Leave it to me to blog about the star of my family's Christmas dinner four weeks after the fact. But considering the fact that when I showed up at my mom's house two days before Christmas she didn't even have a tree, hence making my super extra last minute christmas eve shopping that didn't even get started till after 3pm due to a shortage of vehicles and competing interests, even more ridiculous than necessary, I guess you shouldn't be all that surprised. True story.
But really, it wouldn't really be a true "Nigerian Last name" family Christmas without a ridiculous amount of last minute scrambling, although this year we really out did ourselves. For the first time in our family history, we literally put up all the Christmas decorations, tree included, on December 24th. Additionally, my mother decided to instill a new tradition of each one of us bringing/cooking a new dish we've never made or shared with the family before. Hence this dabble into bread making for me, a pomegranate guacamole [not pictured, my bad] courtesy of my six years younger and six inch taller sister [really God? REALLY THOUGH? *tart face*] ridiculously delicious vegan collard greens [also not pictured, when, ever, will I learn that as a food blogger, I'm supposed to document all eatings at all times?] from big sister, and a turkey day repeat, by adamant request, of German Apple Cake from my mom [I think I tweeted this pic]. Hence, the reason for that hammer and nails on the kitchen table as I'm chopping herbs, in case you were wondering, is because my mom was in full decorating and/or fixing things mode while I was prepping the lamb, and everything had to be done in one night.
How many different ways can you eat jamon? Just ask the Spanish, the possibilities, apparently, are endless! I've never eaten so much pork in my life, let alone in a two week span of time! Obviously, the Spaniards are into ham. and sausage. and eggs. and cheese. and potatoes. and bread. and more jamòn. and NOT vegetables. How they don't drop dead at age 50 is beyond me, but I'm going to chuck it up to all the olive oil, red wine, walking, and LIVING life rather than working it. Quite frankly, jamòn was a recurring theme on most restaurant menus, became a the running joke of our entire trip, and will now forever hold a special place in my heart. Thank You, Spain!
In general, the food was good. Not great, not life changing, [for life changing food, go to Italy, as I plan to to do again in the next three years!] but good. The food lacked variety, for obvious reasons, and they Spanish just didn't seem as passionate about fresh, quality ingredients as some of their other European neighbors. With that said, I'll share some of my favorite dishes with you.
Paella de Arroz Negro
I didn't eat as much seafood as I thought I would, especially in Barcelona, mostly because the Spanish are really into octopus, and I'm really NOT. But the this paella was amazing. Shrimp with the heads still on and mussels really freak me out. But this dish was so good, I just detached the heads and got over my fear of mussels and kept it moving. I even ate around the octopus pieces. It was THAT good.
Chorizo
I can't put my finger on what makes it so great. Maybe it's the light saltiness, or the smokiness, or the fact that it oozes bright orange oil. I dunno, but this chorizo and tomato bocadillo with olive oil from a small bar in Madrid was the tastiest sandwich I had in all of Spain. It was so simple, yet really really good. I even bought some chorizo here and recreated this sandwich, which I of course followed with some vegetables. It wasn't as good as the original, but darn close.
Patatas Bravas
This was the house specialty at the Argumosa restaurant in Madrid. They don't look like much, but that sauce was effin delicious. And, when the potatoes where all gone, we sopped up the rest of the sauce with bread. Yeah, son. It's like that.
¡Sobrasada!
hands down, my favorite dish in Spain.
Served on bread with melted manchego at some restaurant in El Puerto de Santa Maria. It was LIFE. CHANGING. It was SLAP YO' MAMA GOOD! I almost creamed my pants eating this dish. Seriously. I wanted to live in this sauce! I tried to buy some to bring home, but sadly, what they had at the market required refrigeration. But I think I may have found it on a website in a jar. But if that doesn't work out, I'm sure I can work my Spain connections if I get desperate. Right primo?
Ribs
I think this pictures pretty much says it all. Dinner at Parrilla in El Puerto de Santa Maria. It took me three days to finish them. 3 glorious days! And if you didn't know already, hear me know, the Spanish [and all other Spanish speaking people] KNOW how to work a pig. Keep that in mind when eating Latin food.
Vegetables!
