kybourbon

Waiting for the boqueria artichoke recipe mentioned on another thread.

lincasanova

I think I need to read that other thread.. can u link, please?

ekscrunchy

I did not write that recipe down yet; I was waiting to include it in the Barcelona part. But might as well put it here:


This was given to me by Quim Marquez; I have not tried it yet:

Clean artichokes and place in a roasting pan.

Preheat oven to 180-degrees C./350F
Press each artichoke down as flat as possible from the center. Moisten each with olive oil, salt, a touch of brandy, and black pepper.

Put a touch of water in the bottom of the pan and roast for 45 minutes in the oven.

The artichokes he served to us had a bit of a char. They were superb. You could eat the entire choke in the center; it had no fuzz in it...so I would caution against using those giant globe artichokes sold in US supermarkets, due to the fuzz in the choke...

lincasanova

we always remove the fuzz in spain from the chokes. are they put cut side up or down? sounds easy and good. These were just the hearts, I assume?

ekscrunchy

No. it was the whole artichoke,, so he did not cut it up to remove the choke! He put them in a pan with the heart side down, spears pointing up.

I would be interested in how they turn out. In my area, I only get fresh local artichokes for a short season; the huge ones in the supermarket would have all that fuzz inside, so I don't see how you could get that out to make this dish. I tried to eat a lot of artichokes on that trip since I like them so much. when we had the calcot feast outside Barcelona, they made them on an outdoor grill and we also ate the entire thing, after stripping off a few of the outer leaves.

Linda I am sorry that this report is coming so slowly. I have a houseguest and am a little time pressed....but I am plugging along! I cannot say enough how much we enjoyed our day with you. Maybe I should not say that so much for fear that you will be besieged with visitors wanting a personal tour!

Goodness: I just consulted one of my Spanish cookbooks and what do you know but I found this VERY recipe! I guess he must be famous for these. It is on page 369 of this excellent book:

http://www.amazon.com/New-Spanish-Ta.../dp/0761135553

Contrary to what he told me, the recipe calls for the artichokes to be cut up before cooking.
I will post more details if you do not have this book.. or if anyone else wants.

lincasanova

Hmm. I am also curious about not removing the fuzz. perhaps they were young chokes and had so little fuzz you didn't notice it. It is actually a pale yellow in the chokes I get usually. I will try this. Sounds so good.

Hey.. stop apologizing to ME! You've got tons of fans hanging in there.. but we are all patient. Most important..Enjoy your guest!

I also had a wonderful time with you two and hope our paths cross again!

ekscrunchy

Me, too, Linda! If you do not already have that book, I will give you the entire recipe. The book itself is a very good one, with lots of photos and recipes, including quite a few for rice dishes. I can do this later today..

Here is a bit more; please correct any errors; I was having too much fun to write much down!


After our market visit, we walked across the street and down a few steps to La Lonja de Seda, the former silk exchange, La Lonja de Seda, a UNESCO World Heritage Center that underscores the importance of Valencia as one of the Mediterranean’s mercantile centers as far back as the 15th Century. This is justifiably one of Valencia’s premier sights and both the architecture and the interior design are astoundingly beautiful. Highlights for me were the twisting columns reminiscent of rope, and the magnificent artesonado ceiling in the upstairs Salon del Consulado del Mar, or former maritime law courts. The spectacle of the gilded, painted and carved ceiling just cannot be adequately described in words. Note that La Lonja de Seda is closed on Mondays; more information, and opening times, here:


http://www.turisvalencia.es/en/disco.../monument/7807




http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/782



In preparing this report, I came across this blog by an Englishman living in Valencia; it contains excellent photos and much information:

http://www.derekworkman-journalist.c...rkmanonva.html


After our visit to La Lonja, we returned to the hotel where, at 1pm, we were swooped up by the gracious Linda Casanova for an unforgettable afternoon which began with a drive south to the outskirts of the Albufuera, the freshwater lagoon that plays an integral part in the life, and the table, of Valencia. We stopped at the restaurant Nou Raco to gaze at their pristine view of the lagoon and coastal marshlands, a celebrated winter migratory stop for many species of birds, including herons, cormorants, egrets, gulls and ducks. The Albufuera also shelters breeding colonies of seven species of heron, five species of tern, along with ducks and warblers. The restaurant looked like a fine venue for a leisurely meal.

