Mushrooms with leeks and peas, Mama Ía blog

January 28, 2021

Mushrooms with leeks and peas—healthy habits and a 2021 wish

Natacha Sanz Caballero Vegetables champiñones, cocina española, healthy habits. Marrakech, setas, Spanish cuisine, travel, vegetarian, verduras

We are starting out the year right, with lots of vegetables and lighter meals. Today’s recipe, mushrooms with leeks and peas, is so satisfying it will not leave you craving any animal protein.

Tiger nuts fields in Alboraya, Mama ía blog

Valencia, the city of orange trees

I don’t consider we over ate during the holiday season. Sure, I’ll admit we indulged in more sweets and Christmas treats. However, the extra sweets we had, when combined with (more…)

August 21, 2020

Cucumber Gazpacho —and a trip to Assisi

Natacha Sanz Caballero Soups and Stews, Vegetables, Events & Travel Asís, Assisi, cocina española, cold soup, gazpacho de pepino, green vegetables, sopa fría, Spanish cuisine, summer recipe, vegan, vegetarian

We’re starting to see the fruits of our efforts, and with a bounty of vegetables from our garden, I‘ll be posting more recipes that use them. This post brings you a wonderful gazpacho that could be rightly called green gazpacho, a cucumber gazpacho that includes not only cucumber but also avocado and some other fruits of our garden: green pepper, jalapeño, basil and parsley. You see? A green gazpacho!

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Tortilla paisana, peasants omelet, Mama ía blog

March 1, 2020

Tortilla Paisana, Peasants Omelet —and the colors of Marrakech

Natacha Sanz Caballero Eggs, Tapas, Events & Travel brunch, cocina española, eggs, Marrakech, Morocco, Spanish cuisine

Have you tried tortilla paisana, peasants omelet? A very Spanish omelet, for some it’s a more tasty one than Spanish omelet. But that’s not the reason why I chose it for today’s post. I chose it for its color. Because this post is about color. The colors of Morocco. The colors of Marrakech that caused fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent to fall in love with the city and move there.

Tortilla paisana, peasants omelet, incorporates a wide variety of vegetables, almost any you can think of. The most traditional ones, the ones you find in this omelet most often in (more…)

February 4, 2020

Braised Chicken with Prunes, January (or February) is for Comfort Food

Natacha Sanz Caballero Meat and Poultry ciruelas, cocina de invierno, cocina española, comfort food, guisado de pollo, January, pollo, pollo con ciruelas

A very early flight for the last of my adult sons return to college marked the end of the holiday season and the return to the routine. And routine, for me, means familiar dishes, comfort food. Braised chicken with prunes is a dish that brings me back to the normal, to the every day, with the familiarity and reassurance of what is known and expected.

The last weeks of the year were some of nonstop cooking, with relatives and friends coming and going, not to mention my two sons back home for the season. I made fancy dishes and (more…)

January 15, 2019

Octopus with Potatoes, the Unexpected Guest at our Christmas Table

Natacha Sanz Caballero Vegetables, Fish, Tapas cocina española, mediterranean diet, Navidad, pulpo, seafood, Spanish cuisine

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?

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