S … Spain

      Spain

With a diverse geography, history and culture, Spanish cuisine reflects influences

from Celts, Romans, Goths, Arabs and Berbers, from Persia and the East as well as the Americas and the indigenous Iberians, producing an array of culinary styles.

 

Our Spanish day was held at Jeannie’s.   At her request everyone brought ingredients to share in a huge Paella.

We started with Sangria on arrival as together we prepared the Paella.  We all supplied ingredients and Kathy did most of the cooking.

 

 

 

While the Paella was cooking we sampled our starters –

Julie’s Smoked Spanish Mackeral Dip, the fish caught and smoked by husband Laurie, 

 

 

 

 

 

Wendy’s Empanadas, which were a big hit.   She used chicken mince and chicken stock instead of beef to produce a tasty variation.

Empanadas

 

 

 

 

 

 

and Kathy’s Potato Tortilla which looked as good as in the photo.

Potato Tortilla

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gazpacho

Next was Pauline’s Gazpacho, with extra garlic, spices and cucumber.  Served by sitting the pot in a bowl of ice, it was a perfect addition on a hot day.

 

 

 

 

For our main course we had the Paella

Paella

 

 

 

 

 

 

We accompanied that with Spanish Chicken Casserole with Olives, that Chris prepared from her own recipe.

Spanish Chicken Casserole

 

 

 

 

 

Marie made a dessert of Creme Caramel with orange zest and cinnamon and garnished with orange slices.

Creme Caramel

 

 

 

 

 

 

We finished with Laura’s Tortas de Aceite – perfect with coffee or tea.

Tortas de Aceite

 

 

 

 

 

Credits:

The Paella was from taste.com.au

Wendy’s Empanadas were from taste.com.au.

Pauine’s Gazpacho was from Cook the Story

Laura’s Tortas De Aceite was from Gourmet Traveller

Kathy’s Potato Tortilla was from The Sydney Morning Herald’s Lifestyle section.

See our Recipes page for more recipes.

 

 

 

C…Colombia

Colombia

For our Colombia day we met at Pauline’s.  It was April Fool’s day so Jeanne tricked everyone with a dish of kitchen scraps destined for her chickens, which produced some bemused responses until we realised what day it was.

We started with Laura’s Bolitas de Yuca y Queso – Yuca Balls stuffed with cheese.  She had thought it would be fairly bland and was tempted to add to the recipe, but decided to keep it authentic.  The result was surprisingly tasty.

Yuca Balls

 

 

 

 

 

Julie prepared Sopa de Frijoles Negros (Black Bean Soup), a soup of black beans accompanied by side-dishes of chopped ham, rice and onion which could be added to suit individual tastes.

Sopa de Frijoles Negros

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jeanne also presented a soup, but this was a chunky combination of Lentils and Chorizo, with accompaniment of tomato, rice, avocado and yoghurt.

Lentil Chorizo Soup

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nadine made Carne Afanada, a self-saucing meatloaf.  A unique feature of this was that she used Green Banana Flour from Natural Evolution, a gluten-free product, in the recipe.

Carne Afanada

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chris made Colombian Empanadas, with beef and potatoes, served with creamy yellow mashed potatoes, Naca de Papas.

Empanadas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joan prepared a Banana-Pecan and Dulce de Leche Upside-Down Cake.

Banana Pecan Cake

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We finished with Pauline’s dessert of Dulce de Brevas – Figs in Syrup served with a fresh white cheese.  Instead of panela Pauline used brown sugar, and to substitute for queso fresco she blended equal quantities of ricotta and feta cheese.

Figs in Syrup

 

 

 

 

 

Credits:

Laura’s Yuca Balls was from My Colombian Recipes.

Pauline’s Dulce de Brevas also was adapted from My Colombian Recipes.

Joan’s Banana-Pecan and Dulce de Leche Upside-Down cake was also from My Colombian Recipes, with the Dulce de Leche from Epicurious.

See our Recipes page for more recipes.

E …. Eggciting Eggsperiments?

With the local smoked Eel supplier closed for renovations the question was “are there any E ingredients that don’t contain the word Egg”?  Maybe raid the garden for Escargot! 

For our meeting at Wendy’s, most settled for eggs or eggplant ingredients and a couple instead chose recipes starting with the letter “E”.  We had a large attendance and an interesting mix of recipes.

Di prepared Eggplant Antipasto Rolls that made an attractive presentation.

antipasto rolls

 

 

 

 

 

Julie supplied Empanadas; tasty Spanish/American parcels stuffed with seasoned pork.

Empanadas

 

 

 

 

 

Nadine’s Eggplant Doughnuts were an interesting twist on a familiar theme.

Eggplant Doughnuts

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joan’s Eggplant and Chickpea Salsa platter provided an great combination of flavours.

Eggplant & Chickpea Salsa

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pauline made Chilli Eggs with a Crispy Coconut Crust, served with dipping sauces.

Chilli Eggs

 

 

 

 

 

 

Laura prepared Stuffed Eggplants as well as Grilled Eggplant and Pickled Eggplant with crispy bread

Stuffed Eggplant

Pickled Eggplant

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chris produced classic Scotch Eggs from a personal recipe.

Scotch Eggs

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kathy’s Eggplant stuffed with Lamb and Pine nuts was a tasty combination

Eggplant with Lamb & Pine Nuts

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wendy, our host provided Egg salad with Smoked Salmon, Capers and Dill on gluten free bread

Egg Salad, Smoked Salmon and Dill

as well as dessert options of Espresso Coffee Cheesecake and Earl Grey Tea icecream.

Earl Grey Tea IceCream

Espresso Cheesecake

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jeanne decided to share a favourite old family recipe of English Pudding with home-made custard.

English Pudding

Credits:

Earl Grey Tea Icecream from Sweets by Sillianah

Egg Salad from finecooking.com