Stephanie's Once Only Recipe: Peach crumble dessert (a variation or two...)

A simple thing

This is just right for the end of summer (it IS coming to an end, I keep getting told), when peaches are a-plenty and a change from apple crumble might be welcome (yes, you can add apple to this, too!). Seems about right for a dessert after a late summer barbecue... These amounts are enough for 10 or 12, so you may want to cut down a bit. Also, there is another kind of peach you can use that is much available locally (see below). (Prep time: 15 mins, Baking: 25 mins.)

This week's Once Only Recipe: Pear Panini and Confetti Salad

This week I thought a refreshing salad and Panini-styled sandwich to compliment the wonderful, cooler late evening weather for supper would be perfect. So, to use the fresh cucumbers, mint and tomatoes that are still coming in, I made this great treat from the Colorado Classique cookbook (available from Amazon). The confetti salad is so easy and yes, you can use canned or frozen (thawed) corn if you can't get it fresh.>>>

Stephanie's Once Only Cooking Recipe: Lemon & Honey Muffins

This week I wanted to use some of the lemons and the abundant mint from the garden, so I thought a quick breakfast would be a good way to make yummy use of both and I had some great local honey which is just perfect for this recipe. This would also make a great dessert on a hot summer night! For the yoghurt, I like the plain/unsweetened cremoso Greek style (Milbona from Lidl is good) as it is very creamy and holds up well with the berries. Here's what you'll be needing for making the muffins as well as what makes it different:>>>

Stephanie's Once Only Recipes: Watermelon Feta Basil Bites

Summer and watermelons are synonyms of each other. Add basil and we're getting fresher. Now add feta cheese, and this becomes the summer appetizer. Get a few friends round, a cool drink or two, maybe even a barbecue ... serve these mini brochettes before hand, using local produce, and that's it. And, yes, you can substitute a leaf of mint for the basil, maybe, and even use another kind of cheese - you can get feta easily in Spain, but try a Manchego Semi-curado (that's the not-too-hard one, and less salty-tasting). Here's the how, which does not require further education:>>>

Our Once Only Cook's recipe: is a frittata a fry-up?

I want to share readers a great simple breakfast recipe I made today! They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day and that if you want to loose weight or not gain any, NEVER skip it! You can substitute any veggies you have in the fridge or herb flavours you prefer or have on hand, the same format works every time! Before that though let me include a link to a great website for conversions since I often use US measurements: http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0001723.html. So here's breakfast:

Stephanie's Once Only Recipe: Cucumber salad variations

Cukes and onions

This is a lovely, fresh summer salad. Not heavy, very refreshing. It probably won't be enough on its own, so make it a side dish that goes with anything. The secret is in the thin slices and keeping everything cold - and the proportions of spices; you can add almost any kind of herbs and spices, some ideas: mustard seeds, dill seeds or leaves, you name it. Below are a couple more ideas in detail. This will provide between 6 to 8 servings. Enjoy!

Who is she, and why does she cook only once?

Our Once Only Cook

Stephanie Moss's first recipe for CampoPulse went up last Tuesday. We promised some more information on her, so just scroll down and you'll get the whole kit and caboodle, which she wrote herself. Stephanie has kindly sent in a whole bunch of recipes she has used over the years, so we can make a regular feature of them. They will be appearing every Tuesday until we run out, or she does. Her entire 'food bio' is below, and it makes interesting reading (find out what the three exceptions to her Once Only rule are). Tune in tomorrow to see her recipe ...

