Sunday, September 20, 2009

Regional Recipes: Spain!

I remember reading a few years ago that Spain was the new France in terms of culinary prowess. Then Anthony Bourdain visited Spain and said it was “the very best place in the world to eat.” Well shoot, then it must be true!


I, for one, am in love with Spanish cuisine. I’ve always found the flavors are big, bold and so satisfying. The submissions for this month’s Regional Recipes are excellent examples. So let’s get to it!



Pimentos RelleƱos submitted by The Creative Pot. It’s Spanish stuffed peppers filled with brown rice, almonds, raisins and herbs and spices. A healthy and delicious alternative to peppers stuffed with minced meat.





Flamenco Eggs also submitted by The Creative Pot. A casserole made with chorizo, peppers, onions, tomatoes and eggs. Sounds like perfect brunch fare to me!





Patatas Bravas submitted by forkbootsandapalette. Potatoes in a spicy tomato sauce. Traditionally served as a tapa, it’s hearty enough to be a filling meal.





Chickpeas Romesco submitted by Eats Well with Others. Chickpeas in a flavorful sauce made of tomatoes, peppers, vinegar and nuts. And it’s vegan too!





Fingerling potatoes with Allioli submitted by Kits Chow. Can’t go wrong with the simplicity of delicious fingerlings and a creamy, garlicky dipping sauce.





Sangria with White Wine submitted by Wandering Chopsticks. There’s no fuss with this easy and refreshing sangria. Use your favorite white wine and whatever fruit you have on hand.





Philippine Beef Salpicao submitted by [eatingclub]vancouver. Yes, it’s from the Philippines, but they’ve suggested a Spanish version, substituting a combination of hot and sweet smoked paprika for Hungarian paprika.




Grilled vegetables with Garlic Sauce submitted by Erbe in Cucina. Don’t have a grill, you say? No problem, if you’ve got a broiler. Then serve the vegetables with garlic sauce!





Tomato soup seasoned with smoked paprika, crispy Serrano ham and manchego submitted by Blazing Hot Wok (that’s me!). The secret to tomato soup with big, bold flavor? Smoked paprika! The Spanish swear by it and I agree.






Thanks to all the bloggers who submitted! It’s awesome to get such a wide variety of dishes.


For the next region, we’re heading to Scandinavia! Home of pickled herring, Ikea and Alexander Skarsgaard! Just to clarify, we’re talking Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland. I’m anxious to see what you all come up with. The host will be Eats Well with Others. Please send submissions (with a photo) to jhbruno87(at)gmail(dot)com by 11:59 on Oct. 15th. The round-up should be up around the 20th. Please note that late entries are accepted at the discretion of the host.

8 comments:

Marisa said...

Thanks for great roundup Darlene! Looking forward to the Scandinavian one - I'll have to go research recipes for that as I am clueless regarding the cuisine. Should be interesting though. I love learning about foreign dishes.

Guindilla said...

Damn... I think I'm late... well, whatever, here are a few more, for the record:
Hen in pepitoria:
http://www.guindilla.eu/blog/2009/01/15/hen-in-pepitoria/

Oxtail stew:
http://www.guindilla.eu/blog/2007/04/15/spanish-style-oxtail-stew/

Black rice:
http://www.guindilla.eu/blog/2008/01/29/black-rice-or-arroz-negro/

I came back to Spain recently, so I am discovering my country's gastronomy again. While I'm in love with Asian food, I can only agree with your friend, Spain is a hell of a place to eat! Wonderful material and incredible restaurants :-)

Thanks for your site, is great btw!

MommaMari said...

Those look delicious! Dominican cuisine has roots heavily infused in Spanish cuisine and I agree with your assessment of bold flavors.

dp said...

The Woman, my pleasure! It was great to see such a nice selection of entries. I'm hoping the same for Scandinavia.

Guindilla, thank you for the links. I will investigate them more thoroughly, especially the oxtail stew.

Marielle, my college roommate is from the Dominican. Unfortunately in college we didn't do too much cooking and I have yet to find a Dominican restaurant ever! I think this may be a region we explore in the near future.

Paula said...

What a great round up! Those stuffed peppers sound great with the almonds and raisins. Of course, I'd love the egg dish. Those fingerling potatoes sound amazing. Oh geez, I like all the submissions! I'm looking forward to seeing what yummies fall into the Scandanavian catagory!

Manggy said...

Hey, is this the longest roundup for RR so far? I love it! Definitely Spanish food is a big part of my Filipino heritage, so maybe we inherited some of that culinary mojo ;) (of course we did!)

Zupan's Markets said...

Wow! Bravo to all the contributors and Blazing Hot Wok. This is a fantastic array of ideas for Spanish-themed cuisine. Great inspiration for a dinner party or maybe just dinner tonight--we're not sure we can wait that long to try some of these!

The Food Hunter said...

great round up.