Politicians, Elections, Our Week.

I guess I am pretty naïve or something. I have been sick of watching mud slinging political ads on TV for years, but it was only yesterday that I discovered they tell outright lies and some of what is said is totally untrue. I have never had much time for politicians, but that made me have even less time for them. A total bunch of liars in my opinion. I could use several other words but won’t do so here.

Tomorrow is local election day here – it will be interesting to see the results. The Americans are also voting in a few days and Mr. Obama is campaigning for all he is worth. Things are not much better in the States than when he took over and so he is being blamed. I guess people thought he was a superman not just an ordinary person. They seem to think he should have been able to wave a magic wand and fix everything that’s wrong.

Meanwhile, we are bowling once again today and I wish I had that magic wand to enable the pair of us to bowl better. Then this week Matt gets his Loop Monitor for two weeks which will make him really happy. Thursday we have our first travel league for bowling and some of us are going to the My Thai restaurant opposite the bowling alley, some of the group don’t like Thai food so they are going to a different place. Can’t please everybody I suppose.

On Saturday I promised you this recipe. Its very simple to do and absolutely delicious. The instructions say to turn the tortilla over, but this isn’t easy so I just wrapped the handle of my pan in foil and put the whole thing under the grill to brown off.

Tortilla des Patatas

3 Medium-sized potatoes
1 Onion (optional)
3 Eggs
oil (olive oil, canola oil, sunflower oil are good)
salt

1. Peel the onion and potatoes.

2. Cut the onion into thin pieces. Add plenty of oil to a frying pan and let them fry until they turn brown

3. Dice the potatoes while the onions are cooking. Season them as desired and add them to the frying pan.

4. Fry everything together over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until everything turns slightly brown.

5. Remove the pan from the heat and drain the oil

6. Beat the eggs in a large bowl, and add the potatoes, onions.

7. Add a little bit of oil in the frying pan and add the mixture. Cook the egg until it sets up, first on high heat, and then over low heat.

8. Turn the tortilla over so that it browns on both sides. You can serve hot or cold.

Servings: 4

Author Notes
The tortilla de patatas, which literally means "potato tortilla", is a very typical Spanish dish, similar to a frittata.

New Bra?, Tortilla and Piri-Piri.

Need new bras? Victoria’s Secret have just launched this year’s $5 million bra – their jewel encrusted Fantasy Bra. They have one every year, apparently last year’s was covered in champagne diamonds but they are not being bought so they are talking about selling them for charity. This year I think its also diamonds and sapphires, I think, but I can’t find any details. I told Matt I needed new bras, but he doesn’t think I should have one like this!!! Mind you it seems they make more fuss about the model than the bra.

The other day someone described eating a Tortilla des Patatas which a Spanish woman used to make for her all the time. Made me hungry, we haven’t had one for years. Decided to make it for supper on Friday night, it was delicious. This is basically an egg dish, bit like a frittata. I will post the recipe on Monday.

I was going to post this recipe yesterday as I loved Piri-Piri when I was in Portugal, I had it at one particular restaurant where we sat outside to eat. We had made friends with a retired English guy who promoted the restaurant by handing out flyers. When I got my dish of piri-piri I said I didn’t think it was that hot (spicy) so he went into the restaurant and got me extra sauce, whooo, was that ever hot. I didn’t eat a whole lot of it, but it improved the dish 100% by just adding a small amount. Then I realised the recipe calls for a spatchcocked chicken and I wasn’t sure who would know how to do that and I didn’t have time to research. If you go to http://tinyurl.com/ylbtylp it shows exactly how to spatchcock. I’m not sure whether adding chips is a Portuguese recommendation or an English one, there seems to be a habit in the UK of having chips with everything.

Piri-Piri Chicken

Source: BBC Food - Anthony Worrall Thompson

Ingredients

1 whole chicken (about 1kg/2lb 3oz), spatchcocked salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the piri-piri sauce

6-12 fresh red chillies, depending on how hot you want it

1 tbsp garlic, blanched and chopped\1 tsp salt flakes

½ tsp oregano

½ tbsp paprika

100ml/3½fl oz olive oil

50ml/1¾fl oz red wine vinegar

To serve

chips

salad

Preparation method

1. To make the piri-piri sauce, preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Place the chillies on a roasting tray and roast them for 10 minutes.

2. Cool and roughly chop the chillies. Place the chillies, garlic, salt, oregano, paprika, olive oil and vinegar in a saucepan, and simmer for 2-3 minutes.

3. Allow the mixture to cool, then blend it to a purée in a jug blender or food processor. Store in a lidded container at room temperature; it will keep for about a month. Shake before using.

4. Place the spatchcocked chicken in a sealable plastic bag. Add half the piri-piri sauce, spreading it evenly over the chicken. Seal and marinate in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

   Technique: Spatchcocking chicken and poultry

5. Preheat the oven to 200C/390F/Gas 6, and preheat a large griddle pan on the hob. Alternatively, light your barbecue.

6. Season the marinated chicken, and cook it on the griddle pan for 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden brown.

7. Transfer the griddled chicken to a roasting tray and roast in the oven for 30 minutes, until cooked through. Alternatively, place the chicken on a medium heat barbecue, covered, for 10-15 minutes on both sides or until cooked through, basting regularly with the remaining piri-piri sauce.

8. Serve with chips and salad.

Have a great weekend