaurant menus with many other newer, fancy desserts.
A few months ago, I posted a recipe for oxtail, a traditional Spanish dish (you can click here to check it out). However, back then I couldn’t find oxtail, but I was set on to making the dish, so I settled with short ribs, and the result was really delicious, a good substitution for sure. But last week, at my regular supermarket, I found them!