http://www.nouraco.com/en/index.php



During our drive, we passed several reconstructions, along with one original barraca, whitewashed adobe houses with steeply pitched thatch-covered roofs that are emblematic of the region and that once were a common housing form. Most of the barracas we passed are reconstructions, although they are picturesque In the extreme. We saw at least one original structure, dating back at least a century, during our brief stop at El Palmar, a fishing village perched on an island in the lagoon and now home to dozens of restaurants featuring the local rice dishes and a fleet of colorful boats waiting to ferry visitors on tours of the lagoon.

Here is the schedule for the bus from Valencia city to El Palmar:

http://www.autocaresherca.com/linea....ineaRegular=21

ekscrunchy

More on Albufuera national Park, with links for additional information:



http://www.turisvalencia.es/en/disco...a-natural-park

ekscrunchy

From El Palmar, we continued on to our chosen lunch destination. I had pored over what seems like dozens of reviews of rice restaurants in the Valencian hinterlands before coming up with this one, which was listed in the Fodor’s guide and had received mostly good reviews on various Spanish-language online sites. La Matandeta had also been featured in the PBS series, “Spain: On the Road Again,” featuring Chef Mario Batali (who spent time in Spain as a child) and Mark Bittman, a cookbook author who is a favorite of mine.

There were two specific rice dishes that I wanted to sample and, reading that these should be ordered in advance, I delegated this chore to the hotel. Unfortunately, the hotel did not communicate my wishes correctly to the restaurant, so we did not get to try the particular dishes that I craved. But I am being persnickety here, as I tend to get when the subject turns to food.

Before I continue, I should mention that while this is perhaps the dish that is most closely associated with Valencia, and indeed all of Spain, paella is but one of a repertoire of “arroces,” or rices, that include not only paella, which is considered a dry rice dish, but also meloso, or creamy, rice dishes, and caldoso, or brothy rice dishes, that are prepared in a pot instead of a pan.

We were seated at an outdoor table on the restaurant’s terrace, surrounded by the fields of rice, which were still brown in February. We began our feast with a shared order of coca de hojaldre con morcilla y cebolla (3 euro), a flaky pastry of Arabic origin sprinkled with morcilla, or blood sausage, and onions. Excellent! My addiction to coca, a layered bread found throughout the Levante and Catalonia, would rise to dangerous levels as the trip progressed.

Soon after, the two paellera pans were placed before us: One bore black rice with squid, a seafood paella typical of the region, the other a land-based paella incorporating chicken, rabbit, and duck along with flat green beans. Both of these were paellas for two and were priced at 24 euro each. Although both of these were certainly flavorful, I was disappointed that neither one bore the famous soccarat, or the golden caramelized rice crust at the bottom that is said to be a hallmark of the best paellas. Not did we detect a notable aroma of saffron in the land-based paella. I did raise the soccarat issue with the gracious owner of the restaurant, but was not entirely satisfied with his explanation. I would continue this discussion the following day with one of Valencia’s most esteemed chefs who concurred that the soccarat crust is an integral element in a first-rate paella.

An outstanding time was had by all and we were stuffed and sated by the time we left the restaurant. The total for three people was 66 euros, with drinks and water. And since the soccarat eluded me this time, I see a return to the Albufuera, and to Valencia, in my future. After a photo taking session with the restaurant’s owners, and a bestowal of gifts to us—violet-hued aprons bearing the name of the restaurant—Linda whisked us off in the direction of the nearby beach.


