Aperitivos Picantes – Spicy Appetizers

Sweet & Spicy chicken wings

Mix 2 lb chicken wings in a large bowl with 4 tbsp Sweet & Spicy BBQ sauce, 2 tbsp peperoncini olive oil, 2 cloves of garlic (cut into large pieces) and pepper. Let marinate at least 30 min. Grill the chicken wings for about 25 minutes. Add 1 bell pepper (cut into large strips) for the last 5 minutes. Serve with Sweet & Spicy BBQ sauce.

Aceitunas calientes – Spicy Olives
Allow 2 tsp Miscuglio to soak in a dish with 1 tbsp hot water. Stir well and add 1 tbsp olio di oliva onion. Let one jar of Bonsecco olives drain and place them on a piece of aluminum foil, folded into a small package. Add the spice mix, an extra tbsp of olio di oliva onion and 1 shallot (cut into large pieces). Mix well and fold the package until closed. Let marinate at least 30 min. Put in the oven (200 º C) or on the BBQ for 20 to 30 minutes.

Albóndigas Bravas – Spicy Meatballs
Soak 2-3 tbsp Patatas Bravas in 2 tablespoons hot water. Mix 1 lb minced beef, 1 egg, 4 Tbsp breadcrumbs and Patatas Bravas. Roll small balls of minced meat and pan fry them until nicely brown on all sides. Serve with Devils mustard.

Funghi  e pane ripieni
Soak 6 tsp Bruschetta con olive in 6 tsp hot water. Mix ¾ cup soft butter with the soaked Bruschetta. Fill ½ lb mushrooms with a spoonful of butter, sprinkle with some grated cheese. Bake 15 to 20 minutes in the oven (400 º F) or on the grill. Make notches in a baguette and fill with herb butter. Wrap the bread in aluminum foil and bake for 10 minutes in the oven (400 º F), open the foil and bake for another 5 minutes.

Louisiana popcorn
Heat a small layer of grape seed oil in a pan. Cover the bottom with popcorn. Cover with a lid. Shake the pan occasionally while popping until nothing is popping anymore. Sprinkle with rub Louisiana to taste.

Preparation time 1 hour.  Serves 8 - 10

Pinchos de Gambas – Spanish Shrimp Skewers

Ingredients:

½ to ¾ lb large shrimp
3 Tbsp salsa mojo verde
1 grapefruit
1 bunch of spring onions
2 ripe avocado
lemon juice
Himalayan salt plate
skewers

Preparation:

Heat the salt plate on the grill according to the package instructions.  Cut the grapefruit in half, squeeze the juice out of one quarter and cut the rest into wedges.  Mix the salsa mojo verde with 3 tbsp of the grapefruit juice.  Cut 1 spring onion into rings and add to the mixture.  Pour the marinade over the shrimp, add the remaining spring onions and let stand for 20 minutes or more.  Thread the shrimp onto the skewers.  Halve the avocados and remove the pit.  Sprinkle immediately with lemon juice to prevent discoloration and coat with marinade.  Grill the avocados on a hot grill with the skin side up for about 4 minutes.  At the same time grill a few slices of grapefruit, turning after 2 minutes.  When the salt plate is thoroughly hot, place the spring onion on it for a minute and then add the shrimp cooking on each side for 30 seconds or until cooked through.  Serve the skewers with the grilled avocado and grapefruit.

Tip: These skewers pair well with a salad with lemon olive oil.  Preparation time 40 minutes.  Serves 4 

Carne de Sevilla - Grilled Spanish Steak

1 – 1 ½ lb steak
2 Tbsp Saveurade Sevilla
4 ears of corn
Spanish EVOO
2 tsp smoked olive oil or smoked grapeseed oil
½ lb cherry tomatoes on the vine
1 red onion, sliced
Himalayan salt plate

Preparation:

Heat the salt plate on the grill according to package instructions.  Cut the steak into think slices, about ½ inch.  Coat both sides of the meat with the Saveurade Sevilla.  Allow to marinate in the refrigerator until ready to use.  Let the meat return to room temperature before grilling.  Clean the corn and boil 10 to 15 minutes.  Brush the corn, onion and tomatoes with the Spanish EVOO just before grilling.  When the salt plate is hot, grill the corn for 5 minutes, turning occasionally.  Place the tomatoes and onion on the salt plate and cook for 5 minutes.  Finally, add the meat to the salt plate and cook 1 – 2 minutes on each side for medium temperature.  For well done, cook several minutes longer.  Sprinkle the meat and vegetables with a few drops of smoked oil before serving.  Preparation time 30 minutes.  Serves 4


*to substitute the Saveurade Sevilla make a thick sauce with white wine, tomato, onion and peppers.

