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Andalusia or Andalucía?

The autonomous region of Andalusia (Andalucía in Spanish) is in the southern part of Spain. It spans from Atlantic coast in the west to the sheltered coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the east and from Málaga's Costa del Sol to the borders of Castilla – La Mancha the famous flat lands and Don Quixote windmill country.  With an average of 300 plus days of sunshine a year the coastal area is an all year round destination. Not so in the inland provinces of Cordoba, Jaen and Sevilla which ha ve baking hot summers that can reach +40c and cold winters which can be 0c or less overnight. The Mezquita, Córdoba Andalusia is divided into eight provinces, each with a provincial city of the same name. Some of them are far more famous than others: Almería , Cádiz, Córdoba, Granada, Huelva, Jaén, Málaga and Sevilla. The three land-locked provinces are Córdoba, Jaé n and Sevilla, the rest are coastal. Each province and city is full of culture, history, traditions, fabulous monuments and cre...

Spain Buddy Recipe Book Review - Popular Spanish Dishes & Tapas

From Ajopringue (Stewed Pigs' Liver) to Brazo de Gitano, literally meaning 'a Gypsy's Arm (Swiss Roll) this Spanish recipe book is packed with popular, easy to prepare dishes and tapas from Spain. Put together by the lover of Spanish food (and wine) Elle Draper. A long-term lover of all things Spanish who left the Canary Islands for the hills of Almeria in Andalucia.



Elle lives with her photographer partner Alan and several huge dogs. See her Instagram feed- Spain Buddy for great photos (by her and sometimes Alan) of food, wine, their 3 dogs and Spain. Elle is as gregarious as she is prolific in writing (on her Spain  Buddy website and elsewhere) and as a self-proclaimed lover of food she delights in sharing the dishes she loves to both eat and cook.


With over 100 Spanish dishes and plenty of mouth-watering inducing photos this is not a book to peruse when hungry. Many of my favourite tapas are in here including Pipirrana de Jaen which is a tomato salad which comes from my home province of Jaen in the north of Andalucia. Another favourite of mine is Gambas Pil Pil a hot, garlicky dish of spicy prawns - finger lickingly good.



I'm happily ploughing through the recipes (the Ajopringue may wait until last!) Right now in the heat of the Spanish summer it's dishes like Gazpacho (chilled tomato smoothie) and Ensalada Rusa (Russian Salad) that are most welcome. In the cold months of winter (in the mountains of Jaen it does get cold) Barrecha de Libre o Conejo (Hare or Rabbit Stew)  or Magra con Tomate (Pork in Tomato Sauce) that win the day.



You can purchase the recipe book directly as a PDF or Kindle version via the Spain Buddy site - Spain Buddy Recipe Book for the low price of €4.99 then you can get cooking popular dishes & tapas from Spain in your own kitchen. I wouldn't mind an invite as I prefer eating to cooking!





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