The Moroccans understood the importance of vegetables, God bless them for it! I was so hard up for some plant based food, I ate vegetables that I typically hate, like beets and pumpkin, and loved them!
The pumpkin and beets were sweet, and chilled, and scrumptious. why can't they taste like that here?!
Lamb Tangine
Where do I start on this one. First, there were more vegetables, generously seasoned and deliciously cooked. And the lamb, it was so tender, I could cut it with my fork. This was an expensive dinner for our first night in Marrakech, but totally worth it.
Honey Pastries
These sweet treats were delicious! I don't know what they are called, the green one was filled with pistachio, the other was some sort of deep fried dough and tasted of and cinnamon and with a hint of cloves, both were drenched in honey! There were so many different types pastries in the market, I wish I had tried more! And I must mention the Moroccan honey. It had a distinct flowery flavor, it was a dark amber color, and tasted far better than any honey I've ever had here. I really wish I had made more of an effort to buy some, but that's what my next trip to Marrakech is for.
All in all, I enjoyed the food enough. And guess what, I've been craving jamòn for days, lol! I now present to you a slide show of the collective eatings of España and Morocco.
::side bar:: I'm well aware that salsa music is a Cuban original, not a Spanish one. But I love this song :)
At some point last week, I want to say it was Tuesday, I made lamb chops. And they were good. Really Good:
Bone-in Lamb chops
Fresh* rosemary**
Cracked whole garlic cloves
Olive oil
Sea salt
Fresh ground black pepper*
Marinated in a ziplock bag, about 6 hours. (I came home from work during my lunch break to prepare them, took about 20 minutes, yeah...living walking distance from my job is a real PLUS)
Grilled (yes, grilled) on a good quality, solid cast-iron grill pan. (apartment warming gift from my sister, LOVE IT!)
*These are non-negotiable. Dried rosemary really won't cut it, and neither will pre-ground black pepper. You will tasted the difference, and after all that work, why make a fuss over such reasonably priced extravagances. TRUST ME.
[I will have to dedicate an entire post to kitchen/pantry must-haves]
**When marinating meat with such an aromatic herb such as rosemary, I skewer the rosemary into the flesh of the meat, to really ensure the flavor penetrates within.
mmm lamb chops...last Tuesday.
So then what happened??
I of course made a whole meal complete with sides (and wine), but they were nothing special, so I won't elaborate on that meal any further.
>>>Fast forward. If you know me well, you know I have the attention span of a two year old, and after 2 days of chops for lunch and/or dinner. I had enough.
Then LIFE happened, and I had to go out of town for a few days. The lamb went in the freezer, and 4 days later, I returned home to Baltimore and the STORM OF THE CENTURY. Rather than eat more lamb chops during the days I was confined indoors, I only did what prisoners of winter usually do: indulge my cravings for breakfast food and cheesy bread.
Before I realized it, the lamb chops had been out of the freezer for days, that bag of fresh spinach I bought the week before was still open, probably half frozen, most certainly kinda slimy, and I had not eaten a real meal in over a week! [gasp says the health promotion professional!]
So what's a girl to do?
Pray & Get Creative:
That not-so-fresh, kinda slimy, but it still cost $4 bag of spinach did not go to waste!
Sauteed in butter & olive oil [yes, both! butter is love, but olive oil is life, will discuss later] with minced garlic, salt & pepper.
Bruschetta anyone?
A simple grocery store baguette will do, [I've long stopped searching for the ever elusive authentic Parisian baguette. I've accepted the fact that I'm not in paris anymore...sigh] my only demand is that if I give the bread a squeeze, I feel a crunch. See those crumbs? That a from a good outer crust.
Diced tomatoes, minced garlic, olive oil, salt & pepper to taste.
Now this was a departure from my usual bruschetta recipe. I "fried" the bread in butter & olive oil on the stove top. [I should defend this action by saying i just spent 4 days in Georgia]
Best decision EVER.
Oh yeah, and the lamb chops. I just reheated a chop in the same skillet I fried the bread in, with butter remnants and all, and a little water for some moisture. The end result:
A wholesome, delicious real meal, complete with lemon for a bit of acid on the spinach, an aperitif of sparkling peach pear soda (courtesy of Target!) with a splash of vodka, over ice.
