We see these on the menu often—every little restaurant and pub serves them as an appetizer (we love tapas).
Ingredients:
2 hard-boiled large eggs
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 pound ground beef chuck
2 tablespoons raisins
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped pimiento-stuffed olives
1 (14-ounce) can whole tomatoes in juice, drained and chopped. Reserve 2 tablespoons juice
1 package frozen empanada pastry disks, thawed
About 4 cups vegetable oil
How to Prepare:
Cut each egg crosswise into 10 thin slices. Cook onion in in a heavy medium skillet …

Spent a beautiful evening in Villanueva de la Cañada. VdlC—our client city—is a well-healed hamlet on the edge of Madrid and actually part of the municipality of Madrid (as are over 100 other small towns surrounding Madrid proper). Cañada was nearly destroyed in the Battle of Brunete during the Spanish Civil War, so almost all of the town was built in the last 50+ years. City Hall is housed in a very traditional complex of buildings including a church and the old police station. The whitewashed-and-tile-roofed structures flank the city …

Had the good fortune to stumble across a little cantina in the old part of Barcelona. Decided to have dinner and people-watch. Sangria was phenomenal. Here’s a recipe:
Ingredients:
3 ounces triple sec
4 ounces brandy
2 cups orange juice
1/2 apple, peeled, cored and sliced
1/2 orange, slices from
1 liter cheap, dry red wine
3 cups ice

Pour ingredients into a standard-size pitcher. Add ice to chill, stir and serve. Serves 8.

We’ve been eating a lot of local food since we touched down in Barcelona 2 weeks ago. Lots of ham, cheese, bread, rice, squid, and a little pasta. And potatoes! The Spanish have a passion for french-fried potatoes but they don’t necessarily dip them in ketchup. At one little pub, one of the students was served a selection of dipping sauces for her patatas including hot mustard, ketchup, barbecue sauce and alioli (mmmmmm).
This sauce originated in Cataluña and has spread all over Spain. The name comes from the Catalan words …

Saturday in Barcelona… such a beautiful city. We were invited to visit a local university to both tour and discuss the possibility of a student (and faculty) exchange. The Universitat Pompeu Fabra is a very modern school, built inside the shell of an old factory. The curriculum focuses on training, research and production in the fields of communication and information technology Woody Allen used facilities at this school for post-production of his last film. The Spanish university system (and most universities in the EU) are transitioning to a standardized curriculum …