Andalusian Gazpacho & Catalan Vegetable Paella

Tonight’s dinner brought me back to my trip with my daughters to Barcelona last November. Or, should I say, MAKING tonight’s dinner brought me back to our cooking class in Barcelona. I even used the recipe for gazpacho that Emily made that night.

But tonight we served it in glasses.

As our main meal I made a vegetable paella…

Both dishes were full of beautiful vegetables and herbs from my garden.

Memories of Spain… garden vegetables… a satisfying vegetarian dinner… happiness.

Andalusian Gazpacho

from Barcelona Cooking

6 tomatoes (from the garden)

1/2 cucumber (from the garden)

1 garlic clove

1 small jalapeno pepper (from the garden)

1/2 red pepper

300 ml water

2 Tbsp sherry vinegar

1 slice bread (or 1 small homemade roll)

2 Tbsp olive oil

Directions

Grate the tomatoes and cut up all the vegetables.

Set aside a little (1 – 2 ounces) of the cucumber, green pepper and red pepper and dice them very finely to garnish the gazpacho.

Soak the bread in the water and vinegar.

In a bowl, mix all the vegetables together and pour the soaked bread in and blend while adding olive oil to emulsify.

Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Garnish, serve and enjoy!

Serves 4

Catalan Vegetable Paella

from Perla Meyers

tablespoons olive oil1 small fresh green chili pepper, finely minced (from the garden)

1 large Bermuda onion, peeled, quartered and thinly sliced

1 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded and thinly sliced

1 large green bell pepper, cored, seeded and thinly sliced

2 large cloves garlic, peeled and finely minced

1 ½ teaspoon imported paprika

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves (from the garden)

1 medium-sized zucchini, trimmed and cubed (from the garden)

4 large ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (from the garden)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 ¼ cups arborio rice

2 cups chicken stock or bouillon

Finely minced fresh parsley for garnish (from the garden)

Directions

In a large deep, 12-inch iron skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chili pepper, onion and bell peppers, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender and the onion is lightly browned.

Add the garlic, paprika, thyme, zucchini and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the skillet and simmer for 15 minutes.

Stir in the rice and chicken stock or bouillon and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes or until the rice is tender. Taste and correct the seasoning. Garnish with finely minced parsley.

Serve the paella hot as an accompaniment to roasted or grilled meats or as a light Sunday supper, directly from the skillet, accompanied by a well-seasoned green salad. The paella can also be served at room temperature, doused with fresh lemon juice and a drizzle of fruity olive oil.

Serves 4 – 6