Spanish Feast

We had some friends around last night, a few folks for the first time, for what was kind of a thrown-together-at-the-last-minute affair. As is the case with most of our dinner parties, it descended into a bunch of drunken Wii playing by the end of the night. The food and drink, though, was pretty good I think. There's a lot to get through here so take your time.

Drink: Cava Sangria

3 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons sugar
4 strawberries, quartered
½ cup raspberries
½ cup blueberries
½ cup blackberries
1 bottle dry red wine, preferably a Spanish red, such as Rioja or Tempranillo
¾ cup orange juice
½ cup Grand Marnier
1 bottle Cava, or similar sparkling wine

Combine the water and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and let cool.

Combine the fruit in a bowl. In a large pitcher, combine the sugar-water, wine, orange juice, and Grand Marnier. Add the fruit and stir gently to combine. (The sangria can be prepared ahead to this point and held in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours before serving.)

Just before serving, add the Cava to the pitcher. Serve the sangria in wineglasses with some of the wine-soaked fruit in each glass.

Tapas Plate: Meatballs with Peaches

FOR THE MEATBALLS
½ slice stale white bread
2 tablespoons whole milk
¼ lb. ground beef, coarsely ground
1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 tablespoons parsley, very finely chopped
1 tablespoon egg, beaten
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons flour
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
FOR THE SAUCE AND FRUIT
2 teaspoons pine nuts
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium peach, peeled, halved, pitted and sliced into 12 segments
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1-½ cups chicken stock
1 cinnamon stick
1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped

MEATBALLS
Place the bread in a small bowl and pour the milk over it, using just enough milk to soften the bread. Let it sit for one minute.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, milk-soaked bread, garlic, parsley and egg. Using a spoon, mix all the ingredients together. Add the salt and continue mixing. Place the flour on a plate. Form 1 inch balls of the meat mixture (you should end up with 12 meatballs), and roll them in the flour. Shake off any excess flour, and set the meatballs aside. Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over a medium flame. When the oil reaches 350F, add the meatballs in small batches. Pan-fry until brown all over, about 4 minutes. Set the meatballs aside on paper towels to drain.

SAUCE
In a small saute pan, toast the pine nuts over medium-low heat, stirring regularly to ensure they don't burn, until they turn light brown, 3 minutes. Remove the pine nuts from the pan and set aside.

Place a large saute pan over low heat, add the sugar, and cook until golden, about 2 minutes. Stir the butter into the sugar and allow it to melt. Then add the peach slices and saute until they are brown on all sides, about 2 minutes. Remove the peaches and set them aside. Add the vinegar and cook until reduced by half, about 1 minute. Add the stock, reserved pine nuts and the cinnamon stick. Cook until the sauce starts to thicken, about 3 minutes.

Add the meatballs to the pan. Bring the sauce to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook 5 minutes, moving the pan constantly to ensure the meatballs cook evenly. he sauce should end up being thick and syrupy. Return the peach slices to the pan and heat through. Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.

Tapas Plate: Sweetbreads with Sofrito

FOR THE SWEETBREADS
2 carrots, sliced
1 leek, halved and rinsed well, or 1 small onion, halved
1 stick celery
1 bay leaf
juice of 1/2 a lemon
salt
FOR THE DISH
2 eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil
80 g breadcrumbs
1.2 kg sweetbreads
250 ml sunflower oil
2 sprigs fresh parsley
TOMATO AND ONION SOFRITO
10 ripe plum tomatoes
1-1/2 cups Spanish extra-virgin olive oil
4 small Spanish onions, chopped fine (about 4 cups)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon pimenton (Spanish sweet smoked paprika)
1 bay leaf
Salt

PREPARE SWEETBREADS
Put the sweetbreads in a saucepan and pour in water to cover. Add the carrot, leek or onion, celery, if using, bay leaf, lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, drain off the hot water and refresh the sweetbreads in cold water, then drain well. Peel off the membrane and remove any gristle, fat, ducts, membrane or traces of blood. Place the sweetbreads on a tea towel and fold back over them so that they are covered, then put something heavy on top, such as a light chopping board. Leave for one hour, then slice thickly according to taste.

FOR THE TOMATO AND ONION SOFRITO
Cut the tomatoes in half. Place a grater over a large mixing bowl. Rub the cut side of the tomato into the grater until the flesh is gone. Discard the skin. Strain the mixture.

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over low-to-medium heat. Add the onions and the sugar. Cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until the onions are tender with a light brown color. You want the onion to caramelize. If the onion gets too dark, add water to keep cooking the onion evenly without burning.

Add the reserved tomato puree, the pimeton and the bay leaf. Cook for another 20minutes at medium heat. You'll know your sofrito is ready when the tomato has broken down and deepened in color and the oil has separated from the sauce. Add salt to taste and scoop out the sauce with a slotted spoon, leaving as much oil behind as possible. The oil can be used to drizzle over Spanish food. (NOTE: You'll need 3 tablespoons of this for the paella)

FOR THE DISH
Beat the eggs with the olive oil and a pinch of salt in a shallow dish. Coat the sweetbreads first in the egg mixture and then in the breadcrumbs, pressing the crumbs on with your fingertips. Heat the sunflower oil in a frying pan over low heat. Add the parsley sprigs and cook for a few minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Increase the heat until the heat is enough to brown a cube of day-old bread in 30 seconds. Add the sweetbreads and cook until golden brown. Remove with a fish slice and drain well. Put the sweetbreads on a warm serving dish and garnish with the parsley. Serve immediately offering the tomato sauce separately.

Main Dish: Lobster Paella

600 g small Maine lobster
2 tablespoons Spanish extra-virgin olive oil
6 ounces fresh squid, cut into small pieces
¼ cup sofrito (see above)
1 garlic clove, finely chopped (about 1 teaspoon)
3-½ cups fish stock
1 pinch Spanish saffron threads
1 tablespoon salt
1-½ cups Spanish Bomba or Calasparra rice

Using a very sharp knife, separate the lobster head from the tail. Cut the lobster head in half, putting the blade between the eyes. Slice through the head cleanly, then cut it into quarters, and cut the claws in half. Cut the tail into 6 medallions. In a paella pan over high. heat, sear the lobster medallions in

the olive oil for 1 minute. Remove them from the pan and set them aside. Add the squid to the pan and sear for 15 seconds. Add the sofrito, stir, and cook for 1 minute. Add the garlic, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 3 minutes.

Pour in the fish stock, raise the heat, and bring to a boil. Crush the saffron and add it to the pan. Season with the salt. (Make sure it's just a little bit salty; the rice will balance out the saltiness.) Add the rice, taking care not to dump it in a pile-spread it evenly around the pan. Cook for 5 minutes over high heat, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon. You'll see the rice floating
around the pan at this stage. If it's not, the mixture is too dry and you should add another 1/2 cup of stock or water.

Place the lobster head, claws, and medallions on top and reduce the heat to low. After this point, never put your finger or anything else in the rice. If you do, you will break the natural film that forms on top of the paella and the rice will cook unevenly. Maintaining a slow boil, cook for 10 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed.

Set the paella aside for 3 minutes; then serve right away.

Dessert: Strawberry Ice Cream

1 lb. frozen strawberries
½ cup fromage blanc or plain, low-fat yogurt
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
small bunch of mint

In a food processor, puree the strawberries with the fromage blanc, sugar and mint for 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and serve immediately.

If using fresh strawberries, follow the above instructions then put into an ice cream maker. Freeze for a few hours before serving.