SURIMI CAZUELA

Today we will cook something different. Not very expensive and really delicious. To top it off, it is also very easy to make. Let’s go to the kitchen.

Ingredients:

½ pound surimi sticks
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 dried red chili
1 teaspoon curry powder
Some extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste

We will start preparing the surimi sticks. Surimi is made of several kinds of fish. In fact Surimi means minced fish. It is something that is very rewarding. Good taste for little money. To prepare it, we will cut the surimi sticks to get a fibrous texture.
Now we will heat some oil, not too much, in a frying pan. Then we will add the surimi, the garlic and the chili, which we will have chopped previously. We will cook for about three minutes. Now we will lower the heat and we will add the curry powder and some salt to taste. We will cook for two more minutes. It is important to be stirring it continuously.
And in a while we will have our Surimi Cazuela ready. Perfect as an appetizer or as a tapa. Perfect to be served with some grilled fish too. You can put your Surimi Cazuela on a dish, and on top of it your favourite fish.
Enjoy!

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CORN CHOWDER

A delicious chowder for today. A delicious soup and very easy to make. I discovered it in the United States. I love American chowders. They are really rewarding. I think we should use spoons much more. You know what I mean. Talking about spoons, I love those round bowl soup spoons. I had never seen them till I came to the States. They are really good. But let’s make our Corn Chowder.

Ingredients:

Some extra virgin olive oil
½ chopped onion
½ chopped carrot
2 tablespoons chopped bacon
2 tablespoons chopped ham
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup frozen corn
1 potato, peeled and diced
2 bay leaves
½ teaspoon paprika
½ liter milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon parsley

First we will put some oil in a pan and let it heat. Once is hot enough, we will put the bacon, the ham, the onion and the carrot in the pan. We will cook it for a couple of minutes. Then we will add the celery, the corn, the potato, the bay leaves and the paprika. The next step is adding one cup of water and bring it to a boil. Cook gently, with the lid on, for about ten minutes or till the potatoes are almost done. We should stir it from time to time.
Now, in a container, we will mix the milk with the cornstarch. Once it is well mixed, we will add it to the pan little by little. It is important to keep on stirring. Keep on adding the milk, but little by little and stirring. Bring to a gentle boil and remove from the fire.
Add some salt and pepper to taste.
And finally, add the thyme and the parsley and serve.
Enjoy!

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TAPENADE

Olives and anchovies. I love Tapenade. It is perfect to spread on your favourite bread. And it is really easy to make. Let’s make it.

Ingredients:

7 ounces black olives, pitted
2 ounces green olives, pitted
1 teaspoon capers
1 can (2 ounces) anchovies in extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of chopped garlic
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

First we will start preparing the anchovies. To do that we will have to rinse the anchovies in water and then dry them with kitchen paper towel. Then we will put the olives, the capers, the anchovies and the garlic in a blender. We will add a tablespoon of olive oil and we will start blending our Tapenade. I do not like to blend too much. We will add more olive oil little by little and keep on blending till we get the Tapenade we want according to our taste.
Before serving, taste it to see if we need to add some salt. It will not be very probable. You can serve it spread on bread. Toasted bread or not. On crackers… It is up to you. Delicious. Enjoy!

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