Spanish Stuffed Tomatoes
Posted: 25 August '10 by Niall
Spanish stuffed tomatoes
In our recent post about La Tomatina we mentioned that we’d be celebrating the humble tomato in our own way – by making Spanish stuffed tomatoes.
It’s a pretty straightforward recipe, but the flavours are superb – fruity, both sweet and savoury, and with a delicate hint of thyme and parsley in the background.
Kelly just loved this recipe and was raving about it to her friends in work.
It’s great way to play your own part in the Spanish Tomato festival!
Ready in 40 minutes – serves 6 as a starter or tapas.
You can see more photos hereImage 2Image 3Image 4Image 5Image 6
Ingredients
- 6 large tomatoes
- 100g fresh breadcrumbs
- 3 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
- black pepper to taste
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 50g Manchego cheese, grated (if you can’t find Manchego, Parmesan will do at a pinch)
- 1 tbsp thyme, finely chopped
- 1 tsp of smoked paprika
- olive oil
Method
- Preheat the oven to 140°C
- Drizzle some olive oil into a pan and sweat the onions over a low heat until they are soft.
- While the onions are cooking, combine the breadcrumbs, parsley, thyme, pepper, smoked paprika, and half of the grated manchego in a large bowl.
- Turn the heat off under the onions and tip the breadcrumb mixture into the softened onion, stirring the ingredients until they are mixed thoroughly.
- Using a teaspoon, scoop the pulp from the tomatoes.
- Spoon the breadcrumb mixture into the tomatoes, pressing the mixture down to fit as much stuffing in as possible.
- Place the stuffed tomatoes into an oven dish and top them with the remaining grated cheese and drizzle with olive oil.
- Bake the tomatoes for 20 minutes, or until the tomatoes are soft and the cheese has melted, and serve immediately.
Enjoy!
Categories: Featured Post > Recipes > Side Dishes > Spanish Food > Starter Course > Vegetables
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Win a paella kit from Orce Serrano Hams!
Posted: 24 August '10 by Niall and Kelly
Orce Serrano Hams
Just like us, our good friends Iain and Gayle at Orce Serrano Hams are getting into the Tomatina Festival spirit – although they have a far better chance of making it to the food fight from their home in Andalucia!
They’ve selected a little piece of Valencia from their fantastic range of Spanish delicacies to help you celebrate too – a complete paella kit!
The kit includes:
- a special paellera pan
- a sack of Calasparra rice (D.O)
- paella spices and saffron
- Spanish paprika
- recipe and instructions
They’ve even added a few Spanish tapas to help you make the celebration complete – all in all, €60 worth of goodies!
Chilli and Chocolate members:
If you are a member of Chilli and Chocolate you can enter the competition by visiting the Members’ Section for more details.
Best of luck!
Other information
You can see our own paella recipe here.
You can visit the Orce Serrano Hams website to buy a wonderful selection of authentic Spanish hams, tapas, and chorizo at: www.orceserranohams.com.
Categories: Competitions > Promotions
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On my command, unleash.. tomatoes!
Posted: 24 August '10 by Niall
La Tomatina, Wednesday 25 August 2010
The world’s biggest food fight starts tomorrow at 11am!
The population of Buñol more than triples each year as thousands descend on the small Valencian town to join in the massive tomato fight, with over 100 tons of over-ripe tomatoes being thrown in an hour of fun and mayhem.
No-one really knows why the event began, just that the original celebration was held around 1945. “La Tomatina” lasts for a full week of festivities, but the food-fight itself takes place on the last Wednesday in August each year.
Trucks carrying tons of ripe tomatoes are driven into the town square and, at the signal to begin, all hell breaks loose! The tomato fight continues until 12 noon when a second rocket is fired to signal the end of messy melee.
There are a few rules so that everyone can enjoy themselves with the least chance of trouble:
- Crush the tomatoes before you throw them;
- Stop throwing tomatoes when you hear the second rocket;
- Don’t carry bottles or hard objects; and
- Diving goggles are a good idea – the acid from the tomatoes hurts your eyes after a while.
And..?
Well, because we can’t make it to Buñol ourselves, we thought that we’d celebrate the Tomato Festival in our own way by making our own Stuffed Tomatoes for dinner tonight – a tasty Spanish recipe which we’ll post tomorrow.
And you never know – Kelly might get more than she’s bargained for when she walks into the kitchen tonight too!
