The boyfriend & I went to Spain for a holiday in the Summer – it was his idea really, he was mad to go to La Tomatina (tomato fight) so we decided to Ryanair it to Barcelona for three days, then head to Valencia for the festival and then to Madrid for two days sight-seeing.
The festival was, well, different - I’ll try and set the scene. According to the guide books, La Tomatina kicks off in a quaint town called Bunol about 40km’s from Valencia at 11am on the last Wednesday in August. Tomatoes are released into the streets after the hooter sounds, which marks the start of the tomato fight and ends with the second hooter about 40 minutes later. All the revellers then descend on the local river to clean off and party into the night. Within 2 hours, you wouldn’t know La Tomatina even took place and the only rule is that the tomato is crushed before it is thrown.
Now for what really happened. We arrived at Valencia train station at approx 7am along with about 5000 other people who had the same idea and managed to squeeze on to a train to Bunol. Talk about the longest journey of my life – not because of the duration, because of the drunken MEATHEADS we had to endure on the trip. I won’t say what nationality they were as we met some other lads of the same nationality on the way home who were lovely.
Anyway, we arrived in Bunol and there was a brilliant party atmosphere, music pumping out of cars, loads of stalls selling cheap beer and good fun all round. We made our way down to the main street which is a narrow street with old flats lining the sides. There was a real air of anticipation all around with everyone waiting for the hooter to sound. There were a few tv cameras up high and all sorts of things were being thrown, flip-flops, t-shirts, shorts, cans, etc. The locals were throwing buckets of water on the crowd from high which was quite nice and refreshing in the heat, it helped to add to the excitement.
Then the hooter sounded; and nothing happened. A few minutes later, the stench of over ripe tomatoes hit us and a dump truck slowly made its way though the crowd & dumped it’s load at the end of the street. The truck drove up past us and everyone had to push in against the wall (think Heysel stadium), then the next truck arrived up and released it’s load by us.
Now, remember back to the rule – you must crush the tomato before you throw it. That rule applies for the first 3 minutes, after that, all tomatoes are reduced to a river of sludge on the ground, handfuls of which are dumped on your head (most people wear goggles). By the time the fifth truck began to make its way through the street, I’d had enough. I was beginning to panic (I’m a little claustrophobic as it turns out) and needed to get to a quiet side-street. I saw the opening, grabbed the boyfriend & went for it. Not my finest idea I have to say as we got caught in a scrum and were hauled from side to side by the crowd, and then, thankfully, the hooter sounded and everything calmed.
We all walked to the “river” to wash off the sludge. The "river" was basically the run off from a pipe in the side of a wall perforated with holes which became a make shift shower so we gave the river a skip & managed to get a hole in the pipe to clean ourselves under. We binned our t-shirts, bought new ones and went for a drink while drying out in the sun.
Bunol isn’t really quaint, it’s just a small town with a lot of flats and doesn’t really have a whole pile to offer in the form of bars / restaurants. Once we dried off, we made our way to the train station to scrummage on to the next train out of there. Once back in the hotel, I hopped into the shower and stayed there for at least 40 minutes but the stench of tomatoes didn’t leave my memory for weeks – shudder.
You’re probably wondering what this has to do with my Sunday lunch? Well it’s my blog & I’ll write what I want to, only kidding, I thought it was a good holiday story and leads to my love of tapas.
While in Barcelona, we had some of the best food I’ve ever had (maybe second to Cinque Terre in Italy). We had the most delicious tapas every day and even ate in a restaurant that Picasso & Gaudi used to frequent in their hay day so since then, any excuse and I’m doing tapas for dinner. It doesn’t have to be difficult, just use up what you have. I used up some leftover mash potatoes for cheesy croquettes, ham & peas and cod fritters. I usually cook patates bravas (brave potatoes) but that recipe wouldn’t have used up the mash so you’ll have to wait for next time.
Spanish Tapas
What You Need
Cheesy Croquettes
Mash potato
Cheddar cheese
Breadcrumbs
2 eggs, 1 separated & 1 beaten with the leftover egg white
Flour
Ham & Peas
Some pancetta, bacon of Serrano ham chopped up
Some shallots or an onion finely sliced
Peas
Salt
Cod Goujons
A piece of cod cut into strips
What You Do
Cheesy Croquettes
- Mix the mash with the yolk from the separated egg, add the cheese and season if not already done (if using leftovers, the mash will be seasoned).
- Take a spoonful of mixture & shape into a croquette.
- First, dip the croquette in the flour, then the beaten egg, then the breadcrumbs.
- Gently fry in a pan until golden on all sides.
Ham & Peas
· Sweat the onion in a pan for about 5 minutes and add the pancetta.
· When the pancetta is cooked, add the peas and salt.
· Stir until the peas are cooked & ready to serve.
Cod Fritters
- Dip the cod in the flour, egg & breadcrumbs.
- Gently fry until golden brown.
- Serve with aioli (I’ll give the recipe for this another time)
Just so you know…. I’ve used red onion with the peas – they looked burned in the pic but they’re not. My pics need a lot of work!!!!
I looove Barcelona, had a fab meal in that Picasso restaurant too (I think it's called 'Quatre Cats'). Next time you visit be sure to make a trip to Cacoa Sampaka - a fantastic chocolate shop!!
Posted by: Kate | January 14, 2008 at 11:11 PM
Hi Kate, i'll def be going back to Barca; I just loved it so thanks for the tip, all foodie travel tips are welcomed.
Posted by: Sarah | January 15, 2008 at 08:31 AM
The croquettes sound wonderful, lucky you going to Spain, though I don't know about the tomato 'bath!'
Posted by: Lisa | January 16, 2008 at 02:43 PM
Lisa, yeah, give it a miss. Spain's worth a visit though, next stop for us will be the Basque region which is supposed to be a foodie haven!
Posted by: Sarah | January 16, 2008 at 03:06 PM
Was in the Mexican the other night and they have a small selection of tapas on the menu which were really good - we tried croquettes, squid and nachos. Pity about the Argentinean beef, very tough but had a great flavour!!:(
Posted by: lorraine@italianfoodies | January 20, 2008 at 01:30 PM
Now that is good information. I still haven't been there so have it on the list of places to try out.
Posted by: Sarah | January 21, 2008 at 08:51 AM