Here we go another recipe you should try , don’ be scared.

You will need

·  ¾ Kg. of calamares

·  ½ Kg. flour

·  1 l.  olive oil

·  salt

I suggest you  buy calamari that are already clean but you can opt to go all out in that case you will need to remove the head and tentacles, the ink bag and the external skin from the calamari (not much fun). Rinse them under cold water and cut in rings. Salt them and coat with the flour, shaking off any excess flour. Fry in very hot abundant olive oil until they start to brown. Put them in a plate with a paper towel and let the oil get absorbs. Serve Hot..

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One of my favorite summer recepies is Gazpacho. Not only is it refreshing it is good for you. See if you can whip up a batch yourself.

You will need:

• 4 or 5 large ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 1 serrano pepper, minced
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 lemon cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and diced
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 ripe but slightly firm avocado, peeled and diced
• 4 cups light beef stock or chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons medium-acid red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsely
• 4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• kosher salt and black pepper in a mill
• 1/2 cup best-quality extra-virgin olive oil

Combine all of the vegetables in a large bowl. Add the stock, lemon juice and vinegar and stir very briefly. Stir in the fresh herbs and season with salt and pepper to taste. Chill the soup for at least one hour before serving. Remove from the refrigerator, stir, let rest for 15 minutes and then pour the olive oil over the soup and serve.

Serves 4—6

recipe at globalgourmet

picture of gazpacho and tomato

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Ok, so I´m on a roll this week talking about the upcoming summer. You can tell I have had enough of the cold unreliable weather and need to relax in the sun and enjoy the warmth of this season. In Spain the change of seasons also brings a change of types of drinks we like to drink.

In the winter months a nice glass of red wine is preferred but in summer time this is cooled down by adding a drink to the red wine called gaseosa (almost like bubbly water), making it a refreshing great tasting drink. Gaseosa is also added to beer a drink they call “clara”, again giving beer a lighter touch. Another favorite summer drink is of course sangria.

The Spaniards love to be outside and enjoy the great weather and with a cool drink at hand what else do you really need.

more information enforex

photo google photos

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2 or 3 potatoes

Oil to fry

3 medium full-grown tomatoes

1 tsp. of spicy ground red pepper

Vinegar

1 tsp. of flour

Salt

Peel the potatoes and cut them into small pieces, then fry, on a low heat.

Once cooked, drain the potatoes.

Make the tomato sauce: Add a spoon of oil to the pan and then fry the deseeded and peeled tomatoes, smashing it. When cooked, add a few drops of vinegar, a teaspoon of flour and another teaspoon of spicy ground pepper and stir well to mix everything. Season and pour over the potatoes.

via arrakis

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We are all used to separate wine menus and even desert menus in restaurants but how about adding an olive oil menu? There are so many different types of olive oils depending on how they are elaborated. Each gives a specific taste to certain foods and we need to be oil connoisseurs to figure out which is which. I think this is a curious idea and who knows, maybe the next time you come visit Spain you will need to read up on different types of oils to be able to order properly in a restaurant.

Here are a couple of wesites that help you start to understand all the differences:

spanish gourmet

sheknows

hormel

source directoalpaladar

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Here you go, another Spanish recepie for you to enjoy. I know, I know I have been giving you hard ones, but I have confidence in all of you and I know you can do it.

100g Serrano Ham
75g plain flour
75ml extra virgin olive oil
1 litre milk
Salt
Nutmeg (optional)
2 eggs
Breadcrumbs
Olive oil (for frying)

How to cook:

• Chop the ham into small pieces

• Warm the milk

• In a frying pan, but not on the heat, mix the flour with the oil and very slowly add the warm milk stirring all the time.

• Place the pan over a medium heat and add the ham, a pinch of salt and a pinch of nutmeg. Keep stirring until the mixture thickens and begins to come away from the edges of the pan.

• Transfer the mixture into a square dish and leave to cool.

• When the mixture is cool, cut into equal sized pieces.

• Mould the pieces into oval shapes and dip each piece into the beaten eggs and then roll in the breadcrumbs.

