Platos de cuchara

So the traditional Spanish diet is in essence the Mediterranean diet. Lots of ham, lots of seafood, olive oil, garlic and parsley. In a nut shell.

So the other day my boyfriend prepared a traditional dish that falls into the category of platos de cuchara because they are all eaten with a spoon. They are all basically stews prepared by throwing into a pressure cooker: pork parts & bones, dried beans, vegetables and olive oil. They're easy to make, super healthy and quite cheap.

This is the lentil stew he made:

Lentils (since they cook so quickly, we just do this in a regular pot) with water

Potatoes, carrots, onion, garlic (halved) and bay leaves

Chorizo (which is nothing like it's Mexican counter-part; it's actually more like pepperoni)

Throw it all in together with salt and olive oil

And enjoy! (Usually with a piece of bread in one hand to mop up the broth)

I know I didn't include any measurements, but Spaniards tend to measure everything in "handfuls" or "pinches" and I don't know how to translate that into the English system ;)

New Year, New Resolutions

To my delight Spain has started the year off with a post-worthy resolution that has got me all excited. Spain has finally summoned the willpower to ban smoking in public places. And I'm just thrilled :) Bravo man, it's about time.

European countries have been slowly taking action since the turn of the century and many countries (Ireland, Italy, England, etc.) have already been enjoying fresh air for years. Spain first banned smoking in January 2006 in hospitals, airports and workplaces. Restaurants, cafes and bars could choose whether to do so but if a restaurant was larger or smaller than a certain m2, then they could close off an area for those wanting to smoke. The law turned out to be quite confusing and not really enforced. In the end only about 10% of the bars and restaurants chose not to allow smoking. None of those 10% were here in Alcalá.

It has been estimated that a third of the population in Spain smokes, which I think should be taken with a grain of salt. I have many friends who claim to not be smokers but to enjoy "just one cigarette every now and then." As I have observed, those friends have up to five cigarettes every time they go out drinking or for a coffee. And if they go out several times a week... well you can do the math.

Now smoking has been banned in all restaurants, cafes and bars. Around all parks and schools. Only 30% of hotel rooms are reserved for smokers and hotel employees are not allowed to enter them while they are occupied.

And the truly amazing thing is that it is being enforced. I haven't seen a single person disobey the law. Bars and restaurants have set out little tables on the streets (in the winter!) so their clients feel less alienated at the thought of standing outside to smoke. I have encountered long lines at each place I've gone to and as far as I can tell, people are going out and consuming more than ever.

Victory is ours! The right to breathe smoke-free air is ours! Let's go out and enjoy it as much as possible and to support local businesses as they go through this transition.

My personal new year resolutions... to get out from in front of the TV and start doing again. Start reading and running and enjoying life again. Take up photography (with the great camera my bf gave me) and finally take up German again. And I could care less whether I do them frequent or well enough, just as long as I do them.