Pan-fried salmon with sweet potato chips and lentils

Here at GrubDaddy, we don't forget our roots as we started off as a food blog for bachelors and bachelorettes who wanted to make some good food on a budget that is also easy. While in Barcelona, it's not the cheapest city and there are also a ton of markets. This inspired me to make some salmon. We also had some leftover veggies, sweet potato and lentils, so we made too sides as well. Little did we know that the place we stayed in did not have an oven, hence the pan fry...and I think it tasted better. 

The salmon: 

What you need

Two filets of salmon 

One lemon

3-5 cloves of garlic

Half a large onion

Some extra virgin olive oil

Heat the pan with some olive oil. Since we are frying the fish, make sure the bottom of the pan is liberally covered and turn the stove on medium heat. Cut half of the lemon and the full onion like this:

Since we didn't have a garlic press, cut the cloves of garlic like this:

Place the onion, garlic and lemon in the pan. 

De-bone the salmon if not done already. They have little white bones that are more annoying when you eat one, so it's best to take them out. To do so, just use your hands and feel up and down the fish. If you feel a bump, it's likely a bone. 

Taking the bones out of the fish should be done before putting the onion, garlic and lemon into the pan. However, once completely finished, place the salmon on top of the onion, garlic and lemon. 

This will take about 10-15 minutes, or until the raw salmon turns a nice light pink. Since the salmon is on top of the pan, you can raise or lower the heat depending on speed. The flavors of the lemon, onion and garlic will seep into the salmon, however, once the salmon is cooked, the lemon, onion and garlic will be very burnt and will just need to throw away. 

For the sweet potato chips:

One sweet potato

Olive or vegetable oil

This is pretty easy. Put quite a bit of oil in a pan and put on medium-high heat. Cut the potato into thin slices. 

Once the oil starts to crack, put in the potato, ensuring that the bottom gets covered. 

A couple minutes on each side should do nicely, just make sure to watch as if the oil gets hot and gets low, you could burn a few. These will not be the consistency of potato chips, but a nice, refreshing side. 

Put on a plate with a paper towel to cool down. Put salt and pepper to taste. 

For the lentils with veggies:

Lentils in a can (or not dried)

Any veggies you want, frozen or fresh. I used zucchini and mushrooms. 

All we did was put the lentils, mushrooms without the stems and the zucchini in a pot, covered on medium heat, for 10-15 minutes, stirring every 2-3 minutes. 

It was that easy. 

When completed, it took about 30 minutes, with GrubGirl, to prepare and 10-15 to cook, as everything was going at the same time. 

All in all, this meal probably cost us $15. All ingredients were fresh and most were bought from the market that day. 

GrubGirl: Top 5 Eats - Barcelona

Barcelona is an amazing place. I had a few friends study abroad here so I was well equipped with some great food recommendations. Here's my top 5 from our visit:

5. Banana Chocolate Bread from Elsa Y Fred

http://elsayfred.es/

Such a cute place! GrubDaddy and I stopped in for a beer after a long walk around Barcelona. We caved into the tempting baked goods at the bar - the choice between the banana chocolate bread and the brownie was very tough. The bread won in the end - it was different than other banana and chocolate combinations I've had before - instead of chocolate chips IN the bread, Elsa Y Fred chose to cover the entire bread / cake with a thick layer of chocolate. Delish.

4. Cava at El Xampanyet 

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187497-d697571-Reviews-El_Xampanyet-Barcelona_Catalonia.html

We ventured to El Xampanyet after the Picasso museum (it's literally down the block). It's an old school cava bar that we actually ventured to twice (in one day). The cava here was awesome. And cheap. 9 euros for a bottle and 1.50 euros for a glass. We did glasses round 1 and then wised up and got the bottle(s) round 2. It was so delicious. The perfect drink post Picasso and a very fun bar for later that same evening.

