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A Taste of Casa Balbino's Classic Spanish Tapas

partysugar — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 05:50:04 -0700

In the heart of any Spanish city, there's a plaza filled with countless tapas restaurants. The menus hardly vary from place to place - everyone offers their version of classics such as gambas al ajilo, patatas bravas, or tortilla Española. That's why places like Casa Balbino, located in the Southern city of Sanlúcar de Barrameda, are a dime a dozen. While they serve the traditional dishes, they also offer a wide variety of harder to find tapas. Because Sanlucar is located along a delta, the seafood is unbelievably fresh. One hot Summer afternoon, I ate my way through Balbino's amazing selection of tapas. Here, you'll find a taste of the scrumptious journey.

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Do You Prefer the Rings or the Tentacles of Calamari?

YumSugar — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 11:45:12 -0800

On New Year's Day, my hungover friends and I were craving Spanish comfort food. We wound up going to one of the best tapas haunts in Chicago, Café Iberico. When this calamari dish came to the table, we got into a discussion about what part of the squid tasted better - the rings or the tentacles - and none of us could come to a consensus. What do you think?

Name That Dish!

YumSugar — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 07:00:46 -0700

On Wednesday night, I had the privilege of attending the charity event Wine.Dine.Donate. The dinner was organized by Epicurious and hosted by celebrated chef Traci Des Jardins. As a first course, she served this delicious fish tapa. Do you know what it is?

Name That Dish!

partysugar — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 07:00:51 -0700

The menu on this week's housewarming party plan featured a variety of tapas recipes. Below is my all time favorite Spanish tapa. Do you know what it's called?

Come Party With Me: Housewarming Party - Menu

partysugar — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 07:45:07 -0700

A housewarming party is similar to an open house in that guests will stop by at random times. Instead of slaving over the stove, serve a simple menu of Spanish style tapas that are delicious warm, cold, or at room temperature. Start by putting together a large antipasto platter with your favorite cheese, crackers, marinated vegetables, and charcuterie. Supplement this with a few homemade nibbles. Warm rosemary olives, stuffed mushrooms, and eggplant mozzarella roll-ups are scrumptious and filling. To learn how to make these tasty appetizers, read more.

Warm Rosemary Olives
From Real Simple magazine

Ingredients

6 cups mixed olives, such as Niçoise, Spanish, Picholine, and Greek
5 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes

Directions

Combine the olives, rosemary, and red pepper flakes in the center of 1 or 2 large sheets of aluminum foil. Fold the foil to enclose the olives in a pouch. Recipe can made to this point 1 day ahead, Refrigerate.
Heat oven to 400º F. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve warm.

Makes 6 cups or enough for 30 guests.

NUTRITION PER SERVING: CALORIES 31(1% from fat); FAT 3g (sat 0g); CHOLESTEROL 0mg; CALCIUM 24mg; CARBOHYDRATE 2g; SODIUM 234mg; PROTEIN 0mg; FIBER 1g; IRON 1mg

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Stuffed Mushrooms
From Martha Stewart

Ingredients

3 ounces day-old white bread (about 3 slices), crusts removed
2 scallions, white and light-green parts only, roughly chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
3 ounces fresh goat cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 ounce dry Monterey Jack or Parmesan, grated on small holes of box grater
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
48 button mushrooms (about 1 1/2 pounds), stems removed and caps cleaned

Directions

Pulse the bread in the bowl of a food processor until finely chopped. Transfer to a bowl.
Place the scallions, bell pepper, and goat cheese in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until finely chopped and well combined.
Transfer mixture to the bowl with the bread crumbs, and stir. Stir in the cilantro, half the grated Monterey Jack, salt, and pepper.
Heat oven to 350 degrees; position rack in the center of oven.
Place mushroom caps, cups facing upward, on a large cookie sheet. Spoon a heaping teaspoon of stuffing mixture into each cap.
Bake until mushrooms are tender and filling is hot, 15 to 20 minutes.
Remove mushrooms, turn oven to broil, and position rack about 4 inches from broiler. Sprinkle mushrooms with remaining grated cheese, and broil until cheese is golden, about 1 minute. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 dozen.

