Slow Cooked Leeks (Puerros cocidos)

This recipe for slow cooked baby leeks or 'puerros cocidos'  is all about the sweet, soft, melt in the mouth leeks that make perfect hot Spanish tapas.

We first had a version of this in our local village bar a couple of years ago as a tapa where we were served small rounds of super soft leek that almost disappeared on your tongue.  They are even more delicious served whole as a side dish or starter. A warming tapa is always welcomed on those colder day and with leeks being cheap and easy to buy and packed with flavour they make a great alternative tapa also suitable for vegetarians. Enjoy!

~ 10 minutes preparation ~ 1 ½ hours cooking ~

Ingredients:

8 small leeks (the smaller the better)

6 cloves garlic

2 fresh bay leaves

150ml extra virgin olive oil

150g unsalted butter

250ml white Rioja

Hot water

Sea salt

Freshly ground black peppercorns

Method: (serves 4-6)

1.    Chop off the green tops of the leeks, then remove as much of the outer layers as necessary so you are left with the neat white inner leeks. Wash and pat dry.

2.    Peel the garlic and slice.  Heat the olive oil in a large earthenware cazuela or oven proof dish and gently fry the garlic for 3-4 minutes until golden.

3.    Add the leeks to the cazuela in one layer and add the bayleaf.

4.    Add the butter, wine, a pinch of salt and enough hot water to just cover the leeks.

5.    Bring to the boil and then lower the heat to its lowest setting. Cover and cook gently for 50-60 minutes until the leeks are very soft, all the way to the centre.

6.    Remove the leeks set aside and keep warm.

7.    Turn up the heat under the cazuela and cook the liquid for 15 minutes.

8.    Transfer the leeks to a deep serving plate, pour over the reduced sauce and season again with salt and pepper.

Crema Catalana

Crema Catalana is a very popular dessert in bars and restaurants and you can readily buy premade ones but the home made version is by far the best.  It is basically just home made custard with a topping of caramelised sugar.  Simple but delicious.

Its not often we do desserts but this one and others like it are well worth a mention for those of us with a sweet tooth! You can also discover more Spanish dessert recipes in the soon to be published book "Mouthwatering Spanish Recipes" available this December on Kindle Fire. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

200g (7 oz) sugar

120 ml (4 fl.oz) milk

750 ml (25.5 fl.oz) milk

6 egg yolks

3 tablespoons corn flour

Cinnamon stick

Peel of ½ a lemon

Method:

1.    Beat 150g (5 ½ oz) sugar and the egg yolks together in a bowl

2.    Pour 750ml (25.5 fl.oz) milk into a saucepan with the cinnamon stick and the lemon peel and bring to the boil.

3.    As soon as the milk has boiled, remove from the heat and strain the milk into the bowl with the eggs, whisking continuously until they are blended together.

4.    Dissolve the corn flour into the 120ml (4 fl oz) of milk and stir into the larger milk mixture (which will now be custard)

5.    Pour the custard back into the pan and cook on a very low heat stirring all the time until it just starts to gently bubble.

6.    Remove from the heat and strain into small shallow cazuelas or dishes (straining the custard will remove and lumps which may have formed.) Allow the custard to cool so it is quite solid.

7.    To serve sprinkle each dish with the remaining sugar and then caramelise by heating a small metal spatula (until it is red hot) and placing on the sugar for a few seconds. Or place under a very hot grill for a few seconds, long enough to caramelise the sugar.

Makes 6 - 8 puddings

Pots of Spain

'Pots of Spain' is a brand new blog all about Spanish ceramics. We thought it was about time to write about something else we are both passionate about and that is Spanish pottery ~ from tapas bowls to garden pots and floor tiles you will find it all on Pots of Spain!

Terracotta and hand painted ceramics have featured on the Top Spanish Tapas since 2008 but now we are going into more depth looking at painting designs, techniques, where it is all produced, how and where to buy and much more. Pots of Spain focuses solely on Spanish ceramics and with so many designs and colours available we welcome you to pop by, be inspired and discover some traditional hand painted Spanish ceramics.

We will be covering all aspects of Spanish terracotta, hand painted ceramics from different regions of Spain, production, paints and the history behind the tradition as well as talking to producers. Spanish ceramics are vibrant, rustic, functional  and above all ooze 'Spain' so we welcome you to visit the blog, leave a comment or two and discover some lovely colours in almost every shape and size!

Pots of Spain

Iain & Gayle

Orce Serrano Hams in Australia

A word from our friends down under ~ 'Artesano'

For those of you living in Australia or if you have family or friends living there, you can now conveniently buy Orce Serrano products DownUnder. We featured Artesano de España back in our April news and events but are excited to announce the launch of their new e-commerce site at artesano.com.au perfectly timed for the coming festive season. 

