white asparagus

20 Thursday Apr 2023

Posted by in air fryer, azahars kitchen, homecooking

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white asparagus

I have never prepared and cooked white asparagus before so when I saw some this week at the market winking at me I thought I would give it a go. First thing is you have to peel these guys and then… well, I opted to just toss them in olive oil with s&p and some mixed herbs and give them the ol’ airfryer treatment. And they were just lovely . Made some crispy fried boneless free range chicken thighs too, served with my spicy salsa az. Not sure if I’d go out of my way to buy white asparagus again. What do you think?

my people

19 Wednesday Apr 2023

Posted by in friends, sevilla

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mar reyes me

I have a lot of pals and acquaintances here, people I’ve known for years whose company I enjoy and it’s always great meeting up with them. We always have a fab time and I look forward to seeing them again. But friends… that’s a whole other thang. My friends who actually know me also know I have a lot of trust issues due to my personal history and they get it when I sometimes say or do something that is confusing or even at times upsetting… it’s part of me, that I can’t always keep all of my feelings inside. These few get it, give me the benefit of the doubt, we talk things over and we’re good to go again. Or (even better!) they just shrug and ignore it knowing I am just having a moment, no biggie, no pasa nada. And even best is when they ask “hey are you okay?” instead of jumping to conclusions, then judge and condemn me, and walk away.

Somewhere in between are these two lovelies, and especially Reyes (centre) whom I’ve known for many years now and who has become someone I actually love and value and we’ve built trust between us. A more recent addition to my inner circle is Mar, and she is also someone I enjoy (and even sometimes confide in). But it’s scary for me, letting people in. So with the “in between” people I am still careful not to say too much, not to… well, to be honest I don’t know. Not to just be me I guess. This is obviously no reflection on them, they are lovely, it’s all on me. Just to say that I appreciate everyone who is a part of my life, and my social circle. I don’t know where I’d be without them.

For example, this photo was taken at Casa Morales. I’d taken Mar there to meet Reyes and we had the best time over a delicious lunch. It was clear we all had a lot in common and especially that we care about a lot of the same things. So I’m looking forward to more good times with these two.

antequera getaway 2023

18 Tuesday Apr 2023

Posted by in andalucia, getaways

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antequera (1)

My last trip before Covid lockdown was March 11-12th 2020 when I went to visit some wineries in the Axarquía and also near Antequera, culminating with a visit to Bodega La Capuchina before heading home. Little did I know while I was coming back on the train that evening that the world was about to change.

Then a few weeks ago my friend Jeffrey and family moved to Marbella from LA and since then he’s been foodie-ing up a storm visiting bars and restaurants all around Andalucía. He hadn’t heard of Arte de Cozina (and I hadn’t been there since 2016 with Victor) so when he invited me for lunch I leapt at the chance to go back. As we had some extra pre-lunch time I got in touch with Susana at La Capuchina and she very generously offered to pick us up at the train station to visit her bodega and her assistant Mercedes took us to Antequera in time for lunch, dropping us off right in front of Arte de Cozina.

And what a lunch it was! Our friend Victor was supposed to meet us there but was a last minute cancellation, which was a shame not only because I was looking forward to seeing him again, but also because we really could have used an extra stomach (!!!). Jeffrey and I did the best we could but couldn’t finish everything. Chef Charo Carmona and her somm son Fran took excellent care of us, as they do with everyone, and it was a crazy delicious experience (listed below).

Afterwards we had to find our Victor-less way back to the Santa Ana station by taxi (he was going to drive us) and both of us ended up missing our connections, so a long wait ensued in the most charmless middle-of-nowhere spot imaginable. Even the Sad Café was shut. Oh well… it was still a fab day out. Lots of good memories.

antequera (2)

•Selection of porras: tomato, blanco and orange
•Croquetas de la casa (with ensaladilla): puchero, bacalao, gambas, espinacas y piones, queso de cabra, setas, chorizo
•Baby artichokes with crispy garlic and Pedroches jamón
•Pork-filled calamares a la malagueña with potato purée
•Traditional lomo de orza – a MUST HAVE
•Choto malagueña (baby goat) a la pastoril

gente en rama

17 Monday Apr 2023

Posted by in sevilla, sherry, wine

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tio pepe en rama 23 (1)

This year’s Sevilla presentation of the 2023 Tío Pepe en Rama took place at the glamourous Villa Luisa. Each spring this limited edition selection is chosen by Gonzales-Byass master wineblender Antonio Flores from two of the oldest Téo Pepe soleras, Rebollo and Constancia, and it is then bottled without filtration or clarification to ensure the freshest “straight from the barrel” fino sherry experience.

I had a great time meeting up with so many friends and colleagues. The sherry community here is quite a special one. My only “complaint” is that we weren’t given a bottle of this year’s en rama to take home as on other occasions. Time to go shopping…

tio pepe en rama 23 (2)