Day 11- should have brought the fat jeans

Today´s post will be dedicated to food. My aunt and uncle are great cooks! Though my taste-buds are very happy, my waistline is much less so. Mona has been molded into a good spanish woman with her insistence to eat more. I am a sucker for the line, "c´mon there´s just a little left, I can´t put that away." However, when that does not work she goes straight for my weak spot with, "I´m just going to throw it away if no one finishes it." How am I supposed to resist that?!?

Food is eaten at different times than we are used to in the U.S. The big meal is mid-afternoon, usually between 2 and 4. At a restaurant they will serve 'menu del día' in which they have a few options to choose from. It begins with a salad, placed in the middle of the table for everyone to share. Then a 1st course, 2nd course and dessert. This fried fish was my 2nd course. Once I got over him looking at me I found it pretty tasty.

(Don´t know why this is sideways). Tortilla española. Basically eggs, potato, and onion. Very typical dish. Often it is served on spanish bread (kind of a hard baguette) as a sandwich. (This bread is served with every meal). Eaten warm or cold. I love it!

Today we had an early 4th of July celebration. This is Mona and her delicious homemade apple pie!

Restaurant in their town on the plaza with the cathedral. We had an assortment of tapas, which is kind of like appetizers. (cousin Shereen, Aunt Mona, me, Uncle Vini and my cousin Roman)
Horchata! A little town outside Valencia is the home of this summer drink. It is a sweet milk drink made from chufas (earth almonds). (This is Shereen and her boyfriend Ryan from Chester, England. She goes to school in Liverpool).
This was my first course from that restaurant. It was kind of a tomato/tuna salad. (They use tuna in a lot of dishes)! The salad in the middle for everyone to share-lettuce, tomato, onion, olives and olive oil. Olive oil is the essential ingredient in all spanish dishes. Paella! Valencia is the home to Paella. Terry recently asked me to get the recipe. Here you go Terry: 1st you need to build a cute little paella house like the one below. Then you need a paella pan and wood from nearby fruit trees for the perfect flames. Cook your meat (chicken, rabbit, seafood, etc) in olive oil (of course) and then add a bag of vegetables de paella, pureed tomato and water. As that boils down add the rice and let it cook until the perfect consistency. (See why I have a hard time explaining how to cook paella?!?) I admit I have become a paella snob after being in Valencia. Even other parts of Spain don't do it justice.

¡Voila! Deliciouso.

Oh I forgot to mention that the dinner meal is served around 9:30 at night. Also, after lunch is siesta. Most stores close down from around 2 to 5. After eating the big meal people often lay down for a rest. It is one spanish tradition I definitely took advantage of!

I have had a such great time in Spain seeing the sights, (and eating) but mostly I loved spending time with my family. What a wonderful vacation!

Now...off to Rome tomorrow!