3. Burgers at Kiosko

http://www.kioskoburger.com/

GrubDaddy and I were craving some beef after two weeks of jamon. Don't get me wrong - jamon is amazing, but there's a very special place in my heart (and stomach) for a burger. So on our last day in Barcelona we had lunch at Kiosko in Barceloneta (near the beach). We waited for 30-45 minutes but it was well worth it. 

GrubDaddy got the Cayena burger which had spicy chili sauce and Philadelphia cream cheese (for real). I had the Catalana which had a trinxat patty on top of the burger (bacon, potato, and cabbage). Both burgers were awesome - I almost couldn't finish. These were definitely NOT tapas portions. So if you are in Barcelona and want to stray from traditional Spanish food, Kiosko is a great option.

2. Chocolate Muffin from La Torna at Mercat Santa Caterina

http://www.mercatsantacaterina.com/

I'm not really sure where to start with this delectable treat. I can't take credit for finding it - our friends found it first since their apartment was right next to the Mercat Santa Caterina. But who cares about the small details - lets get down to business with this muffin. It had the perfect amount of moistness, chocolate chips and chocolate drizzle on the top, and exploded with flavor. But the best part - bite into this baby and there's a hidden chocolate layer INSIDE the muffin. I will never look at chocolate muffins the same again. I probably won't eat another unless there's a hidden chocolate layer (which will be difficult to decipher pre-purchase). Guess we need to go back to Barcelona.

1. Patatas Bravas from El Xampanyet

We probably had four or five patatas bravas samplings during our time in Spain (I like calling them papas bravas - sounds more fun).  The culinary geniuses at El Xampanyet took an entire boiled potato, cut that sucker into thick slices, and topped it with bacon, mayo, roasted peppers, and a little cheese. A wonderful change from the fries or chopped potatoes slathered in mayo and hot sauce that we tried at other places. If there was a papas award, El Xampanyet would win hands down. A definite must if you are visiting Barcelona.

Paella - where else but in Valenica?

PAELLA! Sorry I just get so excited when I talk about this magical dish. Paella was all I wanted to eat in Spain - and while that didn't exactly come true - I still gained a new appreciation for its deliciousness. Does anyone out there not know about paella? If so, pause for a hot second and read up on it courtesy of Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paella

So where to begin? Once upon a time, about 9 days ago, GrubDaddy and GrubGirl arrived in Valencia after 8 hours of driving up from Granada. They were hungry and knew that paella and Valencia go together like white on rice. (Get it - rice?) So we decided to grab some dinner at Restaurante Felix since it was literally around the corner from our apartment.

The meal took two attempts. The first attempt was a FAIL because we walked in at 7:45pm, and the owner shoo-ed us away and told us to come back at "ocho y media" or 8:30pm. Embarrassed at our lack of siesta-ing, we went back and took a nap, and tried again closer to 9:15pm - and were now hungrier than ever for paella.

The meal started with some peanuts - tapa for the wine (GrubGirl) and beer (GrubDaddy) ordered - and was followed with some delicious toasted bread and tomato topping. The tomato concoction was amazing - olive oily, fresh meaty tomatoes - I'm not going to lie, I ate it right from the bowl once the bread was out. Nice way to lead up to the paella!

GrubDaddy ordered the Seafood Paella and I ordered the Valencian Paella (when in Rome, right?) It took around 30 minutes for the food to come out, but boy was it worth it. The Seafood Paella was crispy on the sides, and filled with shrimp, mussels, and scallops. 

The Valencian Paella was filled with green peppers, fava beans, and chicken. While a tad bit salty (the theme in Spain) the meat was cooked perfectly and the beans and peppers gave a nice balance of health to an otherwise massive helping of rice.

Overall the meal was great. It definitely lived up to my expectations of paella - the one dish wonder. And just to seal the deal on paella, here's a picture of the Guinness book world record winner for the biggest paella right below our apartment.

