A couple things have happened since my last post (9 months ago...ooops). I got a new job, I moved to Portland, Maine and my obsession with all things Spanish has gotten worse. At my new job I work with high school spanish exchange students scattered across on the US and constantly refer back to my experiences in Spain. Added bonus: I get to speak Spanish quite a bit too. I am keeping the dream alive as my 5 year plan includes moving back to Spain. In the mean time I am having a great time exploring Portland and the State of Maine. Maine is obviously an outdoor mecca: skiing, hiking kayaking, fishing, hunting, SURFING, boating, sailing, rock climbing...you name it you can do it in Maine. In that mecca, Portland feeds all those outdoor junkies and it is a foodie heaven: farm to table is super popular, amazing restaurants, bars and all kind of grocery stores (Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Hanafords, Rosemont all within 1 mile of each other). It is awesome. Seafood is also amazing..more to come on that later...
Keeping on with the food scene, we had a Spanish potluck and as 2 of the diners were vegetarian/vegan, it was time to scour my sources for Spanish recipes. The native spaniard was making a tortilla, salad had been called but luckily I stumbled across an amazing cookbook and later found another source, a blog called I Love Tortilla de Patatas where an Española who lives in the Netherlands writes and shares recipes for some typical Spanish foods.
I decided to make escalivada (catalonian roasted vegetables) and with guidance from this blog entry I made my own escalivada. More or less, you need a selection of onion, tomatoes, eggplant, garlic and red peppers, dress them in olive oil and salt in a roasting dish. Roast in the over for as long as you need (eye ball it!). Let them cool, peel, and marinate over night in more olive oil and some vinegar if you are so inclined. The next day, arrange in your own fashion on a serving dish, adorn with some fresh dill and voila....Escalivada! Enjoy my pictures and if you feel like actually making it...check out the recipe at the link above...hasta luego!!
