Butter pecan ice cream

In a skillet I melted 4 tablespoons of unsalted butter with 1 cup of pecans and a tablespoon of salt, cooking it all for 8 minutes on a medium to low heat. I then strained the pecans and reserved them, letting then chill and then get cold in the refrigerator. In a big bowl I whisked 3/4 of a cup of granulated sugar, a pinch of salt and 1 cup of whole milk. Then I stirred in 2 cups of heavy cream and 1 tablespoon of imitation vanilla. I covered it with a red plastic film and placed the bowl in the refrigerator for 2 hours. After that I poured the milky mix in the ice cream maker letting it roll for 15 minutes and finally I started adding the pecans for 5 more minutes while thickening in the rounding spin.
http://www.cuisinart.com/share/pdf/manuals/ice-21_recipe.pdf
It's another easy recipe from the ice cream maker manual, with small changes, that turned out absolutely delicious again, and even more so when I let it steep one more day in the refrigerator and all the flavours came together in creamy sweetness. Perfect to be enjoyed with Belgian waffles as ice cream sandwiches or just with the dainty silver spoon to sink in!

Flamenco style eggs

This is one typical dish of my hometown, Seville, and a yummy and easy to make meal it is.
Into an olive oil sprinkled open metal container I lay a bed of spicy salami slices, square jalapeño cheese slices on top, then another layer of boiled green peas, then a couple of cans of tomato sauce and I broke 8 eggs on the very top with tiny pinches of sea salt on the orange yolks. Into the oven it went at 350 Fahrenheit until I saw that the white of the eggs was really white and half solid, a little bit past runny but not yet well done:

The splendour of the capital of Andalusia's table just ready to dip with bread and celebrate life!

Lavender ice cream

What a great find! I had accumulated some spices over the last year and among them these packages of French lavender I decided to use. After some research I found a honey lavender recipe by Martha Stwart and a lemon lavender by Emeryl Lagasse, and I chose the latter with excellent results:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/fresh-lemon-and-lavender-ice-cream-recipe/index.html
Following which I proceeded to boil in a saucepan the zest of a lemon and an orange, half a cup of fresh lavender (=2 packages), 2 cups of whole milk and 2 cups of heavy milk, then I let it steep for 20 minutes and strained it. I whisked in a bowl 8 egg yolks and 3/4 of granulated sugar, whisking 1 cup of the hot cream in it, and then mixed it quite well. Slowly I started adding the egg mixture into the hot cream mixture, cooking for 4 minutes. I removed it from the heat and let it cool in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Then I put it in the ice cream maker for 25 minutes and served it with blueberries, cherries and a touch of honey.

A complex and delicious taste, which I found a little bit too tart, bitter or floral at first, but with the passing of the hours and days turned into such an experience as biting purple clouds announcing summer storm. 

Peanut butter cup ice cream

I used the recipe of the machine:
http://www.cuisinart.com/share/pdf/manuals/ice-21_recipe.pdf
It's quite easy: you mix in a bowl 1 cup of not natural peanut butter and 2/3 cup of granulated sugar until you get it smooth. Then you add 1 cup of whole milk and mix it until the sugar dissolves. You stir 1 teaspoon of imitation vanilla extract and 2 cups of heavy cream. You refrigerate it for 2 hours. Then you pour the mixture in the ice cream maker for 20 minutes, you add 15 chopped miniature peanut butter cups and roll it for 5 more minutes, never interrupting the rock and rolling of the machine. Finally you set it in the freezer for 3 or 4 hours or overnight.

Supercreamy and decadent...

Meringue milk

Or as we call it in Spain "leche merengada". The recipe I got it from an old link that doesn't work anymore from Editorial Bitacora if I remember well. You just have to boil in a saucepan 1 litre of milk with 200 grams of sugar (a little less tan 1 cup), a grated lemon rind and a cinnamon stick, stirring it a little bit. In a bowl you beat two egg whites and add them to the milk once it's cooled off. You serve it very cold, maybe setting the saucepan overnight in the refrigerator and for 35 to 45 minutes or even 1 hour in the freezer before serving in tall glasses with sprinkled powder cinnamon and fresh cherries.

It's a delicious summer refreshment for merienda (the snack between lunch and dinner we have in Spain) or even for dessert. It reminds me of Benidorm or Valencia, this Mediterranean fresh breeze which is delicious and fruity to drink by the sea.

Andalusian lentil soup

http://www.hogarutil.com/cocina/recetas/legumbres/201006/lentejas-3911.html
This recipe from Bruno Oteiza turned out pretty good, a satisfying South of Spain lentil soup in the fashion my grandmother Antonia and my mother Matilde would prepare it.
I washed the lentils in a big colander and put them in a stewpot with plenty of water, a pinch of salt and a trickle of olive oil, then I added a green bell pepper, a carrot and an onion, the three of them cut in two. I added 4 peeled cloves of garlic, 3 bay leaves, some saffron theads, 6 pinches of cumin powder and 4 pieces of chopped and peeled spicy chorizo. I cooked it for about 25 minutes. I peeled a potato, diced it and added to the pot, I poured 4 spoons of Sherry wine (using amontillado since I didn't have fino). I stirred it all very well and cooked it over a low heat for about 40 minutes. I diced 2 slices of bread and fried them in a pan with olive oil. I served the lentils in a plate with the croutons on top sprinkled with a trickle of olive oil and dry parsley.

