Ingredients:

» 2 Tbsp of oil
» 40 gr. of butter
» 3 or 4 Tbsp of flour
» 3 cups of cold milk
» 2 Eggs, well beaten

» 4 cups of Oil
» 2 cups of fine Breadcrumbs
» Salt
» Nutmeg
» 200 gr. of smoked ham (tiny cubes)

Melt the 2 tbsp of oil and the butter in a pot, over a low flame, add the flour, mix it well with a wooden spoon to form a roux. When the roux turns yellows slowly add the cold milk (always stirring), a little salt and a pinch of nutmeg. Let everything thicken over a low heat, stirring constantly with the wooden spoon to avoid lumps. Continue stirring until the roux leaves the sides of the pot (nowadays, cooks use hand mixers or beaters). While stirring, add tiny pieces of ham so they are incorporated throughout the roux by the stirring. Let it stand at least 2 hours until it cools. Once the roux is cold, make the croquettes using a tablespoon to take the portion from the pot and shape it with your hands. Place the 2 well beaten eggs in a bowl and in another bowl place the finely grated bread. Coat each croquette with the bread crumbs, then dip into the eggs and again into the grated bread and fry them in very hot and deep oil (6 pieces at a time). Let them rest on paper serviettes to drain off the oil. This tapa can be made with other ingredients instead of jamon, such as small pieces of shrimp, etc.

Ingredients:

» 1/2 Pound of Small Shrimp
» 4 or 5 garlic cloves (thinly sliced)
» Chilli (just a little bit)

» Olive Oil
» Salt

Peal the shrimp completely, throw out the heads. Pour a generous amount of olive oil on a low pot (preferably, a clay cazuela). When it's hot, add a little bit of chilli pepper and thin slices of garlic, plus a pinch of salt. Add the shrimp and let it all cook for 1 or 2 minutes, until the garlic is golden brown... don't let it burn!

This kind of tapa is not available in the U.S. so you will have to wait until you travel to Spain, if you visit the region of Castille, especially my hometown, Burgos, which is where Morcilla was invented. Now, there is an unfortunate translation for the word morcilla in English, which makes people not want to try it, but I assure you it's one of the most delicious things in the world and you just have to look at it as any other kind of sausage, only that this one has rice in it, which makes it extra delicious. Of course, the best way to eat it is fried, when the cover is all crispy and so is the rice. If you prefer, you can peel it off and just eat the inside. The name in English is blood pudding, because of course, blood is one of the ingredients, but it's not like the other kinds of sausages, including the famous bratwurst don't have blood! Sure they do! So if you visit Spain and find Morcilla, don't hesitate to try it at least once, you'll love it!! Check out tienda.com for U.S. made morcillas. They won't be exactly the same but probably similar.

You can find real Spanish chorizo and also U.S. made chorizo at Tienda.com and sometimes also at your local store, if you know they also carry international foods. Chorizo is a delicious kind of spicy sausage invented in Spain, very popular and also similar to portuguese sauriss and a little less similar to Mexican chorizo. You can eat chorizo just out of the package, thinly sliced, as it is a cured sausage. But a great way to eat it and a popular Spanish tapa is fried chorizo, you just cut it in thin slices (about 1/2 inch) and then fry it until it looks kind of crispy on the outside (but not too crispy!!). I promisse it's really, really good!

Ingredients:

» 2 or 3 potatoes
» Oil
» 3 medium full-grown tomatoes
» 1 tsp. of spicy ground red pepper

» Vinegar
» 1 tsp. of flour
» Salt

Peel the potatoes and cut them into small pieces, then fry them on low heat. Once cooked, drain the potatoes to get rid of the oil. Make the tomato sauce: Add a spoon of oil to the pan and then fry the peeled tomatoes (remove the seeds!), smashing them. When cooked, add a few drops of vinegar, a teaspoon of flour and another teaspoon of spicy ground pepper and stir it well to mix everything. Season and pour over the potatoes.

Ingredients:

» Slices of bread (french loaf or italian)
» 1 clove of garlic
» 1 ripe tomato

» Slices of jamon (smoked ham)
» Olive oil

Toast the slices of bread (pan-fried slices are best). While they are still hot, rub them with the clove of garlic until they absorb the flavour. Also rub the bread with half of the tomato. Add a pinch of salt, olive oil and finally top with a slice of jamon. You can get jamon at tienda.com

Ingredients:

» 2,2 Pounds of Mussels
» Bechamel Sauce
» Grinded Black Pepper
» Salt
» Water

» Sherry
» Fine Breadcrums
» 1/2 Lemon
» Tabasco Sauce (Optional)

Clean the Mussels throughoutly, keeping them in water and rinsing them several times to get rid of leftover sand, etc. Throw out the mussels that won't open or have broken shells. Once they're clean, put them in a pot and boil them in water and lemon juice until they're completely open, rinse them throughtly. You have to take the mussel out of its shell, keep the shells and the mussels separatedly, and save 1 cup of the juice produced when boiling the mussels. Prepare a bechamel sauce and add the water from cooking the mussels, some grinded black pepper and also pour a little bit of tabasco and a little bit of sherry. Chop the mussels in tiny pieces and mix them with the bechamel sauce, still in the pan, letting it cook. When it's done, let it cool off so it becomes more solid. Fill the mussle shells with this bechamel mix, and finally dip them in beat eggs and bread crums. Fry them in oil for a few seconds (until golden). You can also put them in the oven instead of frying them.