Three categories for jamón serrano to avoid consumer confusion

SPAIN One of Spain's two greatest exports (in our opinion, the other one being the siesta), jamón serrano, has been the subject of negotiation between the various autonomous regions with an interest in the subject, and various jamón producing organizations, known as sector ibérico ('Iberian sector', after the porcine breed used to produce it). The complex negotiations went on for some eight months, supervised by the central government's Ministry of Agriculture. Among the objectives was to protect the purity of the Iberian pig, to watch over production methods and proper labelling, all of which would avoid confusion among consumers.>>>

A colourful summer salad using pomegranates

(From PetitChef) Here's a great summer salad using one of Spain's very delicious fruits, the pomegranate (granada) and another easy-to-find vegetable, the aubergine (berenjena, or eggplant in the US). Having had recent imagined words about vegeterianism we've checked carefully, and there is no indication of any kind of meat here, so this recipe covers all tastes and needs. (No, we don't know where our sudden interest in food comes from, either. It's not MasterChef cos we never saw it.) Okay, here's what you'll need:>>>

Is vegetarianism good for you? New study says it might prolong life

This item comes as a result of an imagined conversation with two of Prospero's vegetarian (Vegan, even) friends. Prospero is a meat eater who would live on a diet of almost-raw steak if his finances allowed. (Come to think of it, this item should be sponsored by La Vía Restaurant, which offers a wide vegetarian and vegan menu. Okay, it is.)

CHICAGO Vegetarian diets are associated with reduced death rates in a study of more than 70,000 Seventh-day Adventists with more favorable results for men than women, according to a report published Online First by JAMA Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. The possible relationship between diet and mortality is an important area of study. Vegetarian diets have been associated with reductions in risk for several chronic diseases, including hypertension, metabolic syndrome, diabetes mellitus and ischemic heart disease (IHD), according to the study background.>>>

What's for lunch today? Couscous, pumpkin and prawn salad

Here's a good idea: a couscous, pumpkin and prawn salad (by Laura Vichera) For the salad you'll need 350g of cous-cous (cuscús, normal or wholemeal); 300 g of nice big prawns (gambas, though not necessarily the very large expensive ones), a large slice of orange pumpkin (calabaza); 2 small spring onions (cebolleta); 1 red pepper (pimiento rojo); and a few saffron strands (hebras de azafrán). For the dressing: several mint (hierbabuena or menta, two different varieties of mint) and coriander (cilantro or culantro) leaves; a pinch of Paprika (pimentón); Tabasco; a few drops of raspberry vinegar (vinagre de frambuesa, though another kind can be used); freshly ground salt and black pepper; olive oil. Here's what you do:>>>

This is Spain's MasterChef's winning recipe

MADRID Spain's version of MasterChef, which towards the end of this first series scored over 15 million viewers, came to the end on Tuesday night. The winner was one Juan Manuel, who was given the top prize by a jury that included Spain's very top chef Ferrán Adriá (See the last show below). Prizes included €100,000, a recipe book deal, a job offer from Bilbao's Berria Group of restaurants and attendance at Cordon Bleu Madrid's Le Grand Diplôme course. Here's his winning recipe:>>>

Gazpacho reinvented - fresh summer ideas

Figs and prawns, anyone?

ANDALUCÍA With the possible exception of inhabitants of distant planets, everyone knows gazpacho - liking it is an option. Speaking of options, the word gazpacho originally defined  a 'mixture', without specifically mentioning tomatoes, olive oil, garlic or cucumber, or anything else. This, then, offers the possibility of alternative ingredients. And it is not surprising that these come from the birthplace of gazpacho (well, one of the places claiming so, but more on this later) the Barceló Renacimiento Hotel in Sevilla, where a special menu of five cold soups has been designed by the hotel's senior Chef, José Antonio González. The variations include>>>

Today is the first day of a new 'route' in Tarifa: La Ruta del Atún

TARIFA At 7pm tonight the first edition of a 'Tuna Route' will be opened officially by local authorities - the 'route' (similar to tapa routes with visits to several establishments) last until Sunday. The idea is to promote the gastronomic use of the Red Tuna of the Straits. Tarifa, where 29 restaurants and bars are taking part, joins the project that has been used in several other locations along the coast of Cádiz. Find out more on the official page on the subject: Tuna Route of Tarifa (in English). (The subject of fishing the tuna, called almadraba, deserves a much fuller article here, and we have been planning for one for some time - maybe we'll get it together soon.

Readers' question: Where can I leave food for the food bank?

