My street

    My street is quiet, very british and full of roses. This morning the sun came out and  I was able to take some pictures with my new camera. A very special gift. Thank you Jakob.

Elche, a day trip with my brother

    A trip to my mediterranean hometown, Alicante. A day trip to Elche with my little brother. Walking, talking and seeing palms. Enjoying our time together and a visit to El Granaino. Delicious tapas and better company. Thank you Raúl.

Adilia's Norfolk Street Bakery

 
     One of the best things of my new home is that I can walk, in less than five minutes, to a real bakery. And...with all due respects, this is quite hard to find in England. This small bakery is at 89 Norfolk Street and it has all I need: good bread and nice pastries and cakes.

It is a portuguese- owned and the bread is great. I usually buy a different one each time and all are very nice but, I particularly like the white sourdough. The custard tarts are also one of my favourites.

Yesterday Helen and Amy came to catch up over a cup off coffee and some delicious "pasteles".

Waffles

    Nothing better than home made waffles...

Nettles - Ortigas

Nettles? What can I say? I will say that for almost all my life I have believed that this plant was meant only to harm picnics or walks, ready to "attack" you when you were distracted. My mistake... Nettles are one of the most delicious and nutritious of wild herbs, rich in Vitamin C, Iron, Malic Acid, Flavanoids...

I was quite surprised when I heard that nettles was the main ingredient of a very traditional swedish soup. I also learnt that was a great ingredient for cooking and, last year I had the chance to taste several ways of preparing it at Tempo, one of my favourite restaurants in Malmö.

Well...here in England Spring has finally come and nettles too. They are everywhere. Now, when they are small, is the best time to gather them. The only thing you don't must forget is to bring your gloves! At home, using also gloves, you have to cut the leaves and wash gently. Then drop into a pan of boiling water. As soon as they hit the hot water the sting disappears.

Once done this, you can use them like you use spinach (side dish, soups, pasta, omelettes..). They are very tasty, green and fresh. Here is a simple recipe of a soup:

A bunch of boiled nettles - approx. two litres of leaves
0,5 litres of stock (vegetable or chicken)
cream/ cream fraiche
Salt and pepper

Bring the stock to boil and add the nettles. Let boil for a 5 minutes. Then put the soup in a food procesor until completely smooth. Season and add cream or creme fraiche, as you like.

Bánh xèo

    Another wonderful recipe by Yotam Ottolenghi

A walk to Spring

This post comes a bit late. Spring had started but I could not find it. On 1st April I went for a walk, found comfort in a warm tea and came back home with muddy boots. Last week I had to go to the hospital for a surgery, nothing serious, but still I felt little and scared. This week I have found Spring. I am recovering and I am healthy. Thank you Life.