All Mexico Info Group Oracle
Would you like to react to this message? Create an account in a few clicks or log in to continue.
All Mexico Info Group Oracle

Information, discussions, attractions, and activities in México with a focus on Michoacán, El Alma de México.
 
HomeHome  PreviewPreview  Latest imagesLatest images  SearchSearch  RegisterRegister  Log in  

 

 Spanish Tapas

Go down 
AuthorMessage
raqueteer
Amigo
raqueteer


Posts : 240
Join date : 2011-07-12

Spanish Tapas Empty
20111022
PostSpanish Tapas

Spanish Tapas Tapas2011

There's always a dilemma with having guests for cocktails. Usually one starts with cocktails, and a few nibbles. Doing a major dinner party may not be in the cards, either because of household disruptions, or back problems, or just because you don't feel like it. Then comes the what do we do now bit, go out for dinner? What if you just don't really want to, or the local restaurants aren't up to snuff?

Here's a solution. A good sized selection of Spanish Tapas, enough for everyone, and you are full enough that dinner out is not going to be necessary. Everything is do ahead, so no mess before or after.

A reasonable selection: Aioli sauce for dipping.
Seafood and new potatoes for dipping into the aioli.
Spanish Albondigas (meatballs) in spicy tomato sauce
Baguettes or Bolillos for aioli or mopping up the spicy sauce.
Russian Salad.
Spanish Tortilla. Omelette with an attitude.
Deviled eggs
Small empanadas

Back to top Go down
Share this post on: reddit

Spanish Tapas :: Comments

Peter
Re: Spanish Tapas
Post Sat 22 Oct 2011, 19:02 by Peter
Nice spread. It's reminding me it is about time for cena. Tere's burger stand is open tonight so that is where I go for my evening chow on the weekends. Wish your place was close by.
raqueteer
Re: Spanish Tapas
Post Sun 23 Oct 2011, 07:56 by raqueteer
Thanks Pete, and also thanks for putting up the photo.

There were a couple of additional benefits. We did the meatballs and empanadas the night before, and had extra meat which we used for tacos. One dinner down. Then made the Russian salad, which we also used for lunch the next day. Friday evening four of us didn't finish everything, so we had leftover potatoes and bolillos fried with eggs and bacon for a Brit breakfast. Another 2 meals done. Saturday, the leftover meatballs after some adjustment to the sauce made for excellent meatball subs. Can't beat that for easy in the kitchen. It's definitely going to become a regular on our list.

Cheers
Hound Dog
Re: Spanish Tapas
Post Sun 23 Oct 2011, 13:05 by Hound Dog
Ah, raqueteer. After seeing Pete´s photo of what I thought was your kitchen table with the tapas all laid out there, I was thinking of stopping off at your place for tapas on our way back to Lake Chapala from Chiapas next week. Oh well, some other time.

You brought back great memories for Dawg who first visited Spain in 1966, a time when Spanish restaurant food was, shall we say, uneven and Franco´s secret police goons still patrolled the trains, buses and streets.

Dawg pretty much lived on tapas in the myriad tapas bars I visited from Barcelona to Jerez and other points south. My favorites were, of course, the famous Spanish tortilla redolent of fruity Spanish olive oil, those great Spanish style white anchovies (boquerones) marinated in olive oil and vinegar, incredibly garlicky gambas al ajillo, small portions of Spanish Chorizo with bread and other such great treats enjoyed while sipping on small glasses of mediocre red wine and surrounded by local men holding discourse at volumes that would scare a moose. I don´t think I have been to a country where guys talked that loud to each other with the volume increasing with the amount of wine consumed but it was still fun.

Speaking of Spanish Chorizo, my first introduction to Spain back in the 60s came when I was on the train from the French border to Barcelona. I was in a compartment with a big Spanish family who broke out the chorizo sausages, a knife and a loaf of bread and started making themselves lunch and, of course, this having been Spain, they offered me a chorizo sandwich as well as it would have been beyond rude in their culture to chow down without offering the stranger in the compartment some food as well. Well, Dawg flipped. A simple sandwich of chorizo and bread and I fell immediately in love with Spanish Chorizo, as opposed to Mexican Chorizo as I found out years later, and I have loved it ever since.

