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Showing posts from 2015

La Vuelta 2015

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After last year's failed attempt to put Alcalá on the international cycling map, Stage 4 of this year's "Vuelta", Spain's equivalent of the Tour de France, passed through the town yesterday on its 210 km route from Estepona to Vejer de la Frontera.  The stage winner was Spaniard Alejandro Valverde, of the Movistar team.  Here are some photos taken by myself and various Facebook friends. Photo by Pedro Martin Sánchez Photo by Alicia Gómez Soto Photo by Julia Mansilla Cordero Photo by Esperanza Venegas Benítez Photo by José Diego de la Rosa Pérez

The Authentic Flavours of Alcalá

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The Restaurant Formerly Known as La Parada re-opened last week as "La Auténtica" - the Real Thing.  It is being managed by an enthusiastic young team of local people, including the former chef from the restaurant at the Botanical Gardens.  The decor (apart from the red awning outside) has been completely refreshed, the kitchen is brand-new and there is a very reasonably priced menu using ingredients from the region where possible. Address: Paseo de la Playa 28, Alcalá de los Gazules Tel:  (+34) 695 83 45 65 Facebook:  www.facebook.com/restaurantelaautentica Opening hours:   Tuesdays to Fridays 8 am- 4 pm, 7 pm till late. Saturdays and Sundays 9 am - 4 pm, 7 pm till late. Closed on Mondays. Sample menu items Most items are available either in small portions (tapas) for around €3, or large platefuls to share (between €8 and €12). Atún rojo - Atlantic bluefin tuna, caught off the Costa de la Luz Carrilladas - braised pork cheeks, tender and delicious.

All change - municipal elections 2015

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Municipal elections took place all across Spain last Sunday and, after four years of what can most kindly be described as an almost total absence of government, Alcalá has a new mayor and a new team in charge of running the town.  The unholy alliance between right and left , the Partido Popular (PP) and the Izquierda Unida (IU), has been consigned to history and the Partido Socialista Obrero Español (PSOE) took ten of the 13 seats available, their biggest majority since 1983, leaving the PP with two and the IU with just one.  The turnout was almost 70%, more than double the average for a local election in the UK. The new alcalde, 35-year-old Javier Pizarro Ruiz, is not new to the Ayuntamiento, having been a councillor in the previous administration.  He was born and bred in Alcalá, and is related to half the town.  He trained in environmental, countryside and forest management but politics is in his blood.  His father is Luis Pizarro , a leading figure in the parliament

Berza - comfort food for the winter months

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Acelgas (chard): a versatile winter vegetable. Use the leaves like spinach and the stems like celery. If you look up berza in a dictionary it says cabbage, kale or collard greens, but around here it is the name of a hearty winter stew, justifiably popular at this time of year. It is nourishing and tasty, and very economical to make, being based on chickpeas ( garbanzos ) and dried white beans ( alubias blancas ) for bulk, plus seasonal vegetables and cheap but tasty meat products like spiced sausage ( chorizo ) and blood pudding ( morcilla ). The locals will often include plants harvested from the countryside, such as the various kinds of edible thistle ( tagarninas and cardos ). You can buy these at the village shops or from street vendors when they are in season. The authentic version includes various bones and other items you can get cheap from the butcher, which all help to flavour the stock and add protein, but I just stick to things I recognise and chuck in a s