June’s pick for our “Around the World in 12 Dishes” series is Spain!! In 1996 I spent a glorious semester studying abroad in Granada, Spain: we loved the winding streets and hidden plazas, the colorful festivals, hiking in the snow-covered Sierra Nevada, drinking tea and admiring the Islamic architecture, exploring the Albaicín and Sacromonte neighborhoods, witnessing the semana santa (Holy Week) processions, and of course studying our Spanish lessons in the courtyards of the incredible Alhambra (an ornate palace and fortress). We lived with host families, who really took care of us and helped us to acclimate to Spanish daily life- from bringing us on family trips to their homes in the countryside of olive groves and serrano ham, to conversing with us in Spanish, to introducing us to typical culinary delights.
One of my favorite dishes from Spain is a simple dish that kids love called “Tortilla de Patata.” Completely different than a corn-dough tortilla, this is more of an omelet with potatoes and onions, and lots of aromatic olive oil- from olives grown and pressed right outside the city of Granada!
Ingredients:
4-6 medium potatoes
1/2 onion cut into “moons”
garlic (optional)
6 large eggs (or more, or less depending on your pan!)
extra virgin olive oil
Recipe:
There are many ways to make tortilla de patata- imagine if someone asked 5 different people to make an omelet… you would get 5 different recipes. Here are two ways to make it, with only a slight variation. You can either cut the potatoes in half and then into “moon” slices, and cook them covered in olive oil until the are soft… or you can make mashed potatoes with a bit of olive oil and use them mashed. Be sure to season the potatoes because they really soak up the salt. For years I was making them with potato slices, and then recently my very good friend from Spain told me to try to mash them first– and now I’m hooked! The whole texture of the plate is different and I love it.
Either way, saute your onions (and if you’d like garlic- some are fervently against garlic, others wouldn’t eat it without it!) in olive oil and season them with salt, and then remove them from the heat. Beat the eggs in a large bowl to a smooth consistency, and then add the cooled down potatoes (or in a hurry just add them hot), salt, and onions.
Now heat up some olive oil in your nonstick skillet and when it’s hot, add the egg/potato mixture. Once the bottom side is set, place a plate over the top, flip the mixture onto the plate, add a bit more olive oil to the pan, and then slide it back into the skillet so the other side can cook. This is messy, and you will get raw egg everywhere the first couple of times:). The smaller the skillet, the easier this step is. See the video below for a visual of making tortilla de patata. I do it exactly like she does in the video and it turns out delicious!
Finally, enjoy your tortilla de patata! Cut it in wedges like a pie and serve for a light lunch/dinner, or on good crusty bread for a snack or appetizer. Let me know how it turns out!
This is the fourth post in the new season of “Around the World in 12 Dishes.” This year we have chosen the following countries:
March – Ireland
April – France
May – Finland
June – Spain
July – Kenya
August – Egypt
September – New Zealand
October – Korea
November – Thailand
December – Jamaica
January – Peru
February – Canada
We are inviting our readers to participate in our culinary adventure.
On our Facebook page and our Google+ community page we have a coloring placemant and a 4 page passport with lots of fun information for each country, plus questions, a spot for a photo of you and your dish, and space to put your own recipe! Each country will also have its own linky, where you can link up your own related posts- we would love to see your posts!
Participating blogs: Adventures In Mommydom, Creative Family Fun, Domestic Goddesque, Enchanted Homeschooling Mom, Glittering Muffins, Here Come The Girls, Juggling with Kids, Kid World Citizen, Kitchen Counter Chronicles, Little Artists, Mermaids’ Makings, Montessori Tidbits, Mummymummymum and The Educators’ Spin On It.
Visit the following links to see how other families are learning about Spain, and please share your adventures learning about Spain here:
Looks like a great recipe. I wonder how my kids would like it, they go back and forth on egg creations.
Great post, lots of info too. Thanks for participating again 🙂