Cooking with the amas de casa

On 3 occasions over the last 6 weeks the ladies of Torre del Compte have met on a Saturday afternoon to watch a cooking demonstration given by Carlos who is the chef at a restaurant in nearby Beceite.


21 people regularly attend the demonstrations which are held in the unoccupied flat owned by the ayuntamiento which has basic cooking facilities. Carlos does very well under the circumstances.


Previous demonstrations have dealt with the cooking of meat and vegetables and today it is the turn of postres.

First was the puff pastry with custard and fresh fruit.


This is a scrumptious favourite for everyone!

The next was the lemon tart with a base of crushed María biscuits...

...and a delicious lemon, egg yolk and condensed milk filling .

Individual tarts as well as a large tart were produced.

Finally, chocolate muffins with a liquid chocolate centre - yummy!

Here are the recipes for all 3 postres both in Spanish and English:

Hojaldre con crema y frutas / Puff pastry with custard and fruit.

Ingredientes / Ingredients:

1 placa de hojaldre /1 packet of puff pastry.
Frutas variadas / various fresh or tinned fruits.
1 huevo / 1 egg.

Para la crema / for the custard:
1 litro de leche / 1 litre of milk
4 yemas de huevos / 4 egg yolks
250 g de azúcar / 250 g of sugar
100 g de maicena / 100 g of corn flour
Limón, canela y vanilla / lemon, cinnamon stick and a vanilla pod

Precalentar el horno a 220 °C / Preheat the oven to 220 °C

Elaboración para la hojaldre / Method for the pastry case:

1.Cortamos la placa de hojaldre en la forma deseada, y forramos el borde con una tira fina de hojaldre / Cut the pastry to the chosen shape forming a border around the two side edges. Prick the base all over with a fork.

2. La horneamos a 220 C durante 15 minutes / Bake in the oven at 220 C for 15 minutes.

Elaboración para la crema / method for the custard:

1. Hervir la leche más los aromas / Heat the milk slowly with the zest of lemon, cinnamon stick and a vanilla pod.

2. A parte mezclamos la maicena con un poco de leche sobrante y las yemas / Mix (slake) the cornflour with the rest of the milk and add the 4 egg yolks using a balloon whisk.

3. Cuando la leche ya este infusionada la incorporamos en la mezcla de la maicena y lo llevamos a una ebullición lenta / Pour the milk over the slaked cornflour and then return to the pan and slowly bring the mixture to the boil constantly using the balloon whisk.

4. Cuando esté espesa la vertemos en un molde y enfriamos / after the starch grains burst the mixture will thicken. Place it in a refridgerator to cool.

Elaboración construción / Method for constructing the tart:

1. Extendemos la crema en el fondo del hojaldre / Spread the cooled custard over the bottom of the pastry case.

2. Cortamos las frutas y las disponemos por encima en forma de decoración / Wash and cut the fruit and arrange the fruit in lines down the pastry case. Brush the fruit with lemon juice to stop oxidation.

Disfrutar / Enjoy...

Tarta de limón / Lemon Tart

Ingredientes / Ingredients:

200 g de galletas maría / 200 g Maria biscuits
100g de mantequilla / 100g butter
El zumo de 3 limones / Juice of 3 lemons
3 huevos / 3 eggs
370 g de leche condensada / 370 g condensed milk.

Elaboración / Method:

Precalentar el horno a 180 °C / Preheat the oven to 180 °C

1. Trocear las galletas y mezclarlas con mantequilla derretida / Crush the biscuits and mix with the melted butter.

2. En un bol, mezclar los huevos, el zumo de limón y la leche condensada hasta que quede una crema espesa / In a bowl mix the eggs, lemon juice and condensed milk with an electric mixer until the mixture thickens.

3. Cubrir el fondo y las paredes del molde con la pasta / Press the mixture into the base and the sides of the container.

4. Rellenamos con la crema de limón, también podemos poner por encima unas lagrimas de chocolate derretido / Pour the lemon mixture over the base of the biscuits in the container.

5. Cocer durante 25/30 minutes / Cook for 25/30 minutes.

Disfrutar / Enjoy...

Coulant de chocolate / Chocolate muffin

Ingredientes / Ingredients:

2 huevos / 2 eggs
60 g mantequilla / 60 g butter
40 g azúcar / 40 g sugar
30 g harina / 30 g flour
125 g de chocolate / 125 g of chocolate

Precalentar el horno a 180 °C / Preheat the oven to 180 °C

Elaboración / Method:

1. Mezclar los huevos con el azúcar, añadir la mantequilla derretida y mezclar / Mix the eggs with the sugar and then add the melted butter and mix.

2. Incorporar el chocolate ya derretido y a continuación la harina / Incorpoate the melted chocolate and the flour gradually.

