sardinas, a photo by Michael Thon on Flickr.

Sardines cooked over an open fire on an ‘espeto’ (a wooden stick)

Ingredients

8 poblano chiles

6 eggs

3 heaping spoonfuls of self rising flour

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tsp chile powder

2 tablespoons chopped green onions

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups grated mild cheese (Monterrey Jack or something similar) + an extra 1/2 cup for topping

Directions

First, you’ll need to blacken the skins of the poblano chiles and peel them off.  I did this by putting them under the broiler and turning them every few minutes until the skins start to turn black all over.  After you take them out of the broiler, put them in a bowl and cover the bowl to let them steam for a while. When they’re cool enough to handle, peel off the skins, cut off the tops and remove the seeds.  Poblanos are sort of thin, so you might tear them while you peel them.  Don’t worry, this dish will come out fine anyway.

Mix 1 1/2 cups of the grated cheese with the garlic, green onions and 1 tsp of chile powder.  Spoon this mixture into the chiles and arrange in a greased casserole dish.  Beat the eggs together with the flour, salt and 1 tsp of chile powder, and pour over the chiles.  Sprinkle more cheese over the top and bake at 375F for 20-30 minutes, until the casserole starts to brown on top.

1. Soak the beans over night.  I’m sure you’ve read that you can quick-soak beans by soaking them in boiling water for an hour before you cook them.  I have even seen recipes that cook dry beans directly, without any soaking.  A long soaking time helps to remove a substance found in most beans (a protease inhibitor) that can lead to flatulence (farts!).  I usually put the beans to soak the evening before I plan to cook them, and change the water once or twice.
2. Bring the beans to a boil, drain, and then bring to a boil again.  I got this tip from a shop clerk in a tiny village that is known for their particularly large variety of white dry beans.  Just place the beans in a pot and cover with water, bring to a boil, drain, and then they’re ready to use in your recipe.
3. Use a pressure cooker.  Pressure cookers are popular here is Spain but I haven’t seen one in the US in years.  A pressure cooker can cut the cooking time down by hours for soups and stews that contain dry beans.

Beans are a much more common part of the Spanish diet than they are in the US, although I’ve been told though that they’re decreasing in popularity.  Spain has a huge number of varieties, as you can see from the photo above.

Here’s a photo of some beans that we bought at a street market in Asturias, a region of Northern Spain.  I prepared them in a bean soup with kale and smoked sausages (also from Asurias).

photo credit: issyeyre

Garlic and olive oil go together like peanut butter and jelly.  A lot of people like to make garlic infused olive oil by putting a few garlic cloves in a bottle of oil, but as Garlicster says, that’s a good way to get botulism poisoning. Garlic flavored olive oil is easy enough to make on the spot – just when you need it.  Just chop or crush a clove of garlic and mix with olive oil and serve in a shallow bowl or on a plate.  If you like, you can saute the garlic in the oil for a few minutes over medium-high heat.  Serve with freshly baked bread.

Garlic

Stuffed Zucchini

Ingredients

2 Round zucchinis

8 Large white button mushrooms

1 Small onion

1 Clove garlic

1 Cup tomato sauce

4 Slices mozzarella cheese

Olive oil

Method

Wash the zucchinis and place them in a large sauce pan with enough water to ensure that they float.  Bring the water to a boil and let them boil gently for about 10 minutes, until the zucchinis just start to get soft.  Don’t overdo it or the zucchinis will turn to mush when you cut into them.  Take the zucchinis out of the water and put them in a bowl of cold water until they are cool enough to handle.  Cut them in half and scoop out the seeds with a spoon, making a cavity that you can fill.

Dice the mushrooms, onion and garlic into small cubes.  Saute in olive oil for about 5 minutes, then add a few spoonfuls of tomato sauce, stir it in and turn off the heat.  Fill the zucchinis and bake at 350 F for about 15 minutes.  Place a slice of cheese over each stuffed zucchini and put them under the broiler for a minute to melt the cheese and brown it slightly.  Serve hot on a bed of tomato sauce.

* (Okay, technically they’re spherical but most people just call ‘em round)

Photo courtesy of Mari & Nacho

Now is the time of year when we start to see fresh broad beans in the garden and in the markets.  Also known as fava beans, they are popular in Spain and Portugal, among other places.  This is a simple dish that you’ll find in a lot of restaurants in Spain, and housholds as well.  Spanish cured ham is hard to find in the United States, but  its italian cousin, prosciutto, is much easier to obtain, and makes a fair substitute.

Broad Beans with Ham

Ingredients

2 cups fresh broad beans

1/3 cup diced cured ham

1 large clove of garlic, chopped or crushed

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 onion, sliced (optional)

salt

Method

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and saute the onion, garlic and ham for a few minutes.  Add the broad beans, turn down the heat and cover, simmering the beans for about 10-15 minutes until they’re soft.  Serve hot.

photo courtesy of eflon

This is a great recipe to keep on hand when you start to harvest chard from the garden or when it arrives in the weekly produce delivery.  I also make this with spinach when I don’t have Swiss chard on hand.

Ingredients

1 large bunch of Swiss Chard

1 1/2 – 2 cups cooked chick peas (Garbanzo beans)  Canned is ok too

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 small onion, sliced

olive oil

salt

Method:

Wash the Swiss chard leaves well to remove dirt and sand.  Cut off the stems and save them for another recipe (coming soon!). Coarsely chop the leaves and place them with 1/4 inch of water in a pot or large sauce pan.  Heat to water to boiling and steam the leaves for 5-8 minutes. Drain well.  In a saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onions and garlic.  Saute for a minute and then add the chard and chick peas.  Reduce the heat and cover, stirring occasionally until it heated through.  Serve hot.

Learn more about:

Swiss Chard

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zordor/ / CC BY 2.0

This is a traditional dish from central Spain that makes a great side dish.  I have also seen it served as a tapa in bars.

Pisto Manchego

3-4 tablespoons olive oil

1 green pepper

1 red pepper

1 medium onion

2 small zucchini

2 cloves of garlic

4 cups of peeled and chopped tomatoes

1 small bunch of chopped parsley (about 2 tablespoons)

Chop the onion, peppers, zucchini into 1/2 inch pieces and mince the garlic.  Heat the oil over medium heat in a saute pan or an earthenware cazuela.  Saute the vegetables for a few minutes, and then add the tomatoes.  Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes, until the stew has a very thick consistency.  It is often served with a fried or hard boiled egg on top, as shown in the photo.