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Eggplant and Mozzarella Roll-Ups
From Food and Wine magazine

Ingredients

All-purpose flour, for dredging
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
Pure olive oil, for frying
One 1-pound eggplant, peeled and sliced lengthwise 1/8 inch thick
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
1/4 pound fresh mozzarella, cut into about 24 strips

Directions

Have ready the flour and beaten eggs, each in a shallow bowl. Heat 1/4 cup of olive oil in a large skillet.
One at a time, dredge the eggplant slices in the flour and then dip them into the beaten eggs, allowing the excess to drip off.
Fry 2 coated eggplant slices at a time in the olive oil over moderate heat until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the slices to paper towels to drain. Add more olive oil to the skillet as needed and adjust the heat if the eggplant browns too fast.
Preheat the oven to 400°. Lay the eggplant slices out on a work surface and lightly season them on both sides with salt and pepper. Cover the eggplant slices with the prosciutto; trim the prosciutto as necessary and use the trimmings to cover any uncovered eggplant slices. Cut each eggplant slice in half crosswise. Set 1 strip of mozzarella at 1 end of each eggplant slice, roll up neatly and secure with a toothpick.
Transfer the eggplant rolls to a baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the eggplant is tender and piping hot. Remove the toothpicks and cut the rolls crosswise into 1-inch lengths. Serve the roll-ups hot or warm.

Makes about 2 dozen.

Make ahead: the roll-ups can be prepared through Step 2 and refrigerated overnight. Bring to room temperature before baking.

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What's Yummy This Week - YumSugar Weekly Recap

YumSugar — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 09:30:22 -0700

Entice friends with a Summer dish of mussels in a saffron cream sauce.
See what it's like to be a barista behind the counter at Starbucks.
Party shows you how to bring the portable party to an outdoor concert.
Save money on tools and pit olives and cherries our way instead.
We had mixed feeling about Doritos's new flavor, Late Night Tacos at Midnight.
Feast your way through an array of tapas in Cadiz, Spain.
When it comes to wine, do you know your red grapes from white grapes?

Must-Read: BBQ Bash

partysugar — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:00:59 -0700

Last year I received a copy of BBQ Bash: The Be-All, End-All Party Guide, from Barefoot to Black Tie ($16.95) by Karen Adler and Judith Fertig. I quickly flipped through the pages, but since it was October, I stored it on the book shelf.

Then two weeks ago I was sitting on my couch, looked up, and swore BBQ Bash jumped out at me. I scooped it up and started reading. To find out why I couldn't put this book down - even on the bus - read more.

Pros:

It's written by two females, the BBQ Queens, so instead of taking a stereotypical manly point of view, the tone offers a refreshing anyone-can-do-it attitude.
Filled with hundreds of mouthwatering recipes, helpful tips, party plans, interesting lists (example: 15 different flavored butters), general information on grilling, smoking, and barbecuing.
To the authors, barbecue is a 24/seven, 365-day-a-year thing - meaning there is something for everyone.
The party plans are festive and fun. They include such themes as A Black-Tie Barbecue, Home For the Holidays Barbecue, and A Cozy Dinner a Deux.
There're plenty of cocktail recipes, too.

Cons:

Lack of photos. There's a small color photo spread in the center of the book that features 14 images. Other than that, the book is photo-free.
Some of the recipes call for specialty ingredients like artisanal prosciutto, peppadews, and tarragon vinegar.
Other recipes are uncreative and rely on store-made products. A salmon recipe is little more than salmon fillets marinated in Italian dressing and Seafood Magic rub.
There's no index or list of the drink recipes making them hard to find.

Recipes: Each recipe is followed up with helpful pointers: to "deck it out" (make the dish seem more formal), to "take it easy" (simplify the recipe), to "change it up" (meat, herb, and cheese substitutions), and to "raise a glass" (alcoholic beverage pairing suggestions). Here are some that caught my eye:

Rioja-style grilled pork tenderloin tapas
Limoncello spritzers
Big Easy grilled beef tenderloin, Zinfandel-glazed baby back ribs with a kiss of smoke
Blue cheese coleslaw
Grilled Winter-greens with warm cranberry port-vinaigrette
Grilled chocolate crostini
Dulce de leche sauce

Imagery: As mentioned above, there are only 14 color photos. The rest of the book is filled with curvy illustrations.

