Tapas - Now with Extra Mojo!

Last weekend was the first fireworks of the season in Heidelberg. Every year, they "light" the castle 3 times symbolizing the 3 times the French tried to burn it down. I've been out in the crowds to watch the fireworks a few times - a highly social event for people who live here; an excuse to meet friends, go outside & enjoy the weather.

This year, I thought it would be great to have people over, feed them, watch the fireworks & drink wine. Good idea, but what do I feed them? My failsafe crowd-pleaser - Tapas! Everyone loves fingerfood, it's not more work that a sit-down meal, it goes on for hours & can be interrupted to go outside.

It just so happens that there is a tapas contest going on this month. It is hosted by Tony Tahhan at Olive Juice. Every month, he picks a Mediterranean country to focus on & has a contest based on a dish from that nation. This month happens to be Tapas month. I took my cue from Núria at Spanish Recipes & made a few treats. Here's what I could prepare before guests came:
Clockwise from the top left: Tortilla Espanola, Aioli, Oeufs de Caille avec Tapenade & Câpre, Mojo Verde.

Tortilla Espanola (Spanish Omelet)
Sautee 1 chopped onion, slice 4 small potatoes & parboil them. Mix 4 eggs (use an extra white, if you have one), add onion, potatoes, salt & cook in frying pan, flipping it over when it looks solid-ish.

Aioli (Garlicy-lemony-Mayonaise)
In a boil, beat 1 egg yolk with 1 tsp dijon mustard. Slowly add 1 c olive oil. Add 2 minced garlic cloves & 2 Tbsp lemon juice.

Oeufs de Caille avec Tapenade & Câpre (Quail eggs with olive paste & capers)
Boil quail eggs (this takes 5 minutes in boiling water). Allow to cool. Shell eggs (easiest if you crack them & then peel them under water). Slice, top with a bit of tapenade (olive paste), and 1 little caper on top. Note: I don't actually speak Spanish, so I have no idea what this would be called in Spanish :-(

Mojo Verde
Take 2 green peppers (seeded & chopped), 1/2 bunch parsley, 2 tsp olive oil, 1 tsp lemon juice, dash of cumin, salt & pepper & mix in a blender. Squeeze out excess water. Also good on grilled meats. Also good for entertaining people who have also seen Austin Powers. We all giggled at the name of this sauce from the Canary Islands.

People started to show up & I had to get out the warm tapas. I already had all of the cold stuff on the table, plus the following:

• olives
• Jamon Iberico (my leg)
• cured pork sausage
• 3 different kinds of cheese (Manchego, a Spanish ewe milk cheese with rosemary & P'tit Basque)
• bread
• cherry tomatoes
• Plantain fritters a friend had brought over

I made the following warm tapas, (clockwise from top left): Gambas a la Plancha, Patatas Bravas & Albóndiga con Tomate. The whole time, we were all in my kitchen talking, eating & drinking wine.

Gambas a la Plancha (Beach Shrimp)
Do not shell shrimp. Sautee in olive oil. Add garlic near the end. Add parsley. Grind sea salt over top & serve.

Patatas Bravas (Spicy Potatoes)
Parboil 500g of potatoes, cut into cubes. Fry them in olive oil (sautee, if you are afraid of oil excess, like me).
In a saucepan, sautee 1 chopped onion & 1 clove of garlic. Add 1 can of diced tomatoes. Add 1/4 tsp paprika, dash ground chilies, dash cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, turn heat down & allow to simmer until it looks kinda solid-ish (25 minutes). Add 1 Tbsp aoili & serve over fried potatoes

Albóndigas con Tomate (Meatballs with Tomato)
Take 250g of ground beef, add 1/4 c breadcrumbs, 1 Tbsp tomato paste, 1/2 chopped onion (very fine!), 2 cloves minced garlic, 1/2 tsp thyme, 1 egg, 2 Tbsp grated cheese (Manchego, or I used pecorino). Form into balls, brown in a frying pan. Add 1 can diced tomatoes, salt, sprig of rosemary & 2 bay leaves (both chopped), 1/4 c red wine & allow to simmer until sauce is thick enough to your liking.

We heard the first fireworks as I was getting the Gambas ready, so we went outside. This is what we saw:
A spectacular view - I was so happy that the weather was nice (it rained all morning). We could see (from left) the castle, the people on the bridge watching, the fireworks in the valley, and, well, I could see my friends! :-)

We went inside & another friend brought a desert: Strawberry flan! A simple biscuit topped with a bit of custard, fresh strawberries, sliced bananas & then a glaze. As the night progressed, one friend got creative. I told him about the blog contest & as he made himself little canapes, he wrote them down, judged them himself & took photos. At the bottom of the picture is Creation #2.

Creation #2 is: bread, manchego, jamon iberico, 1 tomato, salt & pepper, aioli & 1/2 an olive. At 3am, it was pretty good, I have to say. I thought I was making all the good food that night, but I got a lot of help from my friends, keeping me company, helping to inspire me & being just generally fantastic. I guess that's why I keep them around!

Ham

Yesterday was kind of a sucky day. I'm not really sure what it was, but I was on the verge of tears all afternoon. I did what any rational human being with a deadline in 10 days for a project that's not going well would do: I went home early. I used the time well: I went to buy groceries. Balancing everything in my arms, I checked the mail. What's this?