In those days I spoke not even one word of Spanish but I was so touched by their seemiing generosity - and keep in mind that in those days when the kid was fresh out of South Alabama and then not at all well traveled - I was not used to witnessing this kind of community spirit offered stangers on a train so I began conversing with them even though neither they nor I had any idea what was being said by the other. We had all had a little vino tinto with the chorizo and things were becoming convivial so, loose lips here said something they could not possibly have understood except for my use of the word "Franco" in the midst of a sentence at which utterance, the patriarch of the family invited me into the aisle outside of the compartment and, in a kindly but firm manner, instructed me in a whisper that I should never, ever mention the name of Franco again no matter if the rest of my sentence was gibberish as his secret police were everywhere and any compartment could be bugged.

Unpleasant politics but a really good chorizo sandwich so, having no desire to spend time in a Spanish re-education camp sponsored by Franco, Dawg got the message.


Last edited by Hound Dog on Sun 23 Oct 2011, 19:29; edited 1 time in total
raqueteer
Re: Spanish Tapas
Post Sun 23 Oct 2011, 14:31 by raqueteer
Dawg, you and your bride are welcome any time around here. Tapas, you're on. Just let us know when you get back.

My D.H. lived in Spain in 1972 and loves to cook Spanish food. He does a great Paella, which will only improve thanks to our new, pretty spectacular fish store. He was also there in 64, and 68, since it's a great holiday destination for Brits. Mallorca and Ibiza were his favorites. In 71 he visited Calpé on the Costa Blanca, and later moved there for a business venture. In those days the Guardier Seville were everywhere, let's just say he had enormous respect for them. Hope I spelled all that correctly, I'm a bit under the weather today thanks to our dog, who asked to go out at 2 a.m., then found some dirty water to drink. Have no idea, why, however I spent much of the rest of the night considering various parasitic infections as a possible outcome, and worrying myself sick. She on the other hand is just fine, but knows that right now she is public enemy number one in my book.

The tapas photo was taken at our place, but on the terrazza. Since I have no idea of how to embed a photo, I sent it to Pete and he did it for me.

Speaking of Spanish wine, we both went there a few years back, and some wine had to be sent back, undrinkable. However Cava was about 3 bucks a bottle (Freixnet) so it was no hardship at all. During that trip we went all the way up the East coast after visiting Andalusia for a week, and ended up in Barcelona on Las Ramblas. There we discovered the most amazing tapas bar either of us had ever seen. There were literally hundreds of selections. Communication was a bit rocky because the waiters only spoke Catalun. The menu was also in Catalun, however after a lot of finger pointing and gesturing, we had a wonderful and very memorable dinner.

Nos vemos pronto, and drive carefully.

Hound Dog
Re: Spanish Tapas
Post Sun 23 Oct 2011, 21:23 by Hound Dog
Well, damn, raqueteer, you got Dawg so excited about those tapas, I convinced Dawgette, the consummate omelette maker from having lived on them while oystering as a girl at Arcachon Bay on the Atlantic Coast of France, to make us a Spanish tortilla tonight with eggs, potatoes and white onions from the indigenous market and Spanish extra virgin olive oil from an Italian deli in San Cristóbal and I also picked up some outstanding Serrano Ham from Sam´s to be served with slightly toasted artisanal bread from a local French baker grated with garlic cloves and brushed with a bit of that olive oil and that was a fine meal. To add fun to this experience, we had some very good Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon served in those little tapas bar glasses so beloved of us ex-tapas bar inebriates and the combination took me back to Andalucia but then I was pleased to recover and realize Chiapas is better or the Spanish would not have sailed to the coast, walked up that formidable hill and settled this place in 1528 so what do you want?

We don´t know yet when we´ll be back but it should be fairly soon and we´ll keep in touch.

raqueteer
Re: Spanish Tapas
Post Mon 24 Oct 2011, 12:46 by raqueteer
Good, we´ll pick up some Spanish olive oil at Superlake just for you. Also noted is the Chilean wine, Cabernet Sauvignon, which we happen to have on hand, Las Moras. We has Argentinian on Friday.

Of course Mexico is better, except for the super market which we went to in Spain and saw a much lower price than one pays here for Corona. Not that we drink it, but it was interesting. As for Chiapas, it's the most beautiful state of all IMHO.
Peter
Re: Spanish Tapas
Post Sun 12 Aug 2012, 04:00 by Peter
bump
Re: Spanish Tapas
Post  by Sponsored content
 

Spanish Tapas

Back to top 

Page 1 of 1

 Similar topics

-
» Spanish Accents
» I Found a Good Script for our Spanish Classes

Permissions in this forum:You cannot reply to topics in this forum
All Mexico Info Group Oracle :: Public Forum/Informational Topics :: La Comida-
Jump to: