Categoría: Recipes in english

NOTA: Esta receta está disponible en español abajo

Hi Everybody!

Today I want to propose to you a traditional recipe of my mother- in-law. It’s a recipe from Montreal.

I have to be honest: I’m not a big fan of meat loaf because I find that it’s kind of a “survivor meal” and it is far from any culinary effort. Even with that, I want to publish this recipe today. The reason: If there is a good meat loaf, this is the one. This recipe makes a tasty and juicy meat loaf.

And… you know, sometimes when we don’t have much time and we want something simple, it can be a better option than a TV-dinner…

Ok, let’s go with the recipe.

My mother-in-law Feli’s Meat Loaf

How to prepare:

As simple as mix all the ingredients until they have a uniform consistency. (I told you that you don’t need to be Ferrán Adriá to prepare this recipe).

Fill a cake mould with the mix. Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC) and bake during 1h 30.

And… that’s all folks!. Serve with mash potatoes and a sauce (tomate or onion gravy).

Kisses for the ladies and hugs for the men. Take care. I will be back.

See you soon,

Papa Rafa

NOTA: Esta receta está disponible en español abajo

Hi Everybody!

Wow! Times flies…

I didn’t realize how much time has passed since my last post. I thought that it was about a year ago but… it is almost two!!!.

Before I start with the recipe, I would like to apologize to all my followers for this long period of inactivity. I’m going to try to be back to doing my hobby and writing at least one post per month. It is one of my New Year resolutions for 2012. Will see if it gets done…..

The recipe that I am presenting today is a recipe discovered here in Montreal. One day we (my wife & I) went to have lunch to an amazing restaurant and we ordered this plate. As soon as I arrived at home, I tried my own version obtaining pretty much the same result.

Ok, let’s go with the recipe.

Goat Cheese & coconut milk lentils millefeuille

How to prepare:

The secret of this recipe is to prepare the lentils a little bit thicker than usual replacing 2/3 of water for the coconut milk.

Put the olive oil in a casserole and when it is hot add pepper, onion, garlic and ginger. Remove for a while until they become tender. Add tomatoes and coriander, remove and add the cup of lentils.

Remove and add salt, curry, ½ cup of water and the coconut milk.
Cover and leave boiling at medium heat 25 -30 minutes (or until the lentils are tender). Reserve.

Use a rolling pin to extend the pastry shell. Cut it in half.
Now, take one piece of pastry shell, put lentils in the middle, add 3-4 slices of goat cheese and fold over to close the pastry like an envelope. Repeat the process with the rest of the pastry shell.

Preheat oven to 200º C and bake them during 20-25 minutes (best option: follow the instructions of the pastry envelop because it depends on the brand)
If you want a nicer look and a crispy taste, you can paint the pastry with a beaten egg yolk before baking it.

And… that’s all!. This recipe is an exotic way to eat lentils. This plate is perfect for vegetarians.

Note: I use to do more than 2 (4-6) and freeze them. That way, if one day I have no time to cook or I’m tired the only thing to do is take one for the freezer and bake it for 20 minutes.

Ok guys, see you soon (I hope so). Kisses for the ladies and hugs for the men.

Papa Rafa

NOTA: Esta receta está disponible en español abajo

Hi Everybody!

Sorry for the delay in writing but during these weeks I’ve been really busy. It’s funny because technically, we are in Easter week and I thought that I would have more time but I haven’t.

Today I want to show you a different way to prepare Lobster. This recipe is based in the traditional recipe of Menorca (Baleares Islands, Spain) called “Caldereta de Langosta” but I’ve changed some ingredients to make it easier and cheaper.

In fact, the real recipe uses “Mediterranean Lobster” which is different than the “Canadian Lobster”. In Spain we call it “Bogavante”. Canadian Lobster is cheaper, easier to find and as good as the Mediterranean’s one (at least for this recipe).

So…, taking advantage that I live in Canada were we have lots of good Lobster at a really good price, I think it’s a perfect recipe to talk about, isn’t it?

This recipe is better if you use fresh Lobster but, I have to confess that I buy some when they are on special (more less 4,99 $ /Pound) and then I freeze them for an special occasion. In the kitchen, like in the rest of our lives, it’s important to manage our money

You can use this recipe as one complete meal, or maybe, combine it with a small starter but avoid combining it with a first dish because it’s going to be too much food.

Ok, let’s go with the recipe.

Lobster Stew

How to prepare:

Separate the heads of the lobsters and reserve. With a knife cut the bodies in medallions.

Heat a pot with a little bit of olive oil and fry the medallions, legs and with the 3 garlic cloves minced during 2-3 minutes. Reserve them in a plate for after.

Wash, clean, peel and finely chop all the vegetables.

In the same pot that we fried the medallions, bring up the heat and add the lobster’s heads. Add the onion, dried peppers, tomatoes, leek and parsley and let them cook for a while (2 minutes). Add the white wine and let the alcohol evaporate (about 5 minutes more).