Perfect for lunch, it's a healthy and savoury dish from my homeland, the heart of flamenco. I feel like taking a siesta.

Galician tuna pie

This fantastic recipe from the website of Jose' Andre's I roughly followed:
http://xfinitytv.comcast.net/tv/Made-in-Spain/103906/1050994024/A-Pilgrim-s-Progress-in-Food/videos
I just fried in a pan with olive oil 1 chopped white onion and 1 chopped red bell pepper, then I added some raisins and 1 can of tuna in olive oil, kept frying for a while until almost caramelized. Then I put it all inside 2 sheets of pastry dough, sealing it with beaten eggs and also painting with them the whole surface. I set in the oven at 350 degrees until it got all golden brown. It was ready to be served and enjoyed.

It really reminded me of some delicacies I was lucky enough to taste one in the wonderful green region of Galicia. Yum!

Mascarpone and ginger ice cream

To celebrate the 4th of July we made a Mascarpone cheese ice cream with pieces of crystallized ginger. I tried to follow the recipe from this website:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/gale-gand/candied-ginger-mascarpone-ice-cream-recipe/index.html
Basically we (Michelle and I) heated in a saucepan 2 cups of whole milk and 2 cups of heavy whipping cream with the marrow of half Madagascar vanilla bean. We stirred it with a wooden spoon the whole time. We brought it to a simmer and let it rest for 10 minutes off the heat. Then in a big bowl we whisked together very well 6 egg yolks and 3/4 cups of granulated sugar and very slowly poured the saucepan content in it. Then we put it all back together in the saucepan and heat it all for a while. Then we took it off the heat and whisked in 1 cup of Mascarpone cheese. We mixed it all together very well. Later we sifted all into a smaller bowl which we set floating in a bigger bowl filled with cold water and ice cubes, into the refrigerator for an hour, then whisking in half a cup of caramelyzed ginger and 30 minutes in the ice cream maker and to the freezer for 3 hours. We took it out 15 minutes before serving and presented it in small bowls with cherries and blueberries for the colours of the flag of the USA.

Another day I served it also with a Begium waffle and Argentinian dulce de leche. It's marvellous, ashtonishing with its subtle texture and tangy sweet taste. Perfect for an unforgettable celebration.

Spinach with garbanzo beans

This is an old traditional recipe by my grandmother Frasquita. It is very common in tapas bars in Sevilla. With a similar recipe I won last year the first prize of the tapas contest of the Association of Spanish in Michigan.
I boiled 2 packages of frozen spinach. I opened a can of garbanzo beans, also known as chick peas I believe, and rinsed them with tap water. I set apart just half of it. Then in a pan with olive oil I fried 8 cloves of peeled and chopped garlic, set them in a bowl, then I fried 5 bits of bread and set them in the same bowl and crushed them all, adding later, right before pouring it in the end, a little bit of apple vinegar and a teaspoon of cumin. I lowered a little the temperature in the pan, poured a teaspoon of pepper powder de la Vera and poured the garbanzo beans and the spinach immediately, stirring it for some minutes. Then I poured the mixture of garlic, bread, with the vinegar and cumin just added, and some salt. I stirred it for some minutes, added half a glass of water and kept simmering it for 4 minutes. And it was done, Ready to serve with a fried egg on the side.

Yummy and simple, a delicacy filling and nuanced: very balanced.

Hazelnut ice cream

Upping the ante on the ice cream making I made this fabulous hazelnut ice cream with a recipe I found from excellent chef Emeril Lagasse:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/hazelnut-ice-cream-recipe/index.html
On parchment paper I set 1 and a 1/2 cups of hazelnuts and roasted in a preheated oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 4 minutes. I let them cool off and chopped them roughly. In a saucepan I put 4 cups of half-and-half and 1 cup of granulated sugar. I put it on medium heat and brought it to a simmer. In a separate bowl I whisked 6 egg yolks and incorporated them into the saucepan mix, simmering for 4 more minutes. The mixture I pured in a glass bowl which I covered with a plastic wrap and set it in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Then, out it went, I added the chopped hazelnuts and poured the whole thing in the ice cream maker for 25 minutes. Then to the refrigerator again for another 3 hours. The result is amazing, really rich and nutty. The next time I will chop the hazelnuts even more roughly for a better texture. I think we're raising the bar here but we better take a little break from this ice cream diet if we want to avoid getting a little more chubby.

Served with a couple of whole hazelnuts it even looked beautiful. It tastes like eating a subtly sweet dark wood milky bar ; )

Cold soup shrimp garnishing

One evening last week I made this interesting garnishing for my ajoblanco (almond cold soup, to which I added this time macadamia nuts). I took it from this recipe of salmorejo which is accompanied by these greens and shrimp:
http://blogs.canalsur.es/cometelo/2011/06/01/salmorejo/
Frist I made the almond soup. Then I sauteed a chopped red onion in a pan with very little olive oil. I added to the pan a chopped red bell pepper, 100 grams of shrimp peeled and chopped, kept frying and I poured in a small glass of amontillado wine, making some smoke evaporate with heavenly scents. In a separate bowl I layed a boiled egg, peeled and chopped with fresh parsley, mixing it all and poured the sautee of the pan inside the bowl. I sprinkled olive oil, salt and pepper and whiked it all. I served some inside the soup, some in a separate plate. The contrast of cold soup and hot garnish was delicious, but even more so the next day the garnishing when it turned cold. An astonishing achievement of mixed flavours.

Very Andalusian!