3. Mezclar todo lo anterior y disponer en moldes individuales previamente untados en aceite / Mix all of the above ingredients and pour into individual moulds which have been oiled previously.

4. Hornear durante 7 minutes at 180 °C / Cook for 7 minutes in a preheated oven at 180 °C

5. Desmoldar y servir espolvoreando con azúcar glasee / Release from the mould and sprinkle with castor sugar if desired.

Disfrutar / Enjoy...

Pear blossom!

Spring has sprung,
da grass is riz
I wonder where
them boidies iz?

Da little boids is on da wing

Ain't dat absoid

Da little wings is on da boid!

There he is up in the sky,
He dropped some whitewash in my eye!

I‘m alright, I won't cry,
I'm just glad cows can't fly!

(by Anon)

Spring has newly sprung

the hills are full of grass

and along comes a billy-goat

sliding on his overcoat

down the summer pass

Ogden Nash - "The Passionate Pagan and the Dispassionate Public -- a Tragedy of the Machine Age.

Spring has sprung, fall has fell,
winter’s here, and it’s cold as heck.

Pancakes!!

We made pancakes on Shrove Tuesday. They were so good we wanted to share them with the world.


To see the short video we made, click HERE.

Gorse blossom!

Spring must be here if the gorse blossom is out.

The bees were very busy buzzing around so they must know it's spring.

LLEDÓ with the Amas de Casa

We arived in Lledó at 9.45a.m. and we were given delicious hot chocolate with biscuits, an excellent start to the day. In the photograph are four of my friends from Torre Del Compte - Nieves, Rosario, Rosi and Pilar.

Click to enlarge.

Our lunch was to be paella which was cooked outside on an open wood fire.

We then began our tour of the village, following the brass band which had been hired for the occasion. They led us to the church were we were given a wonderful concert.

We walked along the streets of the old part of the village, some parts needed a few renovations.

A banner was displayed on this balcony to give that festive feeling.

We visited two exhibitions, one of local photographs and the other mantones, (shawls), some of which were very old; but all were very beautiful.

One of the many beautiful mantones on display.

Some of the old houses had been renovated and their stonework returned to its former glory without the once fashionable rendering.


Lledó has a most magnificent backdrop to the village. The picturesque mountains nearby had snow on their peaks from the recent snow flurry four days earlier.

The meal was generous with mouthwatering entremeses, (cold cuts of meat), this time with pizza and sausage rolls as well as langostinos, (prawns). This was followed by the paella we saw being cooked outside earlier. We had red wine, water sin and con gas and after our icecream we had coffee or tea followed by manzana liqueur. It is also traditional to have locally made biscuits - but to ensure we didn´t leave them, they were bagged individually so that we could take them home to our loved ones.

I collected the regalo, (present), in my role as El Presidente which were given to all of the villages of the Matarraña.

What a fantastic way to celebrate the centenary of International Women´s Day...

Holiday in Gran Canaria!

The first part of our holiday was in the Parador at Cruz de Tejeda which is in the centre of the island at around 1,500 metres above sea level.

Click on any image to see it full size.

The view from our room was incredible with the Roque Bentayga being very prominent at 1,414 metres.


In the photo below, taken at sunset, Pico del Teide on Tenerife can be seen above the cloud to the right.

There were some dramatic sunsets.

The pueblo of Tejede is peaceful and tranquil at this time of the year. Even at this altitude they can still grow oranges.


Evenings in the Parador were spent in the lounge in front of the fire.


Another attraction of the Parador is the spa which we had all to ourselves one morning.


The menu in the Parador was well worth exploring - in this dish I had 55 caracoles. Delicious!


Not in the Parador but in a restaurant nearby - clearly not popular vintages.


Driving around the centre of the island you were never far away from known landmarks even though the drive had taken a long time - there are no straight roads in this region.

Cactus thrives at lower altitudes...

...as do the local colourful weeds.

There are breathtaking views all around the island.

The second part of the holiday was at Puerto Rico very close to where we stayed last year but a little higher up the hill. Below is the view from our terrace.

Around the grounds of the hotel, the gardens were set out neatly...

...with lots of colourful bougainvillea...

...and lots of palms and cacti.

One day we visited Palmitos Park and saw all the animals and plants we saw last year but this year we also saw the dolphins which have just been introduced. Click HERE to see the video on YouTube.

We also saw the exotic birds and birds of prey shows. To see edited highlights of both shows, click HERE. After the show with the birds of prey there was a photo opportunity with an eagle!

The cacti were splendid...

...as were the birds...

...and butterflies.

Another show we had to visit was the parrot show - great fun. To see the edited highlights, click HERE.

Another day we visited Maspolomas...

...and saw the famous dunes.

A brilliant holiday. We've already booked for next year!