CAMPO DE GIBRALTAR Further to our earlier article Food bank beats its own record, several readers have asked how they can help. Almost every village or town in the area has some form of free food distribution system, though not necessarily a food bank as such. Much of the distribution is carried out by Cáritas, the Roman Catholic Church international charity, at parish level, though they collect from the big supermarket chains as well as from local contributors - look out for collection boxes near the exits of your local shops. In the Campo, the central food bank premises in Algeciras distributes not only food but other essential items such as nappies and shampoo, for instance, to the Cáritas volunteers in each village. Local distribution is usually carried out at or near parish churches. All you have to do to find out where and when, is ask at your local church (then PLEASE  let us know, so we can publish a list of all of them). Below, we have used  Jimena as an example (because it's closer and we can help more readily):>>>

Small business initiative creates mini-factory for food production

Ayuntamiento, Castellar Nuevo

CASTELLAR Making food at home for sale does not meet health and sanitation requirements. So Castellar Council is promoting the idea of a small multi-purpose factory where food can be made according to current standards, which will allow it to obtain all the necessary permits for sale to third parties. The mobve comes from a recent seminar on food production held in the village, where numerous residents presented their interest in producing such items as yoghurts, cheeses, jams, sweets, marmalades, jams and even canned vegetables fronm materials available in the municipality. The idea then took a turn of reality when Mayor Juan Casanova suggested it would be possible to turn municipal premises next to the football grounds, consisting of some 250 m2, into a small factory for this purpose. It will need to get a Registro Sanitario de Industria (RSI) certification, which is not seen as an obstacle so far. The idea is for a cooperative effort to take shape, which it is hoped will at least employ several people at present unemployed and having a hard time of it.

Basque restaurant dethrones Danish rival on The World's 50 Best list

The Roca brothers

CATALONIA/Girona The Celler de Can Roca in Girona, rose from 8th position last year to the top spot on The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2013 list by the UK's Restaurant magazine. In doing so, they displaced Redzepi's Noma experimental establishment in Copenhagen, which topped it for the last 3 years, after the 5 of El Bulli's reign (Celler is only 50 kms from El Bulli). In fact, there are 3 Spanish restaurants in the top 10 list, and 5 in the top 50. (See the full 50 list below.) (Question: Why are we having a food day? Dunno.)

All on board for changes!

Just a sample
(English version below)

JIMENA In case you hadn't heard, Mingo is getting ready for summer with a lighter, more summery choice of menus. Lots of salads, more bar food, yummy desserts, and - if the weather is willing - an open terrace when the roof retracts. Mirella and Laurent will be keeping their choice of set menus for Sunday, with a lighter touch. If you need more details (you do!), please go to their JimenaLinks page. (We keep hearing wonderful things about this place!)

Monsanto MUST be stopped

Received by e-mail this morning:  One mega-company is gradually taking over our global food supply, poisoning our politics and putting the planet’s food future in serious danger. To stop it we need to expose and break up Monsanto’s worldwide grip. Monsanto, the chemical giant that gave us poisons like Agent Orange and DDT, has a super-profitable racket. Step 1: Develop pesticides and genetically modified (GM) seeds designed to resist them, patent the seeds, prohibit farmers from replanting their seeds year to year, then send undercover agents out to investigate and sue farmers who don’t comply. Step 2: Spend millions lobbying government officials and contributing to political campaigns, get former Monsanto bigwigs into top government jobs, and then work with them to weaken regulations and push Monsanto goods into markets across the world.>>>

From 'sell-by' to 'best by' for yoghurt

SPAIN As we announced in January, the Government yesterday changed the 'sell by' date (fecha de caducidad) on yoghurt for a 'best by' date (fecha de consumo preferente) that is to be decided by the manufacturer. A 'best by' date does not mean that a yoghurt cannot be eaten beyond that date, though it might lose some of its nutritional value. The announcement came from the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Environment, Miguel Arias Cañete, who announced, too, that his Ministry was now establishing a strategy called 'More food, less waste' aimed at cutting food waste by half by 2025. Some 7.7 tons of food is wasted every day in Spain and, according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization, about one third of the world's food production is wasted.