Celebrating Halloween Spanish Style

Spain doesn't exactly celebrate Halloween in the sense that Americans do. It isn't a Spanish holiday, but it is becoming more prevalent. Instead, Spaniards like to celebrate All Saints Day (November 1st) and the Dia de los Difuntos, or in Mexico, Dia de los Muertos on the 2nd of November.

A traditional treat is the panellet and are located all over Barcelona and Spain. We were at the Mercat de Santa Caterina and decided to see what all the fuss was about. Generally they are made of chestnuts and sweet potatoes. Panellets come in different shapes, sizes, and are decorated with different toppings. Most are round, made from marzipan (almonds and sugar) and the most popular are covered in pine nuts.

Liz and I split four (all quite small) and attempted to decide which ones were our favorite. One in particular had a more flavorful taste, probably that of coffee, and yet another had a sweet kick, the extra sugar coating the marzipan. I could relate the flavor and texture to a very doughy sugar cookie. Most patisserias tend to sell them for high prices, but we lucked out with four panellets for 2.55 euro.

In Spain, the theory is to feast on the 31st and 1st of November so that on the 2nd, the day of the dead, their stomachs will be completely full and will not have room for the bad spirits to enter. Similar I guess to our “Fat Tuesday” during the Easter season.

Orange, sugar, coffee, and coconut

Certainly another way to celebrate the fall. What is your favorite fall tradition?

Oh the Selection of Sandwiches

Ever tried to find the "hole-in-the-wall" places that everyone talks or raves about? Well, it usually is just that. A hole in the wall or in this case, a store below the sidewalk, out of eye view.

I had heard about everyone getting these delicious 1 Euro sandwiches and sometimes a 1 Euro beer and turns out, I had been walking straight past the place in question for the past three weeks. It is known as Cerveceria 100 Montaditos and is located off Ronda Sant Pere in Barcelona. The menu consists of over 100 choices, broken into three four categories of gourmet heaven. The first tier is the basic selection of cheese, salami, sausage (chorizo), or even chocolate. With each consecutive level, the ingredients and breads become more complex and gourmet. The menu also includes a selection of 4-5 salads, all that look divine and are reasonably priced.

I went with my friends Bonnie and Liz on a Wednesday, which happens to also be the day when ALL the sandwiches are 1 Euro. My lunch sandwiches included a spicy chorizo sandwich, a kebab/chicken, and a chocolate con leche. Two, from the tier 1 sandwiches arrived on a tiny baguette and the third was on a more artisian roll. The chocolate or pan con chocolate con leche was very reminiscent of a s'more - basically a couple blocks of chocolate on a semi-warm baguette. I have had more than enough s'mores in my life time between camping and Girl Scouts, so it wasn't exactly my favorite sandwich. Next on my list is the BBQ sandwich with BBQ sauce, chicken, cheddar cheese and grilled onions. Very American.

Chorizo, Kebab/Chicken, Chocolate con Leche

Not the greatest angles, but a glimpse of the meal

With each meal comes a small handful of potato chips. There is also the option to purchase french fries, which appeared more like Pomme Frites, the skinnier fried potato, or even a Spanish version of chips, salsa, and guacamole. I am curious to see how their guacamole differs from that of California, so I may have to test it out sometime.

I have included the link, but sadly it is all in Spanish and might include a little Catalan. But it is fun to check out the site nonetheless. It is well worth standing in line for a selection of sandwiches and nothing can beat their prices!