http://www.lamatandeta.es/


http://www.paellaloversunited.com/about_paella.html




La Dehesa, a slender thread of pine woodlands and rolling dunes separates the Albufuera lagoon from the Mediterranean south of Valencia, where several stretches of sandy beach, including El Saler, have earned the coveted European Blue Flag status. After lunch we visited one of these beaches and it was indeed, impressive considering its proximity to the city. From there, we headed back along the coast to the marina area, carved out of the shorefront in anticipation of the 32nd America’s Cup races of 2007. The Vels e Vents building designed by David Chipperfeld dominates the marina area—one of a panoply of contemporary architectural masterworks that enriches the city:



http://archiseek.com/2010/2006-veles...alencia-spain/


http://www.portamericascup.com/en/marina.php




Linda took us for delectable cappuccino-like confections incorporating condensed milk and espresso in Restaurante 39°27N streamlined white-on-white bar/restaurant surrounded by smashing views of the city, the sea, and the greenery-edged yacht basin on three sides. (The name refers to the map location)


http://www.3927.es/pg/msm.nsf/menu/conoce_el_local



Our tour of Valencia continues after a short pause!

lincasanova

The espresso and condensed milk is called "bombon"..pronounced crisply "Bone- Bone".

It is quite attractive always served in a glass small coffee cup. The milk sinks to the bottom creating a nice black and white layered look before you stir it up.

I can't wait to hear about your meal at Ca'Sento.

Revulgo2

I love the bombón with a dash of whisky... uummm

kybourbon

Not trying to rush you through your report, but didn't want you to forget the artichoke recipe. A Google search for roasted artichokes and brandy turns up a lot of recipes using frozen artichokes.

ekscrunchy

Ky: For Quim artichoke recipe, as he told it to me, scroll up to post of March 1&.

Do you want me to paraphrase the recipe from the cookbook that I mentioned?

ekscrunchy

Here is the last bit, to finish up our second full day in Valencia; again, muchisimas gracias to Linda for devoting so much time and energy in giving us the royal tour of Valencia.






From the marina area, after a quick stop to peek at Las Arenas Balneario Resort, a lavish white 5-star luxury complex on the beach but within easy reach of the city center:

http://www.h-santos.es/hoteles/Hotel...ia-Las-Arenas/



We continued our drive along the shore, passing a row of exquisite Modernist marine warehouses and the handsome port authority building with its distinctive clocktower, before heading into an upscale shoreline residential district, and then inland. Linda kindly drove me past the residence hall, Colegio Mayor Luis Vives, where I had lived for a summer while attending the University of Valencia. She also pointed out the imposing pentagon-shaped Torres de Serranos guard towers, remnants of the 14th-Century walls that once encircled the city.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/minusbaby/7417659/




Our day with Linda finally came to an end at the iron-and-glass Modernist jewel, the Mercado Colon, yet another of Valencia’s glorious food markets, recently restored and now housing trendy bars, eateries, and gourmet food purveyors, where we spent some time browsing. This building, opened as a food market in 1916, displays the influence of the Modernist style flourishing in Catalunya at the time, as Architect Francisco Moya studied under Domenech i Montaner in Barcelona before returning to his native city.

An absolute must for anyone interested in architecture:

http://www.mercadocolon.es/





In late afternoon, the network of surrounding shopping streets was buzzing, and my friend and I spent another couple of hours window shopping, managing to accumulate several purchases along the way, and to have several lengthy conversations about Valencia with friendly sales help in various shops. A new discovery for me was the clothing shop, COS, and I would seek out this store in Barcelona as well, as I found the clothes to be wearable and interesting, as well as reasonably priced:

http://www.cosstores.com/gb/site/home__start.nhtml


We stopped for snacks at the basement supermarket of El Corte Ingles before heading home to the Westin, where we enjoyed an in-room picnic dinner composed of our accumulated edible purchases which included, on that evening: jamon Iberico, cheese, fresh strawberries from Andalucia, yogurt, oranges, almonds, and too many slices of coca bread.
For dessert: sugared fruits, chocolates, and scrumptious meringues purchased earlier that day at the Santa Caterina bakery.













Artichoke Recipe from La Boqueria's Quim, as written in The New Spanish Table, a book that I highly recommend: http://www.amazon.com/New-Spanish-Ta.../dp/0761135553



Preheat oven to 400.

