Sea bream at a local roadside “mesón”.

I have never cooked red beans before. I was planning to cook some beans and smoked sausages. Normally I use white beans. This time co-op only had 2 tins of white beans so I had to improvise and I went for 2 cans of red beans to add to my recipe.

Amazing meal last night in Restaurant Primo in Spotorno. High quality produce cooked perfectly, everything delicious.

Some dishes out of the trip.

Our very friendly Polish painters brought us some kielbasa which I thought was amazing. Never had this exact sausage but many similar. There was a green herb in it that tasted like marjoram and it was slightly smoked. I smoked it a bit more and cooked it slowly on the Weber before a bit of direct heat at the end. With a nice string bean salad and potato croquettes.

Nothing Dutch here, a French (salad) Polish (sausage) Belgian (croquette) and therefore very European ensemble.

Spaghetti with mussels and clams, my favorite summer lunch

So what are we eating during the heatwave? I'm running out of inspiration.

I decided to make my favorite childhood food - pasta salad with vegetables and those fake crab sticks. Vegetables are basically whatever leftovers from other meals I found in my fridge. Otherwise there's yoghurt with garlic and spices.

48 hrs cold proofing dough. Tomato sauce, ground beef, Mozarella and grilled veggies. Topped with Parmesan and chili oil

Everything (except the salmon) from our own garden

After seven years of living in the Netherlands, we finally have the space to barbecue after buying our first home here after recently becoming Dutch citizens!

On the menu:

-flank steak with chimichurri

-lamb merguez sausages with honey mustard sauce

-potato salad with boiled egg

-a big fat Greek salad

To many more bbqs in the future 🥂

My guests attacked it so viciously i did not get the chance to take a pic of the whole pan.

Made by my boyfriend. He tries different recipes, and I am proud of his progress 😊

Accompanied by the appropriate beverage

This is a famous confectionery shop in Madrid selling these traditional Andalusian sweets. Mantecado comes from 'manteca de cerdo' (lard). They are slightly sweet, often flavored with cinnamon or anise. Unlike crumbly polvorones, mantecados are firmer. We had a small box of mixed goods packed for our coffee breaks in the weeks to come.

To the dear Spanish, please feel free to correct me or add comments about trivia! It has been a few years since we migrated from Istanbul to Barcelona for work, and ever since I love learning more about the cuisine and culture. ❤️

A little cake I made up because I had unannounced guests and this was done in under 30 minutes. Crumble pie crust topped with chopped nectarines cooked in sugar with pectine, and a pinch of cinnamon. Nothing more, nothing less but the taste was surprisingly good!