You can see more photos hereImage 2Image 3
Other information
You can find out more information by visiting the official La Tomatina website.
Credits – image 1: Sydney Morning Herald – image 2: http://www.latomatina.es – image 3: http://www.latomatina.es
Categories: News
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Viva España!
Posted: 21 July '10 by Niall
Prawn and Chorizo paella
OK, so Spain winning the World Cup is a very thin excuse for making one of our favourite dishes again – a wonderfully tasty Prawn and Chorizo Paella.
Spanish cuisine is incredibly varied and is certainly wider than just paella recipes, but thanks to the tourist trade that has been flourishing there Spain has become synonymous with the rice dish. I say “the rice dish” as if there is only one recipe, but in reality there are lots of different takes on the recipe. It was traditionally made with whatever ingredients were available so you’ll find recipes that use rabbit, chicken, snails, seafood..
We are lucky enough to have a paellera but you certainly don’t absolutely have to have one of these special pans to make your own paella – a good big frying pan will do.
Here’s our own recipe, one that’s always served us well both as a mid-week meal for Kelly and I or when served at dinner parties.
Remember! Once you’ve added your chicken stock don’t stir the rice – it’ll start to break down. You want to end up with a little liquid and individual grains of rice, not a clumpy, mushy porridge.
You can see more photos hereImage 1Image 2Image 3Image 4Image 5Image 6Image 7Image 8
Makes 4 good portions
Ingredients
- 225g piece chorizo, sliced into rounds
- 240g x 2 packets of cooked King Prawns, de-veined and butterflied
- Olive oil for cooking
- 2 chillis, chopped (optional)
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp smoked sweet paprika
- 500g of Spanish paella rice
- 1.5 to 2 litres chicken stock, hot
- 3 red peppers, deseeded and sliced
- 4 ripe tomatoes, cut into chunky pieces
- A good pinch of Saffron
- Lemon wedges, to serve
Method
- Add a good glug of olive oil to your pan and sweat the garlic over a low heat until it has become soft and flavoured the oil.
- Add the sliced peppers, chillis (if you’re using them) and tomatoes, stirring the contents of the pan to coat everything in the oil, allowing them to cook for a minute of two.
- Add the smoked paprika.
- Pour the rice into your pan and stir to thoroughly coat the grains in the oil for 5 minutes.
- Add your stock to the pan and increase the heat to medium which will allow the paella to bubble and simmer.
- After 10 minutes your can add the chopped Chorizo to the pan along with a good pinch of Saffron, sprinkling across the whole pan.
- Continue to cook the other paella for 5 minutes and add the prawns, placing them on top of the bed of rice, allowing them to steam.
- After another 5 minutes you should taste the Paella – the liquid should have all but evaporated and the rice cooked but with a little bite to them.
- Take the Paella off the heat, cover the pan with a clean tea-towel and allow to stand for 10 minutes for the rice to finish swelling.
- Spoon portions of the Paella into deep dishes and serve with lemon wedges to squeeze over.
Enjoy!
Other information
Paella is a rice dish that is now synonymous with Spain but which probably originated in Valencia. Paella got it’s name from the dish in which the meal is cooked – a large, low-rimmed pan called a “paellera”.
Traditionally the paella is eaten at lunch-time, but due to the level of tourism in Spain it’s also become popular as an evening meal.
Categories: Featured Post > Main Course > Recipes > Spanish Food
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Bringing a little bit of Spain to Northern Ireland – Orce Serrano Hams
Posted: 14 May '10 by Niall
A little bit of Spain from Orce Serrano Hams
When the grey skies, the stress at work, and the plummeting temperatures get us down, one of our more frequent pie-in-the-sky plans is to live somewhere exotic, and to run our own (foodie) business.
It was about a month ago that we noticed that Orce Serrano Hams was following us on Twitter. I’m quite partial to a bit of charcuterie (not to mention Spanish cooking) so I visited their website to see what they were all about. And what a find it was!
Ex-pats Iain and Gayle have been living the dream: exporting Spanish delicacies from their cave-house in Granada. To top it all off, they’re also extremely nice people – always ready for a chat and some friendly advice to help you enjoy and make the most of your purchases.
Trying not to get too jealous, I sat in rain-swept Northern Ireland and emailed Iain in sun-kissed Andalucia to learn a little more about Orce Serrano Hams..
- Where did “Orce Serrano Hams” come from?
