Kelly Rossiter
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I was watching Vicky Christina Barcelona, that light as a feather Woody Allen film for which Penelope Cruz is nominated as supporting actress, and thinking how nice it would be to have some of the tapas that you can see the characters enjoying throughout the film.
I've never been to Spain, but this way of eating really appeals to me. I like the idea of having a procession of little bowls arrive at the table that you can nibble from and get a wide variety of tastes and textures. One of my daughter's favourite restaurants is a Middle Eastern place close to our house that serves mezze, which is the same thing. You can pick and choose and eat as much or as little as you like and it's wonderful to share.
I made a little tapas plate to share with my husband and it was delightful. I made some traditional Pan con Tomate which I think you can see them eating in the film. You toast some rustic bread, rub a piece of peeled garlic over it and then press a tomato into it. I admit that I was forced to use a canned tomato for this because it's February and I live in Toronto, but I pretended that I was eating a vine ripened tomato, hot from the Spanish sunshine. You can put cheese or ham on top of that. I had a bit of spicy sausage leftover from another dinner and I thinly sliced that and put it on top. A little drizzle of olive oil over it is a nice finish.
Then I made something which probably isn't even remotely Spanish. I stuffed some prunes (you could use dates too) with an almond and then I wrapped the whole thing in a half a slice of organic bacon. I baked it at 375F for about 20 minutes, turning them once. My husband said he found them weird at first, but I notice he ate them all. It's an interesting mix of salty and sweet that's a bit addictive. Then I finished the tray with a bowl of olives and the garlic mushrooms. You can have these hot if you like, but they are also delicious at room temperature.
Beverage of Choice: Many, many bottles of Rioja.
Champinones al Ajillo (Garlic Mushrooms)
1 lb button mushrooms, quartered
5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp Spanish paprika, spicy
2 tbsp parsley, chopped
3-4 tbsp olive oil, extra virgin
¼ cup Spanish sherry
salt & pepper, to taste
- Heat up olive oil, garlic, and paprika in a large skillet. Once it starts to sizzle, add the quartered mushrooms and sauté for 3-4 minutes.
- Deglaze the pan with the dry sherry and cook until most of the liquid has reduced into more of a sauce. Season with salt and pepper and toss with chopped parsley and serve.
From the website Tony Tahhan.
Difficulty Level: Easy
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