Perfect as a quick appetizer for a party, or for snacking any day of the week, these marinated olives are a must-have recipe to serve up tons of flavor.

• 1/2 cup fresh tarragon leaves
• 1/4 cup fresh thyme leaves
• 2 cups drained brine-cured black olives (Kalamata and/or Nicoise)
• 2 cups drained brine-cured green olives, such as picholine
• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced fennel bulb
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp minced onion
• 2 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp anise seeds
• 2 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 tsp dried basil, crumbled
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2-4 Tbs balsamic vinegar

Chop tarragon and thyme. In a deep bowl, stir together all ingredients except the vinegar. Marinate the olive mixture, covered and chilled, stirring occasionally, at least 6 hours, and up to 3 days. Bring olive mixture to room temperature before drizzling vinegar, to taste.

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Sweet, savory, and sharp acid flavors meld together for this deliciously easy first coarse plate. Make sure to allow the tartare to marinate for maximum flavor.

• 2 ripe medium tomatoes (1/2 lb), peeled, seeded and finely chopped
• 4 pitted dates, finely chipped
• 2 tbsp red onions, pan grilled
• 1 tbsp finely chopped shallot
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp olive oil
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 8 slices prosciutto or serrano ham
• 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil for garnish

Place the tomatoes, dates, onion, shallot, Worcestershire sauce, and salt in a bowl. Combine with a fork and stir in 1 tsp. olive oil. Season with 3-4 grinds of pepper. Set aside 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.

On each of 4 salad plates, lay out 2 slices of the ham. Mound 1/4 of the tomato tartare on 1 side. Drizzle half teaspoon of olive oil over the hame and serve.

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For those times when you have an abundance of tomatoes from your garden — or, whenever you’re looking for something different to accompany dinner or to take to a party, this Tomato Galette is the perfect choice. We used our homegrown Cherokee Purple tomatoes, paired with Campo de Montalban Mitica cheese (a cousin to Manchego, made with a combination of cows’, sheeps’ and goats’ milk). You can experiment with any firm cheese such as Asiago, cheddar or Gouda).

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 2-1/4 tsp. kosher salt, divided
• 3/4 cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1-1/2 lb. heirloom tomatoes, sliced 1/4″ thick
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 4 oz. firm cheese (Asiago, cheddar, Gouda, Manchego, for example), finely grated (about 1-1/2 cups)
• 1 large egg, beaten to blend
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 lemon
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped chives

Pulse 2 cups flour and 1-1/4 tsp salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining.

Transfer mixture to a large bowl; drizzle with vinegar and 1/4 cup ice water. Mix with a fork, adding more ice water by the tablespoon as needed, just until a shaggy dough comes together. Turn out onto a work surface and lightly knead until no dry spots remain – be careful not to overwork. Pat into a disk and wrap in plastic. Chill at least 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Gently toss tomatoes, garlic, and remaining 1 tsp salt in a large bowl. Let sit for 5 minutes (tomatoes will start releasing some liquid). Drain tomato mixture and transfer to paper towels.

Unwrap dough and roll out on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper to a 14″ round, about 1/8″ thick. Transfer on parchment to a baking sheet. Scatter cheese over dough, leaving a 1-1/2″ border. Arrange tomatoes and garlic over cheese. Bring edges of dough up and over filling, overlapping as needed to create about a 1-1/2″ border; brush dough with egg. Sprinkle tomatoes with salt and pepper. Chill in freezer for 10 minutes.

Bake galette, rotating once, until crust is golden brown and cooked though, 55-65 minutes. Let cool slightly on baking sheet. Finely grate zest for lemon over galette; sprinkle with chives.

Recipe inspiration from Bon Appetit

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Simple and quick to prepare, Padrone Peppers are a popular tapas offering while in Spain. Don’t wait to travel there, make them easily in your own kitchen.

padron peppers, rinsed

olive oil

Sea salt

Heat oil in a frypan. Once hot, add the peppers and carefully cook them until skin is slightly charred and blistered.

Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with sea salt. Serve hot.

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A delicious addition to any tapas menu, Chorizo in red wine sauce features the slight sweetness of honey to pair with the spiciness of the sausage. Enjoy!

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 lb. chorizo, cut into chunky pieces

1 tbsp honey 

parsley for garnish, chopped

optional: crusty bread for serving

Heat oil in large frying pan and gently saute onion until softened. Add garlic and cook 1-2 minutes.

Push the onions and garlic to the side and add the chorizo. Brown all over, then add wine and stir in honey.

Cover and gently cook for 5 minutes until the sausages are cooked through and coated with sauce. Add a splash of water if pan becomes dry.

Serve topped with parsley, and alongside crusty bread to mop up juices.

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2 Tbsp butter

½ small onion, chopped

½ cup flour

1 cup milk

1 cup diced smoked ham

2 oz cheddar, coarsely grated

2 oz gruyere, finely grated

1 tsp Dijon mustard

2 Tbsp heavy cream

2 large eggs

½ cup flour

1- 1-1/4 cups breadcrumbs

Oil for deep frying

Tomato chili jam

1-1/3 ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 long red chili, finely chopped, and deseeded if you don’t want the heat

1 small red onion, finely chopped

4 large garlic cloves, crushed

½ cup sugar

¾ cup red wine

To make the croquetas, melt the butter in a medium saucepan and gently fry the onions for 3 minutes, or until lightly colored. Stir in the flour and cook for 30 seconds. Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly, and cook over low heat for 5 minutes until thick and glossy. Stir in the ham, cheese, mustard and cream, and season to taste. Cook for 1 minute more until the cheese melts, stirring constantly.