- The idea all came about in a tapas bar with a plate of jamon! We immediately realised that Spanish jamon, tapas and the cuisine in general was something that could and most certainly should be exported! We have always been passionate about Mediterranean cuisine, after moving to southern Spain we realised the extensive array of gastronomic delights the country has to offer. Everyone has heard of Paella but there is so much more that Spain has to offer – from regional dishes influenced by the Moors to seafood from Galicia and of course the world famous Serrano and Iberico hams. It didn’t take much to gather plenty of enthusiasm for the selection of recipes and products here!
- Where are you based?
- In a cave, underground. It might sound rather odd but we run the online delicatessen from a Spanish cave house. Caves are situated in the Granada region in Andalucia and have recently had a revival, it fits in well with our aim to be a green business as caves have fantastic insulation properties and are incredibly eco friendly.
- Where do you get your produce from?
- We just sell local hams. It took quite a few months and lots of taste-testing to establish the best examples from the area, the main positive is that Orce customers only receive local hams and not mass produced examples, a piece of “real” Spain if you like. We do have two specially chosen suppliers of Iberico hams. 5J or cinco jotas which are commonly regarded as the world’s finest and also hams from the Pedroches valley in Cordoba, one of only a handful of regions awarded the “Denominacion de Origen” stamp of authenticity.
- So, you’re a one-stop shop for Spanish Cuisine?
- We like to think so! Aside from Spanish hams we also have a full range of cured sausages including a unique “Fire Chorizo” (very hot) as well as paella ingredients, Andalucian hampers, wines, liquors, vinegars, olive oils and many other local artisan foods and ingredients. Customers are not afraid to tell us what they want and we enjoy tracking down and introducing new lines regularly such as Sobrasada, Morcon and hard to find products like Crema Catalana liqueur and Licor 43.
- I’ve always wanted to know – what’s the difference between Serrano Ham and Iberico Ham?
- That’s a question we’re often asked. There are two main types of ham – Serrano ham and Iberico ham. The Serrano ham accounts for over 90% of cured ham production in Spain, it comes from the white pig (Landrace and Duroc breeds being popular). The humble Serrano or “Mountain” ham is extremely popular but is very different to the Iberico version. Iberico ham reigns as king, although even the Spanish will argue which one is actually the best. These hams come from a different pig – a relative of the wild boar, to be classed Iberico the pig must be at least 70% pure Iberian strain. There is a myth that all Iberian pigs are fed on acorns, this is not true. A “bellota” Iberian ham has been acorn-fed but there also other grades such as Cebo and Recebo, the former receives no acorns and the latter a mix of acorns with compound feed. The true difference is in the taste-test – Iberian hams have a higher fat content and the texture of the meat is sublime. Serrano hams are still very good, but they’re really a different product.
- Your website has lots of great tapas recipes. But what’s your favourite tapas?
- Now that’s a question! Are we allowed a list? Top contenders in the flavour department would have to be Spanish ham with either (or combination of) manchego cheese, olives, red wine, salted almonds or melon. Paella is a classic served in tapas portions and also gambas al pil pil (chili garlic prawns), chorizo is a great all rounder either fried on wilted spinach or on its own and others such as flamenco eggs, bacalao, and stuffed peppers. There are simply too many!
- Any tips for living La Vida Espana?
- Take a relaxed approach -food is always a family and friends affair here in Spain, and recipes can be adapted so there are no rules. Siesta time after a big midday paella is essential and late eating is very common. The tapas culture is of course still very much alive in Granada so to adopt some of that will reap reward at any party. Most importantly, enjoy the food and remember – there’s no rush!
- What’s the future for Orce Serrano Hams?
- Spanish food has never been more popular, we have already had to “dig” additional storage space in the cave but we will shortly be moving to new premises. For the future we would certainly envisage expansion with a retail outlet in the UK. The ethos though will always remain the same and that is to be a family run business, after all we two young sons snapping at our heels to take over!
Thanks Iain!
You can see more photos hereImage 1Image 2Image 3Image 4Image 5Image 6Image 7
Chilli and Chocolate members:
There’s a very handy discount available at Orce Serrano Hams at the minute. Visit the Members’ Section for more details.
Other information
You should visit the Orce Serrano Hams website. They don’t just sell hams – although there’s plenty of tasty jamons to choose from – but there’s Spanish black puddings, chorizo, tapas hampers.. too much to mention here. There’s a great tapas recipe list too.
You can click here see the photos from our tapas party and get the Chilli and Chocolate tapas recipes.
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