Cerveza, Cargols i Covid - a summer in Catalonia

[Duvel]

32 minutes ago, TicTac said:

clearly not flying at mach 1 down the Autobahn! 😛

Definitely not 😉

 

But then again - the travel to my wife’s hometown takes about two hours on a German Autobahn, and then almost 9h through France. With a general speed limit of 120 km/h. So, just put the speedometer in, start cruising and brake for the toll stations …

[Duvel]

The restaurant we picked it is one of my favorites here. I remember my first visit there almost 20 years ago; it’s the first restaurant I had grilled rabbit in. 
 

The restaurant is located in the hills flanking the coastline of northern Catalonia. It is rather “rustic” - a brasa or BBQ restaurant. The menu is therefore centered around grilled meats …

 

 

 

 

Once seated, wine, water, bread, oil & tomatoes are served. All this is included in a cover charge of 5€ per (adult) person.

 

 

 

For starters we had some fresh aubergine fritters (remember: calories !) …

 

 

Little one opted for the grilled lamb (good choice - very juicy) …

 

 

My wife took the grilled rabbit (of course) …

 

 

It was equally enjoyed by the little one …

 

 

All served with fresh and potent allioli !

 

 

I ordered the pigs feet. Their braised pigs feet are legendary, but I felt bad not to order the grilled one. After explaining my conundrum to the waiter he offered to split my portion and bring me half of each 😉. Both were unctuous, but the braised one was definitely better !

 

 

 

Thanks to our little exercise, there was still room for dessert …

 

 

 

Little one ordered mel i mato - a fresh Catalan cheese, served with honey.

 

 

My wife choose puff pastry filled with crema catalana.

 

 

I had a carajillo with brandy. I order it “short on the coffee”, which always provokes a laugh if a foreigner uses that sentence in Catalan and leads to a generous shot of Brandy in my coffee …

 

A very satisfying visit (again). After a leisurely drive home I decided to take a nap 😊
 

 

Edited August 17, 2021 by Duvel (log)

[rotuts]

@Duvel 

 

outstanding. !

 

and thank you for the Menu's

 

 

[Duvel]

3 hours ago, heidih said:

Yes they are quite a tribe of powerful determined women.  I've never tasted them. Can you describe?

I think they taste like sea water or brine …

[Anna N]

25 minutes ago, Duvel said:

Little one ordered mel i mato - a fresh Catalan cheese, served with honey.

A sophisticated choice for the little one but not in the least surprising!

[Duvel]

2 minutes ago, Anna N said:

A sophisticated choice for the little one but not in the least surprising!

 

I think he was more attracted by the honey. He ate one ball (with all of the honey) and I had to finish the rest ☺️

Edited August 17, 2021 by Duvel (log)

[weinoo]

23 minutes ago, Duvel said:

I think they taste like sea water or brine …

 

Exactly - taste of the clean sea. Almost sweet and salty at the same time. With a little bit of a chewy texture. Nothing really to compare them with, as they're quite unique.

[rotuts]

Yes.

 

and a masive 

 

PITA  to eat

 

even if you've picked your own.

[Duvel]

2 minutes ago, weinoo said:

 

Exactly - taste of the clean sea. Almost sweet and salty at the same time. With a little bit of a chewy texture. Nothing really to compare them with, as they're quite unique.

 

“Chewy sea water” - now that’s what I would like to see in the potato chips thread …

[Duvel]

After the (well deserved & necessary) nap we took a stroll through the town and along the beach. My attempts to motivate me or my family to have dinner failed … instead I enjoyed an early nightcap at dusk and concluded the day 😋

 

[rotuts]

@Duvel 

 

a question for tomorrow :

 

' crema catalana. '

 

i had to look this up :

 

https://spanishsabores.com/homemade-spanish-crema-catalana-recipe/

 

very interesting.

 

so this ' cream ' is used as a filling

 

sort of like that  , well pardon the expression 

 

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/creme-anglaise-4984

 

 

 

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, Duvel said:

 

I think he was more attracted by the honey. He ate one ball (with all of the honey) and I had to finish the rest ☺️

Damn. I can’t help but give him a thumbs up for trying. 

[Kerry Beal]

1 hour ago, weinoo said:

 

Exactly - taste of the clean sea. Almost sweet and salty at the same time. With a little bit of a chewy texture. Nothing really to compare them with, as they're quite unique.

The women?

[Shelby]

3 minutes ago, Kerry Beal said:

Almost sweet and salty at the same time. With a little bit of a chewy texture

Yep, describes me to a T.....only probably more salty than sweet....

