• Tortilla (Spanish Omelette, serve 4 people)

• Champiñones al ajillo (garlic mushrooms)

• Romesco (Romesco sauce)

• Patatas con all i oli ( Potatoes with All-i-oli)

• Buñuelos de bacalao ( Salt cod Fritters)

• Vieiras con salsa Romesco (scallops with Romesco sauce)

• Sardinas al vinagre con aceite y ajo. (Vinegar cured sardines in olive oil and garlic)

• Croquetas de huevo (Egg Croquettes)

• Mahonesa (Mayonnaise)

• All-i-oli

• Bechamel (Bechamel or White Sauce)

• 1 potato (medium size) per person
• 1 medium size onion
• 5 eggs
• Olive oil
• Salt

Peel and dice potatoes, chop or slice onion and place them in a frying pan. Cover with oil and fry slowly until soft (poach).

Beat the eggs in a bowl.

Strain potatoes/onions and keep oil for further use.

Mix all ingredients together and season.

Heat frying pan with a little oil until it starts smoking. Pour mixture, reduce heat and cook both sides until golden brown.

• Button mushrooms (as little as posible) ½ kg.
• Garlic 2-3 cloves
• Parsley spoonful
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil 70 ml.
• Fino sherry 50 ml

Put oil in a frying pan. Add chopped garlic and before starts to brown add mushrooms. Toss until they start to get fully cooked, add a bit of sherry (some recipes include a bit of lemon juice. Up to you). Simmer briefly and serve with a sprinkle of chopped parsley.

• Ripe vine tomatoes 2 only
• Red capsicum 1 Large
• Garlic 4 cloves
• Almonds 50 gr.
• Sherry vinegar 70 ml.
• Baguette 1/2
• Extra virgin olive oil 250 ml.
• Spanish sweet paprika (pimenton) 70 gr

Roast tomatoes, capsicum, garlic and almonds in the oven (180º C). Peel and seed tomatoes and capsicum, place them in a blender with vinegar, paprika and some fried bread and reduce to a paste. Pour oil slowly while blending. The sauce should not be to thick although if you are going to use it to "nappe" (cover) another product, you may make it thicker so it stays. This sauces very well for a number of days in the fridge.

• Diced potatoes (2x2 cm)
• Garlic
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Eggs

In a blender or food processor place abundant garlic, an egg or two, oil and salt. Blend them together and pour over deep fried potatoes (as above).

In some parts of Spain this recipe is made with boiled potatoes.

• Bacalao (salt cod) unsalted 250 gr.
• Eggs 2
• Garlic 1 clove
• Plain flour 150 gr.
• Baking powder 1 teaspoon
• White wine ½ glass
• Pure olive oil enough to deep fry

In a bowl place eggs, flour, wine and chopped garlic and make a batter. Add shredded unsalted bacalao. With the help of a spoon drop little amounts of mixture and fry in abundant oil at 170º C.until golden brown.

Tip: the same recipe can be made for lamb or pig. Place them in water over night to bleed and cook them before adding them to the batter.

Don't put too many dollops of batter at a time or the temperature may drop, causing a number of problems including oil absorption.

Tip: to unsalt salt cod keep in abundant water for some 24 to 36 hours, according to thickness, changing water every 4 to 6 hours

• Scallops on shell 1 per person
• Romesco sauce (see "Sauces")

Grill or cook them in a hot oven. Once cooked place a spoonful of Romesco sauce over them.

Tip: Don't let scallops cook very long otherwise they loose all the juices and shrink becoming rubbery.

• 1kg Sardine fillets (alternatively use shark, ruderfish, garfish…)
• 500ml white wine vinegar
• 1 garlic (head) chopped
• 500ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Chopped parsley
• 70gr salt

Method

Mix vinegar and salt in a container and add sardines one at a time and marinate in the brine for 24 hours. Remove sardines from brine. In a container, make a layer of sardines, cover with oil, sprinkle with garlic and parsley. Keep adding layers until all the fillets are used. Allow sardines to rest in refrigerator for at least one day. They are better after 2 or 3 days.

(Is important to put one fillet at a time in the brine, otherwise they may stick together and won't pickle)

• Flour 200 gr.
• Olive oil to fry.
• Milk 1 Lt.
• Eggs 8
• Onion 1
• Bread crumbs 200gr

Make a thick bechamel (recipe on "Sauces"). Add soften chopped onions and chopped hard boiled eggs. Allow cooling before roll them and crumb them. Deep fry.

• Egg yolks 2
• 100-150 ml. Extra Virgin Olive oil
• White wine vinegar or lemon
• Salt

Mix all ingredients in a bowl (avoid aluminium) and stir until fully mixed. Start pouring oil very slowly, hardly a trickle, while beating in a circular motion or figure eight.

Tip: should mixture split, start again with a bit of water in the bowl and start beating while pouring split mixture.

Recipe for a stab blender.

• Eggs 2 whole
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil 200 ml.
• White wine vinegar or lemon
• Salt

Place all ingredients in a tall glass or similar container. Place blender right on the bottom an start blending wile lifting the blender very slowly to the top.

Tip: it is important the size of the container. If it is to wide it may not emulsify. It should be slightly wider than the blender it self.

• Authentic
• Garlic cloves 4-6
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil 150 ml.
• Salt

In a morter, reduce garlic and salt to a paste with the pestle, then start pouring oil very slowly while stirring very gently but constantly. Keep doing so until all the oil is fully incorporated. Do no try to extend it with more oil or it may split.

Tip: this recipe is not for people in a hurry or for those with short fuses since it splits very often. For those with less patience I would advise to do a mayonnaise (see recipe) and add garlic.

• Extra Virgin Olive Oil 50 ml.
• Plain flour 50 gr
• Milk ½ Lt.
• Salt, pepper, nutmeg

Put oil in saucepan and allow to warm up, before adding the flour (that's called "roux"). Mix thoroughly and start pouring some milk while whisking. Once you have a smooth paste, free of lumps, add the rest of the milk and return to the heat. Season and keep stirring slowly until it fully thickens. Allow to simmer for some 8-10 minutes stirring occasionally to avoid sticking and the formation of skin. The thickness of the sauce would depend on what it is intended for. For a thicker bechamel increase the amount of roux.

Tip: do not use aluminium pans or the bechamel would get a grey colour and metalic taste. In some cuisine books, the milk is poured hot. I much rather use my method since I get less chances of lumps forming. Should such a thing happen to you, use a stab blender or any other blender to break any lumps before cooking it.