La Comida de Espana

So, classes of my semester abroad are winding down and my travel period is beginning. This leaves me little time to cook and grocery shop and blog about being that I am out of the country probably more than I am in it.

I don't want to stop posting, however, so I came up with an idea. Every country I go to I will post about the traditional food and what I eat and show you really awesome pictures. First country on the list= Spain, since I spent this past weekend in Madrid.

First up, breakfast. Apparently the Spanish aren't very big on breakfast. Usually they just have coffee and maybe some toast with different toppings. Like this picture below which is toast with olive oil and tomatoes. Sadly this wasn't mine. Since nowhere seemed to have gluten free bread (except a few grocery stores) I had to have only espresso for breakfast. No milk either because soy milk (or Soja) isn't all that common either.

Now for lunch. Lunch is the biggest meal of the day in Spain. In fact it often involves many different courses and hours of eating. This is why the Spanish take afternoon naps or siestas. My favorite and probably the most stereotypical spanish dish? Paella. What I love about paella is that you share it as a table and everyone eats out of the same dish and since its made with rice I could actually eat it.

Paella de Mariscos

Dinner is a bit smaller and really late (like 9 or 10). It is generally tapas or something before going out for the night. Actually generally when we went out for dinner I saw more people drinking than actually eating. And the best drink in Spain, at least to me, has to be Sangria.

Lastly it's time for dessert. Madrid is known for its chocolate y churros. There are entire restaurants devoted to it and most of them are open practically 24 hours. If you go to one of these places in the wee hours of the morning after a night out expect it to be packed.

Summary of Spanish cuisine:

First, it's hard to eat in Madrid with allergies, thats for sure. Luckily the grocery stores do have options but breakfast out is virtually impossible and your lunch/dinner options are there but limited.

Also, it seems that in Spain people eat a huge lunch but not much else. Or at least that's wat it seemed like in my 3 days there.

My suggestions for what to eat while in Spain: Tortilla de Espagnola (its like an omelette with potatoes and egg), Paella de Mariscos, lots of espresso, lots of sangria, and finally chocolate y churros (if you can, since I cannot).