[heidih]

1 hour ago, Duvel said:

After the (well deserved & necessary) nap we took a stroll through the town and along the beach. My attempts to motivate me or my family to have dinner failed … instead I enjoyed an early nightcap at dusk and concluded the day 😋

 

Schlaf gut as we here say every night

[kayb]

Superb vacation so far! Thanks so much for taking us along. I was ready for a good vacation.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

5 hours ago, Kerry Beal said:

The women?

 

You stole my reply.  I can almost taste the salt.

 

 

[Duvel]

Bon dia !

 

Today a medium-sized breakfast based on pa amb tomaquet in preparation for a (car) trip through the Garrotxa region, famous for cheese & beans (and vulcanoes, at least that’s what the rest of the family wants to see …).

 

Edited August 18, 2021 by Duvel (log)

[Duvel]

14 hours ago, rotuts said:

@Duvel 

 

a question for tomorrow :

 

' crema catalana. '

 

i had to look this up :

 

https://spanishsabores.com/homemade-spanish-crema-catalana-recipe/

 

very interesting.

 

so this ' cream ' is used as a filling

 

sort of like that  , well pardon the expression 

 

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/creme-anglaise-4984

 

 

 

It is pretty similar to a french creme brulee, though the crema catalana derives the “background” taste from infusing the milk with cinnamon and orange peel, rather than vanilla …

[TdeV]

17 hours ago, Duvel said:

It was equally enjoyed by the little one …

 

You know, it will be no time at all when he'll be taller than you! 😄

[johnnyd]

Tres Turons was stunning. Thanks for the pics. I would freaking move there for that place...

[rotuts]

Me Too.

 

Im still studying the Menu's

 

what ba treat it must have been

 

to eat there.

[Duvel]

23 minutes ago, johnnyd said:

Tres Turons was stunning. Thanks for the pics. I would freaking move there for that place...

It’s funny - we were discussing this the other day. Exactly 15 years ago my wife (then girlfriend) an me returned from living ~3 years in Japan back to Europe. And we argued where to go. I wanted to live in Spain - and Barcelona seemed like an excellent choice. Unfortunately, the job situation was (and is) still largely in favour of Germany. Plus I am more German than I like to admit, in many ways 😉. And don’t get me wrong: Both me and my wife got a nice job (with opportunities to live in other countries, cf. my last food log), we have friends, a decent house … but the lifestyle and quality of life here is simply another level. 
My current plan is thus early retirement and moving here as soon as I can afford it 😆

[johnnyd]

Another level indeed, Herr Duvel

My parents visited Portugal often when I was growing up. They brought me there one summer and we toured all over the country - it was magical. When my Dad retired they moved there and built a little 'fazenda' in the Algarve and lived there for 20 years (70's & 80's). We had water delivered for our cisterne, fired up the gas generator for four hours every night, the fridge ran on propane. They didn't get a phone line until 12 years had passed.

 

They planted vegetables and grapevines but there already was a 100 year old fig tree next to the front patio. I slept in a hammock affixed to that tree when I was home from boarding school.  There was a famous chicken piri-piri place in the hills of Monchique that looks exactly like Tres Turons. The busier beaches had open grills where you could get your fill of grilled sardines caught that morning. The Wine was excellent.

 

I'm on Coast of Northern New England now because my time in Europe shaped my preferences. If I don't have some sort of seafood every 3 days I get pretty cranky, and it's really good here. But I miss our place in Portugal, but it's not at all the same. The Algarve is built up now. Google satellite shows a tennis court where our vineyard used to be and the acres and acres of olive and almond trees I remember are all villas.

 

Your trip to Catalonia is wonderful and shain's trip to Greece too. I know there are some nooks and crannies on the Spanish coast that are still hidden. We should stay in touch...!

[Duvel]

Our tour through the Garrotxa region started in a place that featured large ground crevices (is that the correct term), as per legend inhabited by fairies. We searched, and little one made sure he went into every single one but - alas - no ferries, pixies, sprites or anything to be found (or maybe yes ?!) …

 

 

 

 

 

Moving on we arrived to the picturesque town of Santa Pau, conveniently also famed for the elusive mongetes de Santa Pau, a extremely popular bean variety.

 

 

 

The town itself was founded in the 9th century and quite beautiful. All the housing, the castle & the church are well preserved.

 

 

 

 

 

A few kilometers down the road two former vulcanoes are located. We decided to visit Volcà Croscat. You have to walk a bit to come to the site, passing by fields of beans …

 

 

The volcano itself has been extensively mined, as the foamlike stones from the vulcanic mass are perfect for absorbing, storing and releasing water for agricultural applications. An interesting sight.

 

 

Returning to the car the little one was already showing signs of fatigue and surely enough, he fell asleep after a few minutes drive. We therefore skipped our visit to the town of Castellfollit de la Roca and just made the touristy round to the fields below the city for a commemorative picture …

 

 

 

Edited August 18, 2021 by Duvel (log)