Prepare artichokes by trimming, and cutting large artichokes into 6 wedges, smaller ones in half

Place artichokes and 2 Tbl of olive oil into a large bowl and toss to coat.

Arrange vegetables in a baking dish that can fit them snugly in a single layer.

Sprinkle with 2 Tbl Cognac or brandy.

Place a round of waxed paper on tiop of the artichokes and seal the dish tightly with foil.

Bake until tender, 25 to 30 minutes.

Increase oven temp to 450. DRizzle veg with 2 Tbl olive oil.

Bake uncovered, stirring once or twice, until browned, 10 to 15 minutes longer.

Serve at room temp, sprinkled with parsley and sea salt and accompanied by lemon wedges. (Quim did not serve lemon wedges at the restaurant)


Speaking of artichokes, I've made this easy dish quite a few times, although we rarely get decent shrimp here in the NY area. I add pimenton, or smoked Spanish paprika, and usually eliminate the olives.


http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.c...es-and-shrimp/

lincasanova

What a fabulously enticing report, not only about food, but your professional descriptions of everything you saw!

I am so excited that someone has finally produced a trip report that will definitely tempt others to take a few days and enjoy this beautiful city. I do admit that many of its splendors are not waiting for you and visible from the main streets. You must do your homework and you will not be disappointed.

Only one observation/correction. I believe the name of the church is Santa Catalina.

Again, I am enjoying re-reading about your time here and comments. Now we are all waiting for Barcelona! I am going to put that artichoke recipe to the test soon. The sprinkle of brandy, and also covering the chokes the first half hour and toasting them the second may be the secret!.

lincasanova

Oh, I see you haven't finished! Still waiting for the Ca' Sento and whatever followed that!

ekscrunchy

Linda thanks so much for your kind comments, and for the correction to Santa Catalina! Ca' Sento will come in the next installment..

Here is the beginning of the final day in Valencia. Although this is our fourth day here, we have not even skimmed the surface of what the city has to offer. We have not, for example, set foot in the City of Arts and Sciences, the Calatrava designed campus that has become an emblem of contemporary Valencia.


http://www.cac.es/


We began Saturday, our last full day in Valencia, with a long swim at the public pool a block away from the hotel. I just cannot overstate how good it was to have this swimming pool available every morning, especially in light of our food consumption! From there, back to the hotel for breakfast culled from the pantry on our shelves and in our room refrigerator. (Our room rate did not include breakfast at the hotel and the price was prohibitive, at about 20 euro per person).

Eleven o’clock found us in front of the Tourist Office on Plaza de la Reina, where we assembled with a group of about 12 others for our 2.5 hour walking tour of the city. We were the only English speakers; most of the tourists were Spanish and there were also a couple of foreigners long resident in Spain.

I wish that I could give glowing reviews to this tour, but one issue prevents this: There is a big difference between a tour in English and a tour with English translation and the guide that we had on that day illustrated why this is true. While I speak Spanish well enough, my friend, while fluent in several other tongues, is less fluent in Spanish. Our first stop on that morning was the Cathedral, where the guide launched into a lengthy description, in Spanish, that took about 5 minutes. When he was finished, he turned to us and uttered: Two sentences! I was not having any of that, and told him that he should at least translate most of the Spanish explanations, as we had booked, and paid 15 euro per person, a tour in English. This alleviated most of the problem, but I am not sure that I would recommend this particular tour for non-Spanish speakers.

Perhaps in the high season there are separate tours in languages other than Spanish and I would advise inquiring before purchasing tickets.



From the cathedral, whose construction on the site of a mosque began in the 13th Century, and which is distinguished by three imposing portals—Gothic, Romanesque, and Baroque—we moved on to Museo de La Almoina, opened a few years ago on the spot where Valencia was founded by the Romans in 138 BC. Glass floors allowed us to peer down upon layers of excavations, and relief models mounted on the walls depict the city’s stages of development. Highly recommended, and free on weekends.

