Sí, Chef!

 The Husband and I are often accused of not caring about food. 

While we are the furthest thing from foodies, we do like to try new delicacies, as long as they fit into our vegetarian lifestyle. I have little tolerance for people who cannot understand that vegetarians can love and appreciate a good meal, even though animal protein is off their proverbial table. 

When we were planning this Spanish excursion, I thought it might be fun to try a Tapas and Paella cooking class. We were looking for something hands-on, as opposed to a mere demonstration, and hoped that our vegetarian eating could be accomodated. When we found what we were looking for, we eagerly signed on.

We were not disappointed. Our master chef for the day, Arantxa, is Corden-Bleu trained and has the energy of the Energizer Bunny. We met her near the Anton-Martin market in the heart of Madrid. We were a class of twelve glassy-eyed neophytes eager to learn at the apron of a master. She took us on a brief walking tour of the market. (Think St. Lawrence meets Chelsea.) We were introduced to the various smells, spices, cheeses, and pickles that are essential to almost every dish in Spain. She told us that traditional Valencia paella is usually made with conejo, (rabbit) but most North Americans cannot stomach the idea of eating their buddy Bugs, so many chefs now make their paella with pork, chicken, or seafood. It is not unusual to also make vegetable paella, so The Husband and I were very excited.

Pork is a very big deal over here. The Spaniards cook it in everything. It is an inexpensive meat and it isn't uncommon to see pork shanks hanging in market windows. Arantxa gave us a very plausible explanation as to why pork is so popular. After the Jewish and Muslim expulsions in 1492, anybody left had to convert to Catholicism. The Inquisition allowed neighbours to rat out any phony Catholic, but if a former Jew or Muslim was serving a huge leg of pork, suspicion was diverted. That tradition of showing off how much pork you are eating has continued to this day.

We made our way over to a converted hardware store to commence the cooking. We were greeted with a lovely sweet vermouth that is usually consumed in the morning, and a plate of green olives, green pickled peppers, and anchovies for the carnivores. We created something called a Gilda. Named for the Rita Hayworth movie, Gildas were devised in the 1940s to give dictator Franco the middle finger. Franco banned any film that he deemed too risque and so, Rita was verboten. Tapas chefs would take pickles, olives and small fish, stab them with a toothpick, and serve them to patrons. In Spain, the colour green is equivalent to what we term as blue in North America, meaning sexy or off-colour. Gildas were deemed salty, sexy, and savoury. 

We made our desserts first. The Creme Catalan is basically a Spanish creme caramel. They needed at least an hour to set up while we moved on to the other dishes. The croquettes were done using a bechamel sauce dough, and the paella was beautifully seasoned with saffron, smoked paprika, and copious amounts of garlic. The meat-eaters feasted on chicken and pork, while The Husband and I were truly satisfied with our enormous cannellini beans and snow peas. All the while, Chef Arantxa was talkative and funny, and she used each and every one of us as her sous-chefs. I was put to work chopping garlic. Did you know that you can eliminate the smell from your hands just by washing them while rubbing something stainless steel? It really works.

The food was delicious, the company exquisite, and the conversation divine. What a wonderful way to complete our time here in Madrid. And don't let anybody tell you that vegetarian cooking is boring or less appetizing. It was delicious.

Some random thoughts:

• We also had Arantxa's assistant Lily helping us today. Everybody needs a Lily in their kitchen. Everthing was clean before we left. She was a marvel
• Paella is never to be stirred. If you do that while it is cooking, it releases the starch of the rice and will have the consistency of risotto. While I love risotto, I wanted paella.
• When asked where the best paella was in Madrid, Arantxa answer "my kitchen." She was so fast you knew she meant it.
• Putting seafood or other meats are acceptable in paella. Chorizo is a big no. It overwhelms the rest of the flavours.
• I need to buy a frying spider. The croquette recipe is a definite must try.

Check out the photos. They are mostly from The Husband. The odd one is mine.

Mercado de Andre-Martin

Garlic galore

Saffron and paprika

The Chef in her element

Perfect Paella

Chef The Husband

Blow torching Creme Catalan

My Norene Gilletz Story

A very quick story.

I was saddened to learn this morning of the passing of Norene Gilletz. While I wasn't a friend or even one of her many acolytes, it was impossible to be a Jewish cook of a certain age in Canada without knowing of Norene. Her cookbooks are standards in the kitchen libraries of Canadian Jews. Every Jewish bride of my generation was probably gifted at least one of them as a shower or wedding gift. Second Helpings is simply a classic (my copy is lovingly stained with so many spilled ingredients) and The Pleasures of My Processor is a how-to manual for any standard Jewish recipe you can possibly imagine. In an age when so much of our recipe hunting is done online, Norene's books have stood the test of time.

I do, however, have a quick up close and personal encounter with Norene I'd like to share. The Jewish community in Toronto, while the largest in Canada, is still rather small. It is impossible not to find somebody who doesn't know somebody else. Common acquaintance is an everyday occurrence. Years ago, I was making a shiva call at a friend's home. It turns out that Norene was mother-in-law to one of my friend's siblings and we were at the home at the same time. I had brought some cookies for the visit because that's what we Jews do, we feed the mourners. My friends will know which cookies I brought. I seem to have a devoted little following who clamour for these chocolate chunk specialties from a recipe that my mom developed. The house was busy that day and while I knew Norene by reputation, I had no idea who she was or that she had a connection to my friend. I was chatting with some people when this lovely woman about my mother's age approached me. She said that she was told by some folks in the kitchen that I had made these cookies and she wondered if I might like to share the recipe. I told her that they were my mom's recipe but that she shared it all the time and I would be happy to give it to her. She positively gushed over the things. She told me that they were delicious and that she wanted to serve them for a family gathering later that week. I told her to give me her email address and I would happily forward it.

It wasn't until she handed me a small slip of paper with her name and email on it that I even had an inkling of who she was. I stared at it and asked, "Are you that Norene Gilletz?" She smiled and asked, "Have you heard of me?" I laughed and asked her if there was a Canadian Jewish cook who hadn't. She was warm, lovely, kind and...she liked my cookies! I was flabbergasted.

It was the only time I ever met Norene in person but her recipes have kept me company for decades. There is something to be said about the power of cooking and the effect it has on families and memories. Norene Gilletz brought an entire community together with hers. She was a legend in our small corner of the world and will be missed.

Zichrona Livracha. May her memory forever be a blessing.