Moroccan Peppered Prawns

Gambas picantes de Marruecos

It is usually simple to get frozen raw prawns in Spain. Most towns have a ready supply of fish, even if they are a long way from the sea. Aracena is no exception and it boasts two fish shops and two market stalls. Unlike most of our recipes, this dish uses butter rather than olive oil.

Serves 8 as part of a mixed tapas

• 1kg (2lb 4oz) medium-sized raw frozen tiger prawns (6–8 per person)

• 100g (3 1/2oz) unsalted butter

• 6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

• leaves from 1 sprig of parsley, finely chopped

• 1 tbsp smoked sweet paprika (pimientón dulce de la Vera)

• 1/4 tsp smoked hot paprika (pimientón picante de la Vera)

• 1/2 tsp ground cumin

• salt and freshly ground black pepper

• lemon wedges, to serve

Allow the prawns to thaw in a colander in the sink, covered with a tea towel to keep flies at bay.

Shell and devein the prawns, remove the heads and leave on the tails. I find it’s easier to peel them when they are still slightly frozen.

Melt the butter in a pan over a low heat. Add all the ingredients except the lemon wedges, with 1/2 tsp of salt, and cook over a low heat for five minutes. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.

Iberian Pork Fillets with Red Peppers

Solomillo de cerdo ibérico con pimientos

In the Sierra de Aracena,  meadows and pastures blanketed in wild spring flowers are shaded by great evergreen oak trees. These are the encinas that provide the acorns on which the famous Iberian pigs are fed. Around Aracena, the pigs’ autumn diet is supplemented with chestnuts. After our nuts are harvested, the pigs are let loose into the chestnut groves to forage for leftovers.

Serves 8–10

• 2 red peppers, roasted, peeled and sliced, or, ideally, canned pimiento del piquillo

• 4 garlic cloves, finely sliced

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 5 pork fillets (Iberian if you can get it; it is infinitely superior to white pork)

• 200ml (7fl oz) dry oloroso sherry

If you are using the excellent Spanish canned pimientos del piquillo, drain them, cut them open and slice into strips. Fry the garlic and the peppers in the olive oil until soft and translucent. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Salt and pepper the pork fillets, then fry them one by one in the hot oil, until browned all over. Put on a board and allow to rest for a few minutes before slicing them into noisettes, each about a finger thick. Iberian pork is eaten pink, so there should be a little blood running out; don’t worry, Iberian pork meat should be treated like beef.

Deglaze the pan with the sherry, then return the pork and peppers with any of their juices. Reheat everything, put into a warmed serving dish and take to the table. We like to drink a good strong Ribera del Guadiana wine from Extremadura with this, and you could accompany the meat with green beans, or roast tomatoes, and sautéed potatoes.

Seville Orange Soufflé

Suflé de naranjas amargas

At Finca Buenvino we make marmalade every winter from the bitter Seville oranges, grown simply for adornment (and strictly not for eating) in every street in Andalusia. If you can get Seville oranges during their short winter season, then do make your own, otherwise use good-quality shop-bought organic marmalade.

Serves 8

• 5 free-range eggs, separated

• 225g (8oz) caster sugar

• 2 large tbsp Seville orange marmalade

• 25g (scant 1oz) powdered gelatine

• 300ml (1/2 pint) double or

• whipping cream

• whipped cream and candied peel, to serve (optional)

• praline (optional)

Put the egg yolks and sugar into a food processor and beat until light and creamy. Add the marmalade and beat until well blended.

In a small steel saucepan, sprinkle the gelatine into 3 large tbsp of cold water and allow to swell for five minutes. Place the pan over a low heat until the gelatine is fully dissolved and the liquid transparent. Don’t let it get too hot, as this will damage the setting properties of the gelatine. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly, then blend into the egg yolk mixture.

Beat the egg whites in a large bowl with an electric whisk until they form peaks. In another bowl, whip the cream until foamy and billowing but not stiff.

Fold all the ingredients into the egg whites little by little, taking care not to beat the air out of the eggs. Tip into a pretty glass dish, or smaller dishes, and refrigerate for a minimum of three hours.

Decorate with whipped cream and candied peel, or with praline.