Aroa: Getaria, Basque Country

A few weeks ago, in late May, Jaime Burgaña was on the way to dinner in a nearby village.  Suddenly, unexpected hailstorms struck, raining down on the windsheild of the car he and his friend were driving. He began to weep, to hear him tell it, like a baby.

You see, Jaime is a farmer. And his farm, Aroa, produces some of the finest, rarest, most delicious greenery in Basque Country--everything from guisantes de lágrima, those little pearls that are valued at over 100 euros a kilo...

...to sweet, wild-tasting strawberries. He was weeping for crops that he took for ruined, for lost; at the prospect of starting over from scratch.

He grew his farm three to four years ago to a seven-member team, and since then they have taken baby steps towards growing each year. But why are they so special? Use of expensive seeds as a base is one of the main things that differentiate Aroa. And the seeds aren't good because they're expensive. They're good because they aren't mass-produced, modified seeds; they're heirlooms.  "Big seed companies have appropriated the seeds, something that belongs to everyone, for their own," Jaime says. I can hear anger mixed with resignation in his voice.

Jaime showed us a selection of the lettuces and greens they grow at Aroa, and it was the most passionate talk about flowers and salad I've ever experienced.  And with it, and with the reactions of those around me, I realized just how limited the "amazing gastronomy" of this area is. Amazing txuleta, amazing seafood, yes yes and yes. Amazing arugula? Never. Sweet home gardens with great lettuce and tomatoes? Chya. Commitment to farming things that actually taste like what they are? Not really.

So how to be like a real farmer? Jaime refuses to put vinegar on his tomatoes. Why would you?  Because that's what everyone's doing? Perhaps that is an extreme aversion to trends, but he looks at both eating and farming analytically, and it shows.

Banana Pudding (In Spain)

Banana pudding just may be the ultimate comfort dessert. I love how it's at home at both a summer and a winter table. Something about it is perfect for all seasons, and something about it crosses cultural boundaries. 

A dessert that was invented in the South of the United States, it's been adopted across the US although it most definitely is not quite as ubiquitous as it is below the Mason-Dixon, where it shows up at potlucks, church socials, funerals and birthday parties.  Its first written iteration shows up around 1900, although it didn't hit mass popularity until the '60s. Can you believe it? It's become such a classic in such a short time.

The main problem with making an authentic banana pudding in Spain? It's the lack of Nilla wafers.  But, in my usual determined way, I set to thinking. What is REALLY the difference between a Nilla wafer and a galleta Maria? Well, ingredients lists side by sides, the galleta Maria has vegetable oil where Nilla has soybean oil and has no high fructose corn syrup.  And in a side by side tasting, the flavors are quite similar. So Marias it was.

Many versions of banana pudding call for instant pudding mix.

People! Stop the madness!

Get your egg out. Get your milk out. A sprinkling of cornstarch. Do this yourself!!! It really does taste better when you use homemade "pudding" (ie thick creme anglaise).  Poured warm over handplaced layers, it's delicious after setting up in the fridge.

It turns out that however you pronounce it and whether you use Nilla wafers or galletas Maria, banana pudding is equally delicious and equally beloved (served to the tune of Ostia, que bueno).

 In case you were wondering, the National Banana Pudding Festival takes place in Centerville, Tennessee. Read on for the recipe, reproduced as it is written in my trusty moleskin.

Ezkurtxerri, Basque Pork

 Let's face it--the pig that gets the most attention around these parts is the black-footed Iberian breed whose legs and other body parts get cured for months and then sliced thinly into jamón ibérico.  However, recently I had the pleasure of visiting the caserío Eguzkitza, the home of Ezkurtxerri, a Basque pig farm and artisan producer of some incredible pork products. 

Patxi Subijana, along with his young daughter Agurtzane, run this farm. Agurtzane returned home to work with her father after finishing her university career. Not exactly your typical twenty-something graduate's path, but aren't you a little jealous?

They work from six in the morning to midnight, on the schedule of the animals they tend. These pigs are of two races, some a cross and then some Euskaltxerri, the indigenous Basque breed that is shrouded in mystery.  Patxi and Agurtzane watch over them starting at birth, which, during my visit had just happened ten hours earlier! You think you've seen cute? Not until you've seen this:

They care for this pigs from birth and not just to death but all the way to the end processed product. They create a line of pork products that ranges from chorizo, txistorra, salchicha and fresh tenderloin. Recipes are created and tested in house by the father-daughter pair.

Ezkurtxerri isn't your typical pork producer.  "We don't go for quantity, we go for quality," says Patxi. And they aren't afraid of innovation, either...see the online store and the unique offerings, such as this cute little suckling pig, ready to be crisped up and served.

In the end, what makes Ezkurtxerri stand out is their hands-on commitment to both products and pigs. They feed their animals a mix of barley, corn and beans.  They refuse to hike the price of their products up to the level that you might expect from an artisan company. Hearing Patxi talk about the struggles of their small farm, so many of them imposed by bureaucrats and jealous competitors, made my blood boil.  These are good people, doing good work, and making excellent products. 

And it's working, according to the Subijanas: "What we make is sold. What we need is pork."

The trip was part of a pilot for Getaria Gourmet, which will be organizing these gourmet excursions for anyone who is interested. More info coming soon...follow them on Twitter. Ezkurtxerri is also on Twitter.

Doughnut Sunday Tips

Hey there, beautiful.

**warning, this post is full of sexy glazed pictures of doughnuts**

Living far from the bounties of the world's fattest country breeds many things, like healthy eating habits and sometimes food envy. But it also breeds necessity. Like, I need a donut (chocolate chip cookie, big black coffee, pickle, etc etc).

So I made some doughnuts. And, while I will not be posting the slightly-secret recipe, I will leave you some tips you can apply for when you decide to make them at home.

Tip #1 for Homemade Doughnuts. Aim for excellence. Don't settle for blah doughnuts at home, because you CAN reach Krispy Kreme levels of excellence.

Tip #2: Let your dough rest a day or overnight. Beautiful, yeasty dough that I couldn't resist frying up the day I made.  The resulting doughnuts were fine, delicious even. But this morning, a full 24 hours later, we fried up the rest of the dough and the difference was astounding. Lighter, fluffier, less resistable.

Tip #3: If your doughnuts don't look like they've risen enough before frying, let them rise longer! This step, allowing them to get all light and fluffy until they tremble to the touch, is super important!

Tip #4: Don't let your oil get too hot. You will end up with a dark brown doughnut that's raw in the middle.

Tip #5: Drain, drain, and drain again. Get that grease off that doughnut!

Are you inspired yet? If not to make your own, at least to hop in your American car and drive towards the Hot N Now sign?

National Calamari Day

I've been thinking a lot lately about calamari.

I know it doesn't make sense.  But it's one of those things where all of a sudden, calamari is everywhere. You're talking to friends that are passionately against their consumption. You're at th aquarium and you learn about just how smart these little guys are.

You're sitting outside on a sunny day and you decide to satisfy your craving for a salty snack, washed down with bubbly.

You find out that the 30th of every month is National Squid/Calamari Day (!!!). Okay, well, that's actually declared on a bogus Facebook page, but hey, that's enough for me to hit 'Like'.

Food snobbery aside, let's all agree....even bad calamari are kinda good.

And good calamari are worth doing ANYTHING for. Calamari, caught with a hook, that day, fried simply and NO LEMON ALLOWED.

So here's a celebration of National Calamari Day, which takes place this Thursday.  Enjoy a plate.