A Sample Recipe from My Tapas Book

Here is a sample recipe from my book of tapas photography, which just earned third place at the international level in the category "Best Local Cuisine" at the 2010 Gourmound Cookbook Awards.

Gusasacaca

Ingredients: 

1 avocado cut into small cubes

1/2 onion cut into small cubes

1 hard-boiled egg

1/2 peeled tomato without seeds

1 bunch of cilantro, stems removed

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Olive Oil

Salt

Accompanying dish:

1 Plantain

250 grams of precooked corn flour

Instructions:

To prepare the Guasacaca, we mix all of the ingredients together carefully and season them.

For the accompanying dish:
We peel the green plantain and cut it into slices of about 3 centimeters each.  To continue, we fry them in abundant olive oil and crush each slice with the help of a knife.  We continue to fry it and reserve it.

For the fritters ("arepitas"), we make dough with the corn flour mixed with lukewarm water and salt, and wait for it to rest.

With wet hands we form balls in the shape of thick coins and fry them in abundant olive oil.   

Hope you enjoy.

Sevilla en Boca de Todos (Tapas Competition) - 3

We just enjoyed a wonderful tapas crawl on Saturday.  We started at Yerbabuena, located in the market of the street Feria.  “Tierra y mar” is the name given to a combination of offerings, appropriately, of the earth and the ocean.  Those who see the rustic tapa smile; it consists of a top-quality tomato with salt, a salted fillet of anchovy and a salt-cured slice of tuna, accompanied by a couple of almonds.  How curious it is that it is traditional to accompany “huevas de mújol” with almonds; the reason is that the nuts facilitated chewing.  At Al-Aljibe in la Alameda, a tapa was a combination of the best flavors.  It was an intense explosion, very delicious.  And to conclude at La Alameda, a big traditional café, Bobo offered us domed fillet of beef.  I had to eat it slowly to extract all of the flavors.  Visually this plate appeared to us very striking—more than other tapas we consumed.  Would like to hear what you think as well.

Egaña-Oriza, Tapas and Pinchos

After the sudden reemergence of Egaña-Oriza on the Sevilla scene, this restaurant, working hard to understand the culinary of the city, has captured two important elements: a fantastic tapas bar (which offers selections I describe), and San Sebastian-style pinchos.  The latter is the greatest gastronomic pleasure to come to Sevilla.  The concept of the pincho is something altogether different.  It is playful, traditional, and occupies its own space.  José Mari has entered the scene with a cookbook “Sevillaenboca.”  Scallops au gratin, with a creamy puree of potatoes, is accompanied by a delicious sauce made from shellfish and potatoes.  The other pictures consist of the classic “Chistorra” (Basque sausage), cooked to perfection by Manuel Bermejo, the wonderful chef of Fitero, and some his pinchos.  I think that of all the food here, I recommend a special stop at Egaña with a great glass of wine.

Sevilla en Boca de Todos (Tapas Competition) – 2

The differences in the next slew of tapas may surprise you.  The divergent styles make these tapas irresistible.  To realize what has been prepared is a revelation.  With a hand of God, the tapas have been offered with love and sophistication.  Variety is endorsed by Periqui Chico, who in Gustavo Bacarisas presents us with a delicious shrimp salad.  Los Cuevas on Paraíso combines the traditional stew of pig feet with foie mounted on roasted potatoes.  A classic on the tapas scene, Rio Grande, under the direction of Fran Trigo, offers a piece of wild boar with forest fruit jelly and potatoes, extraordinary.  And Los Alcalareños, on Virgen de Luján, treated us to an artisanal toasted bread with shredded tomato, extra virgin olive oil and small cubes of ham from "Taquito King" (a client I have featured before).  Again, there was no lack of variety here.  Looking forward to the third part of this series.

Sevilla en Boca de Todos (Tapas Competition) – 1

The “Feria de la Tapa” (Sevilla en Boca de Todos (Tapas Competition)) has begun in Sevilla.  I have visited several restaurants to take part in the playful competition and show on this blog some of what I have eaten, offering a bit of critique (although most comments will be positive).  The harsh reviews are for the official judge.  I begin with a tapa of Azafrán de República Argentina to pay homage to Santi Santamaría, who has combined a tender piece of chicken with baked strawberries and shoots of asparagus, finished off with a confit of tomato and a flower for visual effect.  The bar, Tribuna en Concha Espina in Triana, presents us with a ball of Roquefort and chocolate, coated with pieces of nuts—creamy and crunchy at the same time—complemented by strawberry jelly.  Nantara of Virgen del Valle, with the help of executive chef Nacho Fernández, offers a samosa of cream of shellfish, wonderful fried and accompanied by cream of peppers and parsley olive oil and alloli.  All very delicious.  I invite you to map out your own tapas crawl and draw our own conclusions.  Until the next post.