It is all about the food!

(You've been waiting for it.  Well, here it is: a post written by Bruce!)

It is all about the food!

One of our fun discoveries during our sojourn in Spain was the quality and variety of the food.   We had spent only a brief time in Spain in 2006, but during this current trip, we have had a chance to learn more about the great food traditions of this country.  It helped enormously to have Andrea, our helpful guide to all things Spanish and a fellow foodie, introduce us to Spain's cuisine.  She met us at the airport and whisked us immediately to an open air market for a little nosh of stuffed olives and white wine.   This was followed by more eating at a small tapas place that gave us a real introduction to the variety of food on offer.   We had 4-5 dishes, including egg and potato tortilla, fried squid, chorizo, bean and tomato dip, a cheese plate, and more olives.  All of this at 11 PM, which is customary in Spain but way past my bedtime and at the far end of my tolerance range.

                                          The olive bar at the San Miguel Mercado

                                       Raw oysters on offer at the San Miguel Mercado

Tapas: tender calamari, Manchego cheese, cheese croquettes, chorizo (at top), potato tortilla.

At her apartment, Andrea taught us how to make the lovely egg and potato tortilla, supplied us with some cheese, and provided two bottles of red Spanish wines as a way to continue our lesson in Iberian cuisine.   She also made a lovely paella of fresh seafood and took us to an Argentinian resto late one evening, where we sampled a variety of empanadas – meat or veggie stuffed turnovers – accompanied by wine, of course. 

                                                  Andrea's delicious seafood paella

                                                     Argentinian empanadas

We took a couple of day trips to Toledo and Segovia where Andrea introduced us to marzipan, for which Toledo is famous, and a traditional Segovian pork dish which consisted, essentially, of the back quarter of a baby pig.   It didn’t look or sound that appealing, but it was quite delicious with crispy skin and tender – fall-off-the-bone – meat.  We had several other dishes – roast vegetables tapas and a plate of large butter beans cooked in tomato and garlic – lovely.  While we were with Andrea, we also tried roast bull’s tail, sausages, Serrano ham, and gazpacho.

                                                                   Roast pig leg

                                           Creamy, smooth gazpacho served in a glass

We were duly impressed with the food culture of Spain that seems as robust and varied as we’ve known in France.   This impression was reinforced when we traveled to Barcelona, where the food is different, with more emphasis on seafood.   This is our new favorite city and rivals Paris for its grand boulevards, wide sidewalks, and café culture.   Of course, we were there in June when eating outside was pleasant, and we took full advantage of the situation.  We ate outside at every opportunity, which was easy since it stayed light until 10 P.M. – which is when most people have their evening meal.  It seems strange in the telling but, after a few days in Spain, we adjusted to this schedule.   Usually, we didn’t have breakfast until 9 or 10am, ate our mid-day meal around 2:30pm, and dinner at 10pm – very odd for us New Englanders.

                                                   Coffee at an outdoors cafe

We loved the fresh fruit available in the numerous outdoor markets – especially the apricots and cherries which were just coming into season.   We bought wine, olives, cheese, bread and fruit to supplement our main meals.   We were surprised to find that the Spanish, like the French, have a reverence for good bread, and we were able to buy fresh croissants, rolls, and baguettes at the bakeries located on every block.  We just touched the surface of Spanish food during our stay there, but it a subject that is worth further exploration and sampling.  It seems strange that we should know so little about this cuisine. But we realized that there are few Spanish immigrants to the USA, at least in our area, thus few Spanish restaurants, so that there isn’t the same tradition of familiarity that we have with foods from other countries.   We’ll have to experiment more with Spanish food with our cooking group when we return.

                                  Barcelona mangoes, oranges, watermelon, and cherries

                                                Bare Barcelona bunny bottoms!