Arugula Soup with Bruschetta Croutons

Ingredients:

4 slices of stale bread
6 Tbsp Bruschetta Pomodoro
12 Tbsp Bonsecco EVOO
3 Tbsp butter
2 shallots, finely chopped
1/3 cup flour
4 cups chicken stock
2 Tbsp Saveurade Assisi* 
1 cup cream
2 potatoes
1/3 lb arugula
fresh, soft goat cheese

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Spoon the bruschetta pomodoro in a bowl and add 4 tbsp warm water. Leave to soak. Add 6 tbsp olive oil and stir well. Spread the Bruschetta mixture over the slices of bread. Brush the back sides of the slices of bread with 2 tbsp olive oil. Cut the bread in cubes. Bake the croutons 10 min in the oven until crispy and leave to cool.

Heat the butter in a large pan and saute the shallots until it looks translucent. Add the flour and stir until smooth. Let the flour cook lightly stirring continuously until thickened. Gradually add the chicken broth and stir constantly to keep the mixture smooth. Add the saveurade Assisi and the cream and stir well again. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce heat and simmer. Peel the potatoes and cut into small cubes. Add to the soup and cook until tender. Remove the pan from the heat. Toss the arugula (keep some separate for garnish) in the soup and puree the soup in a blender until smooth. Drizzle the olive oil over the soup. Garnish the soup with arugula and croutons.  Preparation time 30 minutes.  Serves 4

*To substitute the Saveurade Assisi in a food processor make a thick sauce with basil, garlic, onion and a bit of white wine

Piri Piri French Fries

Ingredients:

1 cup grapeseed oil
3 tbsp rub Portuguese
5 tablespoons mix for French style roasted potatoes or Greek style roasted potatoes
1 lb sweet potatoes
1 lb waxy potatoes
4 spring onions  

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Take two bowls and divide the grapeseed oil, half in each bowl. Mix on the one side the oil with the rub Portuguese and in the other with the French or Greek potato herbs. Peel the sweet potato and wash it. Wash the other potatoes with peel. Cut the potatoes into equal size fries. Clean the spring onions and cut them into chunks. Mix the sweet potato and half the spring onions with the Portuguese rub mixture. The remaining potatoes and spring onion mix with the French potato seasoning.

Heat 2 large pans and fry the potato mixture each in its own pan for 5 minutes until crisp and brown. Then pour the fries onto two baking sheets with parchment paper and bake for 10 minutes in the oven and serve.  Preparation time 30 minutes.  Serves 4.

Tip: Serve with chicken wings and a fresh salad.  

Garlic Chili Wings

Ingredients:

2 lb chicken wings
1 cup Bonsecco olive oil
4 tsp orange blossom honey
4 dried chillies
4 tsp chicken choice, unground
30 dried garlic flakes
5 small, thin slices ginger
5 discs lemon
10 sprigs cilantro  

Preparation:

In a large bowl make the marinade of olive oil, honey, chilli's, chicken choice and garlic slices. Crush the herbs in the marinade with the convex side of a spoon. Cut the ginger slices into very fine cubes and put them together with the lemon slices and 6 sprigs cilantro to the marinade. Crush the ginger and lemon so the juices mix well in the marinade. Dry the chicken wings with paper towels and place them in the marinade. Rub the marinade into the chicken wings. Allow to marinate at least 60 minutes in the fridge.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Bake the chicken wings on a cooking sheet until they look golden brown. Remove the chicken wings from the pan and place them in a baking dish. Pour the remaining marinade over the chicken wings and place the dish in the oven for 15-20 min. Serve the chicken wings in a bowl and pour the remaining marinade over the top. Garnish the chicken wings with the remaining cilantro leaves. Serve as a snack or as a main dish with fries and a salad.  Preparation time 95 minutes.  Serves 4.

Sundried Tomato & Artichoke Frittata

Ingredients:

10 eggs
1 Tbsp Bonsecco olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jar of sunpomo halfdried tomatoes, drained, patted dry and chopped
1 jar artichoke hearts drained, patted dry and chopped
1 Tbsp multi-culti grinder herbs
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1 small tomato, thinly sliced

Preparation:

Preheat the broiler.  In a large bowl, whisk the eggs together and set aside.  In an oven safe skillet sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil until tender. Add the sun dried tomatoes and artichokes, stir well and continue to cook for 2 – 3 minutes.  Add the multi-culti, salt and pepper.  Pour the egg mixture over the tomato artichoke mixture.  As they begin to set push the cooked parts toward the center of the pan with a spatula and slightly tip the pan so the runny parts fill around the edges.  Cook until the eggs are set, but still wet on top.  Top with the feta and 3 or 4 slices of tomato and place under the broiler for 2 minutes until the frittata has set and the cheese is slightly melted.  Remove from the broiler and loosen the frittata with a thin spatula.  Carefully slide onto a platter and cut into wedges.  Serves 6