Add the fish broth and let cook for at least 20 minutes. With a blender, crush and mix all (heads and veggies) until you have a uniform paste. Filter to eliminate any remains of shells just until you have a smooth sauce.

Reheat the sauce and add the medallions. Cook during 20 minutes and add salt and pepper to your taste.

While we wait, in a mortar, prepare a paste with almonds, the garlic clove, the parsley and one toasted slice of bread. Add this to the sauce with the medallions and legs.

Let cook for 2 more minutes and serve in plates with 2 toasted bread slices rubbed with garlic.

And…. That’s it!. Enjoy!!

Kisses for the ladies and hugs for the men. Take care. I will be back.
See you soon

Papa Rafa

NOTA: Esta receta está disponible en español abajo

Hello everybody!

One more week, one more recipe . This week it’s not exactly a recipe, it is a technique. I propose you the technique of how to prepare a perfect roasted lamb.

Now that I living in Montreal I miss some things of Spain. One is our weekend-excursion to Sepulveda, to eat one of the best roasted lambs in the world.

Sometimes, people think that the secret of a nice roasted lamb is to use spices, or a very complicated cooking process……Far from it. The simpler the better. That’s the secret. I’m sure some of you are going to think that I’m teasing you, but I am not. Believe me!!!

Here in Montreal, It’s easy to find nice lamb too. You can find lamb from Quebec that it is really tender and tasty. The problem is that it is pretty expensive but I found a nice place to buy fresh Quebec lamb at a very reasonable price. If somebody wants the address please, send me an email and I will give you more details (I don’t want make free publicity).

Ok let’s go with the recipe:

Perfect Roasted Lamb

How to prepare:

The secret (if there is one) is this: The first thing to do is soak the lamb in water during 2 hours. This is to “hydrate the lamb”. During this time, the lamb absorbs water and after, when we are cooking it, that water will make the lamb tender.

Preheat the oven to 190ºC. Put the lamb in a baking pot with salt and ¼ glass of water. Roast lamb during 2 hours and… ¡it’s ready!.

Easy & perfect!

Ok guys, see you soon. Kisses for the ladies and hugs for the men.

Papa Rafa

NOTA: Esta receta está disponible en español abajo

Hello everybody!

This week I want to publish one of the most traditional recipes that I used to prepare a lot in Spain. The other day, I received an email from Vir telling me that it was pretty strange that I’ve never published “las famosas patatas a la riojana que tanto comíamos en Pozuelo” (the famous Rioja style potatoes that we use to eat in Pozuelo).

This dish is a real typical dish from “La Rioja” (Region north of Spain and very close to Basque country). It is a winter dish and it’s perfect to combine with a nice red wine. Actually, La Rioja is one of the best areas of Spain for wines. There are some nice and great vineyards all around. Enjoy the month of September or October by having “patatas a la riojana” and drinking some nice wine like Montecillo, Muga, Marques de Riscal… or others. It’s a picture perfect day!

When I was living in Madrid with my friends (In “Esmeralda 14”, (the house that we were renting) I would prepare this plate for 2 reasons:
1. It’s Cheap
2. It’s sooooo good

Now, my life has changed but I still love to do this plate.

Here in Montreal it is not that easy to find nice chorizo. Here you can find chorizo, but normally it is Portuguese style or Quebec style and, both of them are really different to the Spanish one. I know one or two places to buy real Spanish chorizo but the price is ridiculous (very high compared to Spain). What I did? Simple: I made my own chorizo with the help of my mother-in-law.

Here you can see some pictures of my own chorizo. I’m not going to explain how to make chorizo now (it is another recipe) but if someone wants the recipe send me an email ¿ok?.

Well, after this introduction, let’s go with the recipe:

Patatas a la Riojana – Rioja style potatoes

How to prepare:

Peel the potatoes and the garlic cloves. Rinse the potatoes and cut with a knife in pieces of 2-3 cms.

Attention!: The secret of this dish is how to cut the potato. You don’t have to cut, you have to “crack the potato” that means: Make a small cut in the potato with the knife and after crack the piece without finishing the regular cut. This is very important because, doing this, the fibre of the potatoes gets broken and when we boil them, the water gets all the starch and turns thicker.

In a heated casserole, put olive oil and add the potatoes, the garlic, the dried sweet pepper (cut in pieces), salt and the chorizo. Fry them for 5 minutes in a high temperature and then add all the spices expect the paprika. Stir for a few minutes and add water just to cover them.

Lower the temperature of the stove and cook for about 15 minutes. Now, add the paprika, mix well and cook again during 10 more minutes or until the potato is tender.

It’s an amazing stew for winter.

And… that’s all folks! I hope you like it.
Kisses for the ladies and hugs for the men. Take care. I will be back.
See you soon,

Papa Rafa