My husband is an artist. Not just a normal artist. He paints mostly food. From decadent grapes, ripe pomegranates to humble bread:  all done in oil.  I think he see food the way I see it: in techno colours. In fact, I think he see life in techno coulours!






In this blog I want to introduce you to some of his paintings.Please 'click' on the photo's to see the detail.    Enjoy!

I WILL POST MORE PICS OF HIS PAINTING IN THE FUTURE. 

FOR THE PAST TEN DAYS I HAD SO MUCH FOOD, DRINKS AND FUN  It was our towns' anual festival of Magdalena.

It's a big festival that lasts for 9 days. It celebrates the time when the first inhabitants of Castellon went down from the medieval castle where they lived in what is now La Madalena (that's why the name) to the plain where the city is now, after king Jaume I defeated the moors that lived here. So we celebrate the birth of the city.

The most beautiful part of it is on the first and the second day (always a weekend, the third sunday of Lent). On Saturday there is a big parade where almost every little village of the province sends people to show their dances, foods...and the parade begins with different groups representing Castellon history, from mythology to arabs, jews and the Jaume I court with a girl elected every year to represent his wife..Violante de Hungria. It's very colourful, something like the Cavalgada del Ninot in Valencia but more historically oriented. At the final stage, a "pregonero" (I don't know how to say this in English !) riding a horse, reads a poem dedicated to the festival (each year the same poem).




The second day is Madalena day, there is a big procession that begins at 6 Am at the Plaza Mayor, where "cañas" (canes, the symbol of the festival) are distributed, and does the reverse road that our ancestors did...so people goes up to the mountain to celebrate, it's 8 km from the city. Then people eats a lot , drinks a lot..and turns back also walking or by bus
During the week there's a lot of activities, , Meson de las Tapas,Meson del Vino  Centro Asturiano also make free big meals everyday (fabada, fabes con almejas...), there are music concerts... and a lot of traca LOL similar to Valencia, a daily mascletá, fireworks in the night...


During this festival there are a lot of wonderful regional food to eat and the best wines. It is amazing how much is spent during this time. One night we came across a stall selling figues albardaes. These are pastries filled with dried figs and then deep fried. It is served with muscadel. It is the perfect way of getting recharged with energy after a long day of party.


Here is the recipe. Enjoy!








FIGUES ALBARDAES

INGREDIENTS


500ml Flour.


1 packet of Yeast (20 ml)


1 teaspoon sugar


300 ml Water.


Olive oil.


-Salt.


1kg  Figs (dry)


Sugar or honey.






Preparation:




Mix a little bit of lukewarm water with the yeast and one teaspoon of sugar.  Let stand in warm place for a while until frothy.   In a big bowl, mix the flour, salt and add little by little more flour untill a soft mass is formed.  Kneed the dough for about 5 minutes and let it stand in a warm place for about 25 minutes. 

Clean the dry figs and cut it in half (if whole). Heat a pan with olive oil(about 3 cms full)  Place a tablespoon of dough onto a spoon, put figs on top of it and place another spoon of dough with another spoon on top.  (basically making a sandwich) Deep fry this mixture in the oil untill golden brown.  Take out and dust with sugar or honey. 

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*Photo's by Castellon Tourism

AIOLI

Last Saturday we went out to a very nice 90's bar and against the wall was this graffiti: 

AIOLI POWER! 

One of my first tests in Mama's Kitchen, was to make aioli, but not with a liquidiser, no no, with a mortal and pestle!  I proudly made my first aioli while my husband helped me and it turned out to be a total disaster.  I have made it so many times with an electric device, but never in the traditional way.  Later, I was told that if someone looks at how you make the aioli, it will not work out.  (I think it was just to let me feel better!)  Anycase, needless to say, I try it again without anyone watching me making the aioli and this time, I used eggs which were at room temperature and it came out perfect!


To make aioli in the traditional style, you start by grinding garlic (I use about 5 cloves of garlic) and salt together in a mortar and pestle. It must become like a type of paste before you add 2 egg yolks. Whisk together before olive oil is added in a thin stream while the mixture is constantly whisked. First pour a few drops of oil and mix well.  Then add more oil, but little by little. When it begins to thicken and turn creamy, add a little bit of lemon juicey to the aioli, and followed by more olive oil to create a dense, creamy sauce.



The two most important things to keep in mind when making aioli are temperature and speed. All of the ingredients should be at room temperature to prevent curdling, as slight variations may encourage separation. In addition, aioli needs to be worked with at a consistent, even speed which is not too fast but not too slow, either. Usually it takes several episodes of trial and error to make a successful aioli, and cooks should not be discouraged by early failures.  I wasn't!  Enjoy!

MONDAYS ARE MARKET DAYS...This is my day. I wake up early in the morning (about 11!) and go to the local market. It is huge, with goods for sale like clothes, ceramics, herbs, handbags and of course food. On my way to the market I normally sit down on a bench and watch the people walking by. Sometimes, I 'speak' to locals with my broken Spanish, but the conversation is normall short, like: 'hola' 'hola' 'commo estas?' 'bien' that's it, but it give me some kind of freedom and I can't wait to do this on my 'marketing' day. One day, I will be able to speak about the weather and a lot of other things.

Well, back to the market: The best fresh produce are on display and I love to go there and look (and off course buy.) I learned in Castellon to use only very fresh produce. It is a lifestyle. A lifestyle I can easily get use to. I am posting some pictures of the market and also pictures of another market (the Central Market) where they sell fresh fish and seafood. It is a feast!