• Heat the olive oil in a pan (you need enough oil to cover the croquettes) and fry until golden brown.

source orceserranohams

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This is the classic flan, which is as light and delicious as it is timeless. This basic flan recipe is also used to make flans of different flavors by substituting another liquid for part or all of the milk. For example, the best sweet oranges in Spain come from Valencia and Murcia, and an orange flan, made from freshly squeezed juice, is popular there.

Because flan takes a while to cool, it is usually prepared early in the morning or on the previous evening. When making it for a large group, it’s practical to prepare a single large flan in a 5 by 9-inch mold and slice it for serving, rather than use individual cups. This recipe works well in the large mold and will bake in about the same amount of time.

• Makes 12 servings
• Difficulty: intermediate

Ingredients

For the flan:

• 4 cups whole milk
• 2 strips lemon zest
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 5 whole eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 cup granulated sugar

For the caramelized sugar coating:

• 1/2 cup sugar

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 300ºF.

To prepare the caramelized sugar coating, spread the sugar evenly in the bottom of a heavy saucepan and place over medium-low heat. It may take several minutes before the sugar begins to melt. Without stirring, watch the sugar closely as it begins to liquefy at the edges. All of it will slowly turn first into a yellowish and then golden syrup and finally into a brown caramel sauce.

When the liquefied sugar is turning from golden to brown, immediately remove the saucepan from the heat. (If you miss this point, the sugar will quickly turn too dark and taste bitter and you will need to discard it and begin again.)

Working swiftly, pour the liquid caramel into 12 custard cups each 3 1/2 inches in diameter and tilt to cover the bottom and sides evenly. It is important to do this transfer quickly, as the change in temperature causes the caramel to solidify rapidly. Set aside.

In a saucepan, combine the milk, lemon zest, and cinnamon stick over high heat and bring to a boil. Immediately decrease the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes to infuse the milk with the flavor of the seasonings. Remove from the heat and let cool.

In a bowl, combine the whole eggs, egg yolks, and granulated sugar and whisk until foamy. Pour the cooled milk through a fine-mesh sieve held over the egg mixture and whisk until well blended. Pour the mixture into the coated custard cups.

Arrange the custard cups, not touching, in a large, deep baking pan or roasting pan. Pull out the oven rack, put the baking pan on it, and pour boiling water to a depth of about 1 inch into the pan to create a water bath. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until set when tested with a thin-bladed knife in the center. Carefully remove the water bath from the oven, and then carefully remove the custards from the water bath and set aside to cool completely.

You can cover and refrigerate the cooled custards and serve them cold, or you can serve them at room temperature. One at a time, run the knife around the inside of each cup to loosen the edges of the custard and then invert the flan onto a dessert plate.

source spainrecipes

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What an honor for the second year in a row the restaurant El Bulli who is headed by chef Ferran Adrià located near the community of the Rosas. This is the third time this restaurant has receive this honor which is given by the prestigious magazine Restaurant. There is a total of 50 restaurants in the San Pellegrino list in which 5 are Spanish restaurants.

This makes Spain the fourth country with the highest number of restaurants of haute cuisine in the world, France being first on the list. El Bulli head this great list and you can see why. This beautiful place touches all your senses which is why I think it has won the hears of the judges year after year.

source eldigitalcastillamancha

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Ok, so all I do is talk about food lately, It´s either that time of day or the aromas that enter my space as I write that inspire me to not only write about food but also enjoy it. Although, I´m very sad to say I´m no chef, not even a cook really, ok, fine I could barely boil water.. there! nevertheless, I love to eat, and eat well.

A friend suggested I take up a cooking class, so I could at least make an attempt to satisfy my culinary taste. I´m not really sure about that yet, but it got me thinking that anyone can take a cooking class while here is Spain, what a better way to take back home the taste of this country.

There are several companies such as cellartours and the international kitchen that actually offer cooking classes tours, incredible. So, if you are a little bit more adventurous than me in this category, go for it and let me know how it turns out.

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Cheese and Wine what else do we really need? Really, I would be content just sipping a nice glass of wine while tasting all the different kinds of cheesses there are out there and Spain happens to be one of the best countries to find the perfect cheese.

Well last week the International Gourmet Club met and celebrated the V Gormet Cheese Contest in which there were 410 entries which ranged from farm, industrial and artesean. You can see all the results in directoalpaladar so you can start tasting these delicious treats one by one.

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