Spanish Tapas

After the interesting spices of North Africa, we go north to the flavors of Spain.  The foods that come to mind are paella, gazpacho and sangria.  None of these will appear on this weeks Table.  I wanted to try something different.  I chose tapas or 'small plates'. There are so many to choose from, it was difficult, but I was quite happy with all but one of those on my Table.  Here is what I had:

White Garlic Soup

Sauteed Peppers and Garlic

Marinated Mussels

Three Spanish Cheeses with Figs and Toasted Pine Nuts

On paper the soup sounded excellent; garlic, almonds and grapes.  However the garlic took over and the rest of the flavors were lost.  After a couple of spoons, it went into the garbage.  I have not done that in a long time.

So we move on to the 'good stuff'. A red bell pepper is cut in strips along with an Anaheim chili and sauteed in EVOO with a bit of garlic and lightly seasoned.  A colorful dish with excellent flavors.  It could not have been easier.

The next plate were the mussels.  I steamed them in a small amount of water, just until they opened. They are removed from the heat and cooled in a colander.  In a fry pan, onion and garlic are sauteed until softened. They are removed from the heat and salt, paprika, white wine and a bit of red wine vinegar are added.  The mussels are removed from the shells and heated in the broth for a few minutes.  They are served with toasted thin slices of French bread.  This is my new favorite preparation for mussels.

The last plate was a simple one.  The recipe called for Manchego cheese, but I found a package with three different Spanish cheeses and selected that instead of just the one.  They were Manchego (a sheep milk cheese), Tipsy Goat ( goat cheese), and Iberico (a mixture of sheep, goat and cows milk cheese).  They are thin slices and topped with slivers of dried figs and toasted pine nuts.  This was a very nice ending to my tapas meal.

All in all I was happy with the Table and I think I will do more tapas again soon.  So many possibilities!!

Next week is Easter and I will travel north to my family in Wisconsin.  We shall see what dinner brings. I am sure it will be amazing as always.

Have a good week!