Letting go of butter & cream

I have been trained by the rules of French cuisine and I abide by Julia Child's rule for most of my life, " If you're afraid of butter, use cream!"

Since moving to Spain I have been uncomfortable, looking for my safety net of butter and cream and it's taken me some time to get accustomed to a new pantry. Thus far, studying the basics and traditional Spanish recipes, I have learned a few things...

To start:
Any dish starts with 4 basic ingredients - always! The base of the pan or pot is covered with a generous layer olive oil, obviously no butter. Then onion (cebolla), garlic (ajo) and red / green bell peppers (piementon) is sautéd. This is often all cut very finely to create a sofrito - a softly sautéd paste.


On your plate:
The meat added to the dishes is mainly Jamón Iberico (Iberico cured ham) and a choice of lamb (cordero) and rabbit (conejo) is also common on any menu. Bacalao, cod, is the most common fish, and a great variety of fresh seafood can be found anywhere.


The size of the plate:
South Africa is 'rys-vleis-en-artappels' (rice, meat and potatoes) nation. I quite like having my own big plate of food and 'digging in'.  Therefore I have been confused to keep on getting 'tapas' at restaurants, flavorful miniatrure dishes. It has taken me some time to realize the advantage - you can have 4 or 5 different dishes per night, simmilar to a tasting menu!

To finish:
"Mas aceite" (More oil!)
In my restaurant I have learned two things: 1.There can never be enough olive oil to dress a dish. 2. Then add some more olive oil just to be safe! I can't remember cooking with any other fat since I have been here - butter and cream seemed to have disappeared. Fat from Chorizo or Jamón however covers the palate with a flavourful fattiness.

Of course, smoked paprika is the last touch to round off the dish and again the plate.

It might be taking some time to train my palate get accustomed to a new flavours and texture, but I am enjoying every minute of  the tasting sensations!

From the land of Citrus and Saffron
Liezl

Taking it all in!

Week 1
It's started with a bang! From our arrival at the residence up until now it's been a race to take in as much as possible...

Domingo, Sunday, has arrived and it marks the end of my first week in Spain - along with it, it brings anticipation! Heaps of excitement builds inside as the thought of what I've learned, seen and experienced in one week has been more so much than I expected, I can't imagine what an entire 21 weeks will amount to.

Above every sight, smell and taste I have been introduced to, I have been introduced to an amazing variety of new amigos. Each one of them brings their own flair to the program and by not introducing them, you would miss half of the program.

North America

Miriam Much - United States, Seattle
My short companion, with a lot of smiles and a kind heart, Miriam is always cheering up the group. She clearly has a lot of passion for what she does and has a special place for each chef that has thought her.

Nick Palamaro - United States, New York

Nicky, student from the CIA is an obvious hard worker. Back in America he has spent a lot of time studying Spanish in order to communicate better in the American, or as he says in order for the Spanish not to make fun of him in American kitchens!

Carla Castro - Canada
Currently studying in Canada, she has become the groups translator with her Portuguese / Spanish background and Brazilian roots. Carla has instantly become the 'mother figure' in the group!

South America

Sabine Caubarére - Argentina 
Originally from Uruguay, another saving grace as her first language is obviously Spanish. It is however important to note that every country's Spanish dialect differs.

Europe
Ciaran Doyle - Ireland
With his milky, satin skin, he is surely the entertainer in the group. He also happens to sit next to me in Spanish classes, and I often hide behind his quick understanding and learning of the language.

Sandro Zinggeler - Switserland
Sandro, the most energetic of the group and often found singing, speaks Swiss German, which is closest to my own mother tongue, Afrikaans.

Sylvester Koscuik - Poland
Sylvester is quiet and hard working. Naturally Sylvester and Blaz (Eslovenia) became quick friends with no language barriers.

Blaz Kostansjek - Eslovenia
The long man from Eslovenia with the hard accent, turned out to be the friendly guy who seems eager to learn.

Asia

Kouta Koubayashi - Japan
Without a doubt the best mannered person I have met in a long time. Kouta is always seen revising recipes or learning Spanish with his dictionary. Although he doesn't speak English and only basic Spanish, he fits in the group perfectly!

Nigel Lobo - India
Definitely the man with everyone's favourite accent. I admire him for currently learning his 5th language.

Samuel Quan - Singapore
A short guy that is always seen smiling and laughing. Sam's first language, Mandarin, is world's apart from Spanish - a great effort from him for learning a new language.

Shao and Shu

With a bit of a struggle the language barrier, their culture is the furthest away from my own Westernized culture. Shao is always found sitting about until the early morning hours, obviously still struggling with the time zone differences. 

And finally South Africa, and the Southern part Africa is represented! Wearing the South African flag with pride and cooking my way through Spain, I am having the time of my life!

From the land of citrus and saffron
Liezl

Collecting the lotto-prize

I have won the lotto and tomorrow I go in to collect my prize.

As with every other person that has won the lottery before me, I am now in the hesitant-phase. The moment before you claim what was given to you, and you start to imagine…

What will it be like? What will it be like once you get there? How will this prize affect you now, in his glorious moment, but also your entire future? We are after all the sum total of moments we experience.

In the two months leading up to my departure tomorrow, I have spent hours upon hours imagining what the country looks like, what I will say when I first meet my expedition-companions, what I will taste and smell.

For the next five months the only thing I am sure of is that everything will change. From the view from my room, to my family, to my dinner at night.

And so, with a combination of excitement, hesitance and an over active imagination, my expedition begins…