It's from Spain. Why, it's my ham, of course!

A few weeks ago, I entered an omelet contest. Núria from Spanish Recipes held a contest on eggs. I entered my Weekend Fritatta. When I saw this post, I knew I had to enter. I'm a huge fan of the fritatta on the weekend, and I think that Jamon Iberico, the prize, is really what tipped me over the edge to being a foodie.

Let me explain. I convinced a dear friend to visit another dear friend in Barcelona with me. The 2 of them had never met before. I coaxed the one with promises of good sandwiches. The city has so much to offer other than sandwiches, this is just the first thing I thought of. Well, as it would turn out, we didn't really find mind-blowing sandwiches until we got to the airport. After a huge line in check-in, we ran downstairs to our gate, passing by the Pans & Co. (a chain of sandwich shops) along the way. There was a small bar at the gate, as well as the bus, waiting for us, to take us to the plane. Well, I didn't know when I'd be back in Barcelona, so here goes, I'm willing to risk my return flight for a ham sandwich. I anxiously waited my turn to buy the sandwiches - the bartender must have thought that I really needed to pee! He wrapped them up, I grabbed my bag & we ran to the bus. (The bus then continued to wait for other people, so I ran out & got some coke from the vending machine... if I had only known...)

The sandwiches were amazing & we were both happy. But I somehow knew that it wasn't as convincing as it could have been. So, when Christmas rolled around, I bought the friend an entire leg of ham, complete with a ham holder & a knife. I also planned a Christmas brunch of tapas with a Latin American friend and we made patatas bravas. It was good, we ate, drank, were merry. The ham was the centerpiece on the table for a few months, entertaining all kinds of guests with it's appearance & it's taste. A few months ago, I ordered a new ham. Again, a jamon iberico.

You may have had Spanish ham already. You may be familiar with the term Jamon Serrano. Serrano is OK - I think it's better, more flavourful than Parma ham, but that's just personal preference. Jamon Iberico, on the other hand, is better than Jamon Serrrano. There are a few reasons for this:

1. Jamon Iberico is from a certain kind of pig (an Iberian pig!) and can be identified by it's black foot. It is also called "Pata Negra" - black foot. Jamon Iberico must come from pigs that are 75% Pata Negra
2. There are different grades of jamon iberico but the best quality is the Extra Belotta, which means, extra acorns. The pigs double their body weight in the last few months of their lives as the forage acorns in the forest
3. Because the ham is from pigs that have gotten fat on acorns, the fat is mainly oleic acid, which lowers bad cholesterol & increases good cholesterol
   
4. Jamon Iberico is cured much longer than Jamon Serrano. Serrano is cured for 8-10 months, Jamon Iberico for 12 - 36 months
   

This is what awaited me in the package from Núria:

I love the postcard of Barcelona! Reminded me of being in the park last summer! The postcard had instructions on how to eat the ham (at room temperature) and if I am not going to eat it right away, I should store it in the fridge.

The thing that excited me most about the thinly, professionally sliced ham however, was the sight of the white crystals, highlighted in this photo:

These are thyroxine, small white crystals that you get in aged meats & cheeses. I refer to them as flavour crystals, because, even though they are tasteless, they are indicators of products that have been well aged. They are perfectly safe to eat.

A while ago, I posted about the leg of ham on my kitchen table. I have ham. I do not need more ham. But, I know of many people who are not able to come to my apartment to eat my ham. It is these people who will be eating my package of ham , and I am looking forward to sharing this wonderful product with them. Thanks again, Núria!

If I can't speak Spanish...

...then at least I can try my hand at Spanish cuisine. I was watching TV the other day, a show called Cuisines des Terroirs, where they show a family in a small village in Europe; how they live and what they eat. Recently, a Catalonian family was showcased, and the grandmother made Arroz a la Catalana, a dish simmilar to paella but with no saffron or seafood.

Strangely enough, I have never had a good paella in Spain. There is so much other food to savour and most of the paellas in the main areas are frozen. So why not just make a regular "Arroz con whatever"? Well, because I needed a better grain than white rice. I found some quinoa in the kitchen and made a Quinoa con Pollo y Gambas. (This is about as much Spanish as I speak - enough to get through a menu). The phone rang, and the normal Sunday chats with the family followed. My Quinoa simmered away nicely. I wanted to take photos but hunger prevailed and now there are mere leftovers in the fridge.


Quinoa con Pollo y Gambas

2/3 cup washed quinoa
2 chicken breasts, cubed
2 cloves of garlic
1 Tbsp Ghee (clarified butter)
1/2 red pepper, diced
1 1/3 cup hot water
1 pinch saffron
8 large shrimp, cleaned

Sautee garlic in ghee, brown chicken, add quinoa and let toast lightly. In the meantime, add saffron to the water & let steep. Add the saffron water to the quinoa. Let this soak. Reduce heat, stir occasionally, talk with family on the phone. Add red pepper & shrimp, remove from heat & continue speaking to family. While conferencing with parents & siblings, allow shrimp to cook in risidual heat.

I'm having those leftovers tonight.