Pour into a bowl and cover the surface with plastic wrap, to keep a skin from forming. Leave to cool, then chill for 4 hours or overnight. The mixture needs to be very stiff to form the croquetas. Take heaped teaspoons of the mixture, and with wet hands, roll into 24 small oval shapes, and place on a tray. Beat the eggs in a shallow bowl, put the flour on a plate, and put half of the breadcrumbs in a bowl.

Roll each of the croquetas lightly in flour, then egg, before coating in breadcrumbs. Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Use the remaining breadcrumbs as needed. Chill for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the tomato chili jam. Place all ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer. Cover loosely with a lid and cook for 50 – 60 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and glossy. Leave to cool before serving.

Fill a large pan one-third full with oil, and allow to heat up. Fry croquets, 6 at a time in the oil, until golden brown (about 1-1/2 minutes) Transfer to a baking tray lined with paper towls to absorb excess oil. Continue to cook the remaining croquetas. Serve with chili jam for dipping.

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Served throughout Spain as a delicious tapas, this easy-to-make garlic shrimp is a perfect small plate as an appetizer, or for entertaining.

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tsp chopped garlic

2 tsp hot red pepper flakes

2 tsp salt

48 medium shrimp, peeled

chopped flat-leaf parsley

Heat the oil, garlic, hot pepper flakes, and salt in a heavy-bottomed pan until the oil sizzles. Add the shrimp and cook for about 2 minutes, just until they are pink. Immediately remove shrimp from the heat, and place in serving bowl. Sprinkle the shrimp with parsley, and serve immediately.

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Potatoes are the star of this favorite Spanish dish. The Spanish Tortilla is delicious as an appetizer, as a snack, or as crowd-pleasing tapa. 

3 medium potatoes

½ onion

5 eggs

Salt to taste

4 cups extra-virgin olive oil

To cook, choose a heavy-bottomed nonstick skillet, that will hold the mixture, and form it as it cooks. The cake should be between 1-2” thick. Brush the pan with olive oil and preheat it on medium-high heat.

Pour the egg/potato mixture into the pan and cook on low-medium heat for about 5 minutes. You can run a spatula around the edge to make sure it does not stick – and that the the outside does not burn. 

Once it is beginning to cook on the underside (the side touching the pan), run the spatula around the edge again, and get ready to flip. Take a plate in one hand, and turn the skillet upside down on top of the plate, catching the partially cooked tortilla. Flip that onto another plate, so the uncooked side is facing up, and flip one more time back into the pan so the second side can cook.

Cook the second side as you did the first. Once cooked, slide it onto a plate and serve.

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There are so many variations of empanadas, each delicious in their own rite. This version is adapted from a recipe I enjoyed while visiting Argentina for business. Soon after my return home, I received a copy of the empanada recipe from my business colleague, along with a visual on how to properly fold the empanada (see below).

• 1 lb beef, (quality cut), in small pieces
• 1 large onion, chopped
• lard for frying
• 2-3 hard boiled eggs, chopped
• salt and other spices as desired

Fry the beef, add onions, slat and spices. Transfer to a large bowl, mix in chopped eggs, and adjust seasoning as needed. Allow to cool prior to preparing the empanadas.

To make the dough

• 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 tsp salt
• ½ cup cold, unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup ice water
• 1Tbsp distilled white vinegar

Sift flour with salt into a large bowl and blend in butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal with some (roughly pea-size) butter lumps.

Beat together egg, water, and vinegar in a small bowl with a fork. Add to flour mixture, stirring with fork until just incorporated. 

Turn out mixture onto a lightly floured surface and knead just until dough comes together. Form dough into a flat rectangle and chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, at least 1 hour.

To form empanadas, roll out chilled dough to ¼” thickness. Use a round cutter to create desired size. Fill, fold and seal. Brush top with egg wash, and bake in a 400 degree oven for 30-40 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through cooking.

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This recipe was inspired by some chorizo stuffed mushrooms I spotted while at Cleveland’s West Side Market. I knew they’d be tasty, and delicious with chorizo served in portobello mushrooms. And when topped with panko and parmesan cheese, they turn into a meal. Because they’re made using chorizo, there is no need to add more spices. I like to use Mulay’s chorizo which adds a spicy flavor, without being too hot.

• 3-4 portobello mushroom caps, cleaned and patted dry
• 1 lb chorizo sausage (ground ) or remove skins from sausage and cook meat only
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 2 1/2 tbsp olive oil, plus more if needed
• salt and pepper to taste

Cook sausage in skillet until fully cooked. Fill mushroom caps with sausage and place in 400 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until mushrooms are grilled and warmed. Meanwhile, toss the panko with the Parmigiano cheese and the 2 ½ tablespoons of olive oil; season with salt and pepper.

Scatter panko mix on top of sausage and return mushrooms to oven. Turn oven up to broil for a few minutes, and brown panko slightly.

Enjoy immediately.

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