Posted in Garlic, Olive Oil, Potato, Spain, brandy, castille, chicken, cognac, crispy, fried, herbs, sauce, tapas on Mar 13th, 2010
“Eat no garlic nor onions, lest they find out thy boorish origin by the smell…”
-Don Quixote to Sancho Panza, Chapter XLIII,
Don Quixote de la Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Sitting around the table last night with gusts of strong breath coloring our domestic atmosphere, Amy and I were considering the profound effect garlic has on [...]
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Posted in Chorizo, Christmas, Food Commentary, Madrid, Olive Oil, Spain, bread, breakfast, castille, cheese, egg, ham, holiday, holidays, iberico, jamon, salami, sausage, tomato, tortilla, tourism, travel, weight on Dec 17th, 2008
It’s nearly a year now since we were in Madrid, and while during that time we’ve managed to shed some of the excess poundage we gained there, we’ve lost none of our longing to be back there. And, it’s a strange thing about longing that all your memories become more vivid, and you remember even [...]
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Posted in Castillano, Europe, Fino, Rachel Ray, Recipe, Recipes, Spain, blogging, castille, chicken, chicken stock, easy, hazelnuts, nuts, poultry, rant, saffron, tradition, wine on May 17th, 2008
Usually if I’m trying to make an authentic dish, I always try to make it just that – authentic. That means that I want to use traditional ingredients and I attempt to research the many traditional ways to make that specific dish. I then decide how to combine the best bits from all [...]
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Posted in Castillano, Madrid, Spain, acorns, castille, delicacy, ham, healthy, history, holiday, iberico, important details, jamon, language, pigs, pork, racione, serrano, tapas, tourism, tradition, travel on Feb 5th, 2008
Penelope Cruz’s “break-out” film was a lusty, comedic tale called Jamon, Jamon in which one of her suitors tells her that her breasts taste like serrano ham. Throughout the film (in which Cruz frequently appears partially clothed) there are many shots of legs of jamon serrano and iberico hanging in store windows, and the film [...]
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Posted in Castillano, Europe, Madrid, Spain, alcohol, alcoholic drink, beverage, castille, culture, drink, entertainment, holiday, tapas, tourism, tradition, travel, vermouth, vermut on Jan 17th, 2008
As regular readers will know, we recently visited Madrid and gorged ourselves at its myriad restaurants, tascas, bars and any other hostelry we could find. Because of this excessive consumption, we’re currently going through what can only be described as a traumatic process of catharsis, in which we’re avoiding all meat and all booze for [...]
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