Have i told you that I LOVE tapas? If I haven't, you know it now. I had my first tapas meal at Ceviche in Tampa Florida, and until today the place remains my favorite tapas place. I guess it's matter of nostalgia. Last summer I traveled to Madrid with my boyfriend and ended up having tapas everyday. Tapas in Madrid are inexpensive, unlike in the United States. If you go to the right places (El Tigre is a popular place for American young tourists, but just look for a bar where you see lots of local people) you'll get it for free with an alcoholic beverage.
So this dinner is inspired by Madrid, because tapas in San Francisco is way too expensive. I made huevos rellenos, tortilla espanola (see the recipe in my earlier post), patatas brava and sangria.
Let's start with the sangria. This is a recipe I got from my cooking class 3 years ago at Hipcooks.
1 bottle of 2 buck Chuck (I used cabernet sauvignon)
2 cups of Trader Joes mango, pomagranate juice
1.5 oranges
1.5 limes
Cut the oranges and limes into slices and put them in a pitcher. Add the wine and the juice. Use a wooden spoon to muddle everything. Let sit in the refrigerator for at least an hour before serving
Huevos rellenos
We had this at this at a bar (forgot the name) on Gran Via in Madrid and I love it. Think about it as a version of deviled eggs
3 hard boiled eggs
Here is my fool proof way of boiling eggs. Put the eggs in a pot and cover them with cold water. Bring to a boil. Let boil for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat, put the lid on and let eggs sit in hot water for 10 minutes. Pour out the hot water, rinse under cold water to shock the eggs and peel
3 oz of canned tuna (that should be half of a small can)
1 tbsp capers
1 tbsp chopped green olives
3 tbsp mayonnaise
a squeeze of lemon
salt and pepper to taste
Half the hard boiled eggs and take out the yolk. Mash the yolk,add the tuna, capers, olives. Squeeze some lemon, add the mayonnaise, add some salt, pepper and mix it all together. taste and add more salt, pepper or lemon if needed. Spoon the mixture back into the egg white. If you want, you can use a small spoon to carve out some of the egg white to make more space for the filling. I put them in a tupperware and refrigerate them for an hour before serving.
Patatas bravas
4 red potatoes
lots of oil to deep fry
chopped parsley mixed with some salt and garlic powder
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Scrub the potatoes really well and cut into wedges. Put oil into a small pot and let it heat up. I put a piece of potato in the pot with the oil and when the oil starts to bubble around the potato, I know the oil is hot enough. Have a piece of paper towel on hand to dry each pieces of potato to avoid oil popping everywhere. Keep the oil on medium heat and put in a few pieces of potatoes at a time. They should take about 3 minutes to become golden brown. Fish them out, throw them on a place lined with paper towel to absorb excess oil. Then, while they are still hot, sprinkle with some of the salt, garlic, parley concoction. repeat with the rest of the potatoes. Arrange the potatoes on a plate and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese
Brava sauce (or my interpretation of it)
1/2 cup of mayonnaise
1/3 cup of spicy ketchup
1tsp of sriracha sauce
2 tsp of finely minced garlic
1tbsp finely chopped parsley leaves
Mix everything together and add salt and pepper to taste.
Bonus picture of my tortilla espanola and how the feast came together.
