Posted in alcohol, apples, Asturias, braised, chicken, drink, Garlic, healthy, mushrooms, poultry, sauce, Spain, tradition, travel on Jan 17th, 2012
“We may have lost paradise because of the apple, but we’ll get it back with cider.” – Asturian saying “Reach out your arms, as far apart as possible – one high, one low – then just bend your wrist, but do not look!”, instructed the waitress. “Oh, and beginners like you must stand over the […]
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Posted in America, Asturias, beans, cabrales, Chorizo, cocido, fabada, Garlic, history, Meat, morcilla, Olive Oil, paprika, pimenton, pork, saffron, tradition, travel on Mar 11th, 2011
Almost seven years ago I journeyed from Santillana del Mar to Santa Maria de Lebaña via San Vicente de la Barquera. So many saints, so much devotion, that it was little surprise to learn that beyond the monastery of Santo Toribio de Liébana and through the Picos de Europe lies the hallowed ground of Covadonga. […]
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Posted in Argentina, Asturias, chocolate, chops, empanadas, Garlic, lentils, Portuguese, side dish, South America, Spain, travel, Uruguay on Dec 21st, 2010
Those of you who raised your eyebrows at the very idea of lentils mixed with chocolate might be forgiven for thinking that we have lost our tiny minds, that too long around infant children, cooing and a-goo-goo-gooing, has softened our already mushy brains beyond repair. Indeed, had we not gone out on a limb ourselves […]
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Posted in Asturias, blood, boiled, caldo, carrots, Castillano, chick peas, chicken stock, chickpeas, Chorizo, cocido, Madrid, pork, Recipe, Spain on Mar 28th, 2009
Many of European countries have a one-pot dish into which odds and ends of the beast and various cheap vegetables are thrown, and cooked until all components sit fall-apart tender in a rich broth. Examples include Lancashire hot-pot in the UK, the famed French pot-au-feu, and the various cocidos of Spain.
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Posted in Asturias, cheap meal, easy, Europe, fabada, french fries, fried, meal, offal, onions, paprika, parsley, Recipe, Recipes, restaurant, sauce, Spain, thyme, tradition, travel on Apr 18th, 2008
If you are a regular reader of our blog, perhaps you remember this post on my husband’s near-death by gluttony as he ate his way through a giant Asturian meal – fabada. While I had to listen to his groans and watch the thick beads of sweat roll down the side of his head as […]
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Posted in apples, Asturias, cabrales, cheese, easy, eating, food TV, hazelnuts, healthy, herbs, Jose Andres, nuts, Olive Oil, Recipe, Recipes, salad, side dish, Spain, travel, vinaigrette on Apr 12th, 2008
There are some things that just strike you as being astonishingly simple, yet brilliantly devised. For example, the interface of an iPod- the way you use it – is unbelievably clever in its design. One “wheel” and one button, and that’s it. Everyone – even me – can figure it out in about 8 seconds. […]
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Posted in alcohol, alcoholic drink, appetizer, Asturias, beans, beverage, blood, chops, Chorizo, embarrassment, Europe, fabada, Food Commentary, indulgent meal, lunch, Madrid, morcilla, offal, pigs, pork, sausage, Spain, tapas, tourism, tradition, travel, unhealthy on Mar 7th, 2008
“The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom.” – William Blake Have you ever thought, as you sit red-faced, breathing shallowly, “just… one… more… bite”? Have you ever then taken that extra bite and thought to yourself — in your blood-starved brain — “maybe, after all, I could manage another one”? And, finally, […]
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Posted in Asturias, cheap meal, chick peas, chickpeas, Chorizo, culture, easy, Food Commentary, ham, healthy, hearty, kale, meal, Potato, quick meal, Recipe, Recipes, sausage, soup, Spain, tourism, travel on Oct 11th, 2007
Several years ago, on a trip to northern Spain I found myself in the small town of Santillana del Mar in the region of Cantabria on a cold and rainy night. Outside the hotel, a herd of dismal-looking goats shivered together in the lee of a thorn bush as it got dark, and all I […]
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