Overall: If you do a lot of outdoor entertaining and don't mind a cookbook without images, this book is perfect for you!

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Say Cheese! Pancetta Smoked Mozzarella Skewers

partysugar — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 10:15:42 -0700

A couple of weeks ago I read an article on the Atlantic's food blog that recommended making a grilled skewer appetizer with smoked cheese cubes wrapped in pancetta. The story reminded me of a delicious tapa I had years ago in a Spanish dive bar. Anxious to re-create the dish, I headed to the store and purchased thinly sliced pancetta and smoked mozzarella. There's really no recipe, you simply wrap a 1/2-inch cube of cheese with pancetta, skewer, and place on the grill. This is where I ran into trouble. The cheese melted before the pancetta could fully cook, sticking to the grill. I transferred the skewers to a frying pan to try and salvage them, but the cheese continued to melt, clumping together. While the final bite tasted wonderful, the technique needs some fine tuning.

Do you have any advice for getting the pancetta to cook before the cheese melts? Have you ever made cheese skewers?

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Fast & Easy Dinner: Grilled Shrimp and Romaine

partysugar — Wed, 20 May 2009 06:50:45 -0700

One of my favorite tapas dishes to have in Spain is grilled lettuce drizzled with olive oil. I was excited when I found this recipe because it takes that concept and turns it into a complete meal by adding grilled shrimp and grated Parmesan cheese.

To make it more authentically Spanish, I'll toss minced garlic in with the oil that's used to coat the shrimp and romaine. Serve with crusty bread for mopping the sauce and a refreshing tinto de verano to drink. Want to come with me on an adventure to the Iberian Peninsula? Get the recipe and read more.

Grilled Shrimp and Romaine
From Better Homes and Gardens

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp. kosher salt or 1/4 tsp. salt
1 lb. fresh or frozen large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 hearts of romaine lettuce, halved lengthwise
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
2 lemons
Olive oil
Kosher salt or salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

In small bowl whisk together the 1/4 cup olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Set aside.
On four 10-inch metal skewers, thread shrimp, leaving 1/4-inch space between each shrimp*. Brush oil mixture over cut sides of lettuce and the shrimp.
For a charcoal grill, grill shrimp on the rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals for 5 to 8 minutes or until shrimp are opaque, turning once halfway through grilling. Grill lettuce, cut side down, for 2 to 4 minutes or until grill marks develop on the lettuce and lettuce is slightly wilted. (For a gas grill, preheat grill. Reduce heat to medium. Cover and grill shrimp and lettuce as above.)
Place lettuce in serving bowl. Remove shrimp from the skewers. Place in bowl with lettuce and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Squeeze the juice of one of the lemons over the shrimp and lettuce and drizzle with additional olive oil. Sprinkle with additional kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cut the remaining lemon in wedges and serve with the salad.

Serves 4.

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Let's Dish: What Recipe Have You Totally Screwed Up?

partysugar — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 06:45:37 -0800

Readers, I have a confession: sometimes I'm a failure in the kitchen. Take, for example, the picture below. My father recently watched Tyler Florence make the most delectable Spanish tapa where a raw egg is wrapped in jamon serrano, placed atop béchamel and toast, and baked in the oven. TyFlo made it look exceptionally easy.
However, when my dad and I went to recreate the dish, the ham wasn't strong enough to hold the eggs. The eggs rolled off the slippery white sauce and onto the baking sheet. After wasting eight eggs, we managed to get three nestled inside the ham. Then, when we removed the final product from the oven, the toast and eggs were stuck to the pan! Our breakfast was a complete disaster.

While we laughed it off, and managed to take a couple tasty bites of the mess, I got to thinking about failed recipes. Have you ever gone through a similar experience, where the recipe doesn't work? What recipe was it and how did you handle the situation?