Our next stop was one I also recommend very highly: Constructed in the 14th Century as a fortified warehouse for the storage of wheat, L’Almodi draws its name from the Arabic “almudin,” the granary that originally stood on this site. The interior walls, wrapped around a courtyard, display gorgeous murals extolling the donors of grain, and scenes of daily life. Closed Monday.


http://www.stockphotopro.com/photo-thumbs-2/AYWB9D.jpg



After the Almodi, the guide ushered us into the Banos del Almirante, the Admirals’ Baths, built in the 14th Century. This hammam, with its resting hall and dome-roofed cold, warm and hot chambers, reminded me of the Arab baths that I had visited the month before, in Granada. These had been in use for more than 6 centuries and passed through numerous renovations and reconstructions before being returned to their original design in 1986.
Here we watched two films about the ritual of public bath houses before moving on to the Church of San Juan del Hospital, one of the oldest churches in the city, where a baptism was about unfold. The invitees were so elaborately dressed, and the women with headgear extraordinary enough to suit Philip Treacy, that I asked several groups to pose for photos. This sparked much interchanging of positions and swapping of cameras, to escalating hilarity among both the baptismal party and the tourists.

By this time, my friend and I had had enough of the slow-moving tour, and since we had already visited the tour’s last stop, La Lonja, we abandoned our guide and trooped off on our own to view the Real Colegio del Patriarca, the Royal Seminary of the Patriarch.

Named for its patriarch, San Juan de Ribera, this crown Renaissance jewel known as the “Sistine Chapel of Valencia” enfolds an exquisite cloistered patio and the Capilla de la Immaculada, with walls and ceiling dome bedecked with glorious paintings.

I also paid a visit to the University of Valencia’s original column-encircled cloister, which brought back memories of that long ago summer when I was student there.

lincasanova

I am so glad you go to the Patriarca. My FAVORITE church here. So few enter.

You are really hitting it all.. and with such great description. Can't wait for the rest.

In S. J. del Hospital church...Did you see the Crosses/coat of arms from the Crusades painted on the left wall behind glass in he entrance way? Amazing. It is from the 13th century. BTW, this was the only church that used to have a mass in English every week. Not sure if they still do.

SJ del Hospital was the second church to be built in Valencia, the first being the Cathedral.

ekscrunchy

Linda, I did see those coats of arms, as our guide pointed them out. That church is a treasure and I am afraid that my fascination with the baptismal guests kept me from exploring more of it.

I am so glad that I have held your attention and that I have gotten the gist of the trip down with not too many mistakes....I hope that I have conveyed just how rich this city is from a tourist perspective.

Although I may have linked this above, here is the official tourist office site for the city of Valencia:

http://www.turisvalencia.es/


While this site covers the entire region of Valencia:

http://en.comunitatvalenciana.com/home/home-english/493

And here is a site devoted mostly to entertainment:

http://www.24-7valencia.com/


And then there is this one:

http://www.valenciaconnect.com/




Back soon with more...

ekscrunchy

After our walking tour, my friend and I took the now well-worn path to the Mercado Central, where we stocked up on delicacies for lunch, as well as for our train journey the following day. Among the treats on our shopping list were longaniza de Pascua. This long, skinny dried “Easter” sausage traditionally appears on Valencian tables to break the Lenten proscription on meat. I also stocked up on my new favorite embutido, the salchichon de Sendra from Vic. For those who read Spanish, the late chef Santi Santamari wrote an ode to this IGP Cataln salami on his blog:

http://blog.santisantamaria.com/2010...hichon-de-vic/

Forn Desamparats, a bakery in the market, provided breads, slices of coca pastry, and more fabulous meringues scattered with sliced almonds. With a few tiny clementines, and a healthy slice of fresh goat cheese (another local product for which I had developed a taste), we had the fixins of another excellent hotel room picnic. About the clementines, and the oranges in general: You have not tasted good oranges until you have tasted the ones sold in Valencia! At 1 euro per kilo, this must be one of the best bargains in Europe!