Artesano de España have an exclusive range of Orce Serrano Hams products including authentic ceramic cookware and tableware from our Terracotta, Gaudix and Granada ranges.

They are based just North of Sydney and sell our products via their website. Artesano also maintain a regular presence at some of Sydney’s popular village and organic food markets so that their potential customers “can get to see an feel the products and basically fall in love with them” says Artesano’s creator Sarah Beard. You can keep track of where and when Artesano will be selling their wares by signing up to there newsletter at artesano.com.au or via their blog at artesanofromspain

Here at Orce Serrano Hams we get a lot of enquiries from DownUnder and according to Artesano’s Sarah Beard, “Spanish Tapas are “In” and they’re “Hot”. Tapas bars and Spanish restaurants are opening up in all the popular restaurant areas around Australia. Australians love tapas and the tapas style of eating is perfectly suited to their way of life and climate”. Gayle and I are really excited that we can now offer you a convenient way to buy our authentic Spanish artisan products in Australia.

Beard writes “We are currently importing a selection of Orce Serrano Hams, Spanish homewares for the kitchen and table, typically what we would call our "tapas range”. Traditional terracotta tapas dishes (cazuelas) for cooking and serving as well as Orce Serrano’s stunning artisan range of tableware and serving dishes from artist, Juan Manuels Guadix studio, Andalucia. We have also recently expanded our product line to include the highly sought after Granada range. With the festive season upon us these unique and very attractive pieces look stunning on any summer table. In addition we are increasing our range of sizes in the cazuelas as well as introducing the classic deep cazuela and the terracotta tapas trays. So there is a whole range of gorgeous authentic Spanish homewares to choose from for entertaining over the festive summer season. The quality and beauty of Orce Serrano Hams products make unique and classic gift ideas - all the way from Spain”.

Artesano de España plan to expand their product line to include many more of our unique products including our artisan olive wood products, much more of our decorative ceramics from the Jaen and Granada ranges, as well as products from our new Spanish garden & outdoor range, including Spanish mosaic tiles and house numbers.

 “At Artesano our goal is to provide our customers with unique products sourced from local artisans in Spain. The kinds of products that become the talk of the table, that catch the eye, that have a story and which all have a unique quality to them. Iain and Gayle at Orce Serrano Hams are enabling us to do this.  The quality and beauty of their product range is exceptional and we are very excited about bringing much more of  Orce Serrano Hams extensive range of authentic Spanish products bring an traditional Spanish experience that can be enjoyed in a contemporary Australian setting”

Thank you so much Iain and Gayle from Artesano de España and Australian lovers of authentic Spanish artisan products.

Spanish Terracotta

There is nothing quite like cooking in Spanish terracotta, it creates a warmth in the kitchen simply to look at and when you have a casserole bubbling away in a clay pot or traditional cazuela there is no denying the Spanish influence at work.

The Spanish cazuela or 'clay dish' is without doubt the most famous of Spanish glazed clay but there is so much more available, almost every shape, size and function either hot or cold every kitchen needs a little Spanish earthenware...

Made from mud... Spanish terracotta is literally that, mud, there are two types - white mud which is usually used for hand painted ceramics or brown mud (as a loosely used term in Andalucia) which is used for the more rustic of pieces including the terracotta cazuela and all of its many cousins.

The versatility of Spanish clay has been recognised for centuries, back in the day clay was used for almost every cooking vessel in the kitchen and arguably went out with the ark and has now made a significant comeback. Ask any budding cook, Spanish chef or even an old school Andalucian house wife and clay cooking is were its at, in fact Andalucia never lost the conception, yes there are paella pans when cooking a  good old rustic family paella, but one can still be conjured in a flat cazuela not to mention tapas and other hot dishes in the extensive array of pots and cooking trays available. The old fashioned Spanish kitchen is a wonderful place to visit, terracotta lies nested on shelves, a certain rustic influence that is typical all over Spain.

Well used terracotta becomes 'seasoned' after every use, particularly when used regularly over a high heat or naked flame, a Spanish cazuela or cooking tray really isn't christened until it achieves that fire licked black edge. A certain shine becomes evident as does weight in a well used terracotta piece, cooking in clay develops with every casserole, soup, leg of lamb, rice dish or braised rib and will certainly stand the test of time. Look after your Spanish terracotta and will look after you.

Made in unusual designs Spanish terracotta comes in all shapes and sizes, take the 'sarten' for example, the ultimate in simplicity... The sarten (frying pan) is a small terracotta cazuela with a handle. The handle itself has a hollow cavity running its length meaning that the handle remains cool when you have piping hot food over the grill or gas hob at the other end, simple works so why complicate things!?

For a more comprehensive look at Spanish cazuelas and other terracotta cookware take a look here and discover the versatility of 'mud from Spain'