Not really, but it's pretty freakin big. If we weren't carrying all our bags, I would have taken a swim in it. But alas, we must move on - tis the life of a traveller.

Signing off,

GrubGirl

Tapas Crawl in Granada

So, you're in Granada, Spain with your fiancé, (GrubGirl) and two great friends. The main attraction, The Alhambra, wasn't open until the morning and GrubGirl and I had a stressful time getting into our apartment. What to do?  Oh, good call, eat and drink on a tapas bar crawl. 

The first place we went to was La Cueva. It was right on the main strip, so it may have been a little touristy, but whateves, we needed some eats and drinks. The bread and "marinara" sauce came with the drinks (it's a theme in Granada) and the jamon was amazing as it was freshly cut off the animal. While it wasn't amazing, we also knew that we were off to a good start with the crawl. 

The beer was an Alhambra brew, but just the regular kind. It's OK, but the Spaniards aren't known for their choice brewing so we moved along to the next place. Overall spend between the 4 of us, €15. 

The next place was in a main strip of restaurants, but slightly off the beaten path. We walked by a chalkboard and it said "6 tapas, pitcher of sangria, €12."  SOLD!  Here, the waiter says "instead of sangria, their speciality is "rebujito" which is white wine and 7up. When in Granada, right?  

The food was better, but still not what we were looking for, as the 6 tapas ended up being 2 pieces of smoked salmon with cheese, 2 pieces of ham and mayo and 2 pieces of tuna and a roasted red pepper, all over bread. GrubGirl also purchased a tortilla de patata, which kind of looks like an egg sandwich. These were pretty good too. Off to find our next spot, spend for the meal was €15. 

The final place we went to was called La Tana, and this, my friends, is what we wanted all along. Inside, the bar tender was very helpful, though his English was limited. Many different high-end Spanish wines available for €3-4, while pouring a healthy glass of wine, just to try it out. 

This is also where I found my beer, the Alhambra 1925, that comes in a cool green bottle. 

This is the beer in the movie Beerfest which they brew the long lost beer and, well, just watch the scene. youtube.com/watch?v=70Ak4nW1Rg8. Anyway, the beer is delicious, the perfect combination of taste, flavor and drinkability. Lets just say I had quite a few of them. 

So with every drink order, free tapas came out as well. First was some green olives, which GrubGirl devoured. (She loves green olives). Next drink order, we got this bread with a healthy dose of guacamole, some sausage and more olives. 

The next tapas was this smoked white fish and some spicy mayo and more green olives. (GrubGirl was having a field day with the olives) While not as good as the guacamole, still pretty good. This place was so good and had such a great atmosphere that we went back the following night. Overall spend at this place was €25. 

We ended our tapas crawl getting some ice cream at Los Italianos, and if you have the chance to do that, take advantage and go. Amazing ice cream. Spain is known for their gelato, but this was amazing. 2 scoops for €2 and worth every penny. I got banana and strawberry and GrubGirl got double chocolate. With all the salt we had from the olives, we went back for a round two, which was ice cream cake inside a large wafer cone, called a cassatta. The flavor of the cake was orange/coffee/vanilla. Unbelievable!  

The total price, for four people, was €65, which is around €16 a person, for good eats and great sweets. If you're ever in Granada, you need to go to La Tana and Los Italianos, and this night started a great 3 days in Granada. 

Pastelerias - Sevilla Spain

Mmmmmm...cookies, cakes, breads, croissants, muffins...and we haven't even made it to Paris yet! The pastelerias in Sevilla are amazing. The smells waft through the streets in the morning and draw you in without warning. The first one we found near our apartment was called La Societe - http://www.paneslasociete.es/. 

I had been craving chocolate cake, and since it was my birthday, I thought it acceptable to purchase a decadent chocolate brownie at 10:30am. No rules on your birthday, right? It was clearly a difficult decision since their selection of baked goods was a bit overwhelming. Luckily my chocolate brain kept me focused. The brownie was amazing - a perfectly crusted top with a creamy soft brownie batter inside. Well done my friends at La Societe, well done.