After our in-room picnic, we set off for what would be our final jaunt in the historic district. Our destination: the National Ceramics Museum, housed in a glorious Baroque palace resplendent with an elaborately grained polychrome marble facade dripping with curlicues and entered through an alabaster portal that has to be seen to be believed. We enjoyed this museum very much and spent about two hours inside, admiring the period rooms, the ceramic-embellished furniture, and the collection of ceramics itself, with examples ranging from azulejo tiles to Picasso works, to the indigenous Manises (a ceramic center near the city) forms from which the great artist obviously drew some of his influence. One highlight among many is the reassembled traditional Valencian kitchen sheathed with intricate painted tiles. The museum is closed Mondays.


http://mnceramica.mcu.es/


http://valenciatravelguide.blogspot.com/


After a further meander through the streets, where strings of lights heralded the upcoming Fallas fiestas, we once again returned to the hotel to prepare for dinner at the celebrated Ca' Sento, which enjoys a prominent place on the list of Spain’s finest restaurants. We had originally passed up a dinner at this haute cuisine temple, fearing the expense. But Linda spoke so highly of Ca' Sento, and of chef Raul Aleixandre, whose cooking classes she had attended, that we felt we could not leave Valencia without sampling Chef Alexandre’s cutting-edge cuisine. Fortunately, Linda was able to secure two places at dinner for us, and shortly before 9pm we set off by taxi towards the port, alighting several minutes later in front of a stark contemporary doorway that stood out sharply on this dark street of concrete-block housing in the non-descript neighborhood of Grau.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2103/...97c9611529.jpg






http://www.casento.net/raul_aleixandre_ca_sento.html


Even a few minutes after 9pm, our appointed reservation time, we found the door firmly shut and locked. When the door finally swung open about 15 minutes later, we were ushered into a gleaming white-on-white dining space with about 8 tables and an open kitchen at the rear. There is little decoration to speak of save the stark angles of the origami-folded walls; the focus here would be strictly on the plate.


Ca' Sento has evolved considerably from its origins as a simple fisherman’s tavern. Chef Aleixandre is an El Bulli alumnus renowned for his creative use of impeccable local seafood; in fact, Spanish newspaper El Pais
lauded his seafood as the best in the Mediterranean.


It was Linda’s description of Ca Sento’s Arroz a la Plancha that had lured us here and we decided to share an order of this signature dish as the main course on the tasting menu. With our meal, we drank a fruity and inexpensive Rueda Verdejo.

We were offered 6 varieties of bread. I tried three of them, and each one astounded: flaky, multi-layered hojaldre; olive oil bread; and apricot bread.

And then the parade of tastes began:

Bunuelo de bacalao, or pillowy salt cod croquettes, accompanied by the frothiest ailoli I had ever tasted.

Cornete de Yuca y txangurro, or miniature cones of yucca brimming with spider crab

Anchoa con Jugo de Pimiento y Berenjena Asado, house-cured anchovy from L’Escala, hallowed Catalan anchovy territory. One simple, exquisite filet.

Ostra con granizado de Manzana, Oyster with slivered green apple and an apple foam, that enhanced the brininess of the oyster

Fardos de Calamar Envueltos en Tocino Iberico. This dish sent me over the top, with its juxtaposition of tender squid and salty Iberian bacon, a radical example of the traditional “mar i muntanya” (sea and mountain, represented by seafood and meat) pairing of classic Catalan cookery.
Easily the best dish of the trip so far.

For the main course, the kitchen deftly split one order of Ca Sento’s famed black paella. A courageous reinvention of the classic Valencian dish, this was folded on top of itself, so that the seared rice crust, the elusive-until-now socorrat sat both beneath and on top of the meltingly creamy rice. And to gild the lily, one perfect red prawn from Denia, considered among the world’s best, perched on top of the jet-black rice. Simply put, this was a masterpiece of culinary imagination and skill and a dish that I will never forget.


With water, wine, and one martini, the bill for this feast totalled a very reasonable 104 euro for two of us.