Later that same morning, I still hadn't had my morning coffe. Luckily we stumbled upon Colette - http://www.colette.com.es - on the Plaza Nueva near the main cathedral (the largest gothic cathedral in the world). 

We ordered a cafe con leche for GrubDaddy and a regular cafe for me. It was delicious. The perfect rush of caffeine to counter the post sugar crash after the brownie high wore off. 

We didn't partake in the macaroons (saving ourselves for Paris) but they did look delicious. 

Later that day the birthday celebration continued with a Bizcocho pastry from La Societe - a buttery crumb cake with hints of lemon, dusted with a fine coating of powdered sugar. If I drank milk, I'd definitely request a glass to accompany the Bizcocho, but alas, I washed it down with tinto vino (red wine).

So if you find yourself in Sevilla, have no fear - pastries and coffee are never too far out of reach.

Signing off,

GrubGirl

Fresh seafood and ginginha, doesn't get much better than that

Upon arriving to Lisbon, GrubGirl and I had no idea what to expect. Portugal was put on our trip because, hey, why not?  So we had to do some reading on the city, and obviously, the first thing we looked up was what to eat...I mean, we have a food blog to keep up here. 

For all intents and purposes, Lisbon is on the ocean, so super fresh seafood made a ton of sense, but what the heck is a Ginginha?  Well, it's apparently a little treat for the Portuguese people consisting of cherry liqueur. You may be asking yourself, "why is THAT special?" I'm not sure, but we sure saw places to get them all over the place, so we got one. 

We got ours at likely a little tourist trap as it was close to the water and a huge plaza, but whatever, ours came with chocolate. Yes, the cherry liqueur was poured into a chocolate cup. You get two pours, then you eat the cherry flavored chocolate cup. 

Not a bad way to start the day, and for less than €2,00, not expensive either. 

Before we get to the seafood, and while Portugal isn't known for their pastries (and this pastry is actually French) but this thing was amazing. It's called a mille-feuille, which translates into "thousand leaves."  (Learn more here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mille-feuille). But this thing was amazing, and again, under €2. They say Portugal is 20-30% cheaper than the rest of Europe, so I knew we'd like it. And when it comes to chocolate, that's what GrubGirl likes, so that's what she gets. 

Other meals that we had, which included a drink, cost under €8. The Super Bock was everywhere, so I had to try it. It tastes like a Blonde Shiner for my Texas friends and a Yuengling Lite for my east coast friends. And if you haven't had Shiner or Yuengling, we're not friends anyway. 

Now onto the fresh seafood. We went to Ribadouro Restaurante Cervejarra (http://www.cervejariaribadouro.pt/index_en.php), where most of it was purchased by the Kilo, which is roughly 2.2 pounds. It could cost anywhere from €17 a kilo for the clams, baked in a white wine, garlic sauce, to the Tiger Prawns, which were roughly €110 a kilo. 

The clams were amazing. I could have probably eaten them all day they were that good. But we had other food to try as well. 

The jumbo prawns were roughly €45 a kilo, so we got around 400 grams, which was around 10 of these guys, soaked in a garlic butter sauce. 

We also indulged ourselves with a potato omelet with seafood in it. Seemed very breakfast like, but when we saw the people next to us get it, we jumped on that quickly. 

While we were eating, we saw someone who wanted to know what a tiger prawn is. It's just a HUGE piece of shrimp, about 700-800 grams (1.5-1.8 pounds) per piece. While we didn't get a picture of that exchange, we took one of one of the seafood cases with the tiger prawns. They are on the tray chilling between the lobsters. Just for an example, the jumbo shrimp we ordered above are the lower shelf to the left, and while still big, they don't even compare to the tiger prawns. 

Lisbon was over in a flash, but man was it delicious. 

Until next time...