May 14, 2021

Basque cheesecake —and Part 6 (and last) of the vegetable garden: the ground cover

Natacha Sanz Caballero Desserts and Sweets gardening, huerto, postre español, restaurante La Viña, tarta de queso, tarta de queso de San Sebastián, vegetable garden

You’ve probably heard of Basque cheesecake, San Sebastián cheesecake, or cheseecake from La Viña restaurant. I’m sharing that recipe today, which is not mine, but Santiago Rivera’s, chef at La Viña resturant in San Sebastián.

I thought this cheesecake was perfect to accompany Part 6 (and last) of the construction of our vegetable garden last year. My aunt Isa loves gardening, and she has a green thumb —her garden is always colorful and exuberant— and gardening reminds me of her.

I’ve mentioned my aunt Isa on this blog before. My aunt (more…)

November 12, 2020

Pisto —and building a vegetable garden (Part 3): THE FENCE

Natacha Sanz Caballero Vegetables, Sauces, Tapas huerto, pisto manchego, side dish, Spanish cuisine, vegan, vegetable garden, vegetarian

I used so many of my garden vegetables for pisto that its recipe could only be posted alongside more on the progress of the vegetable garden, or Part 3.

Planting the seedlings on a very hot summer day

Tomatoes, peppers and zucchini have been growing with abandon, to the point where, mid November, I still (more…)

September 2, 2020

Zucchini Layer Cake –and building a Vegetable Garden (Part 2)

Natacha Sanz Caballero Desserts and Sweets celebrations, dessert, huerto, orchard, postres, tarta de calabacín, tartas, vegetable garden

Print RecipeIf you like carrot cake, you’re going to love zucchini layer cake. The first time I made zucchini loaf bread I couldn’t even imagine you could put zucchini into a dessert. Yet, the result was outstanding. Less known than its cousin the banana nut loaf bread, zucchini bread is one to discover.

For Spaniards, carrot cake is a late discovery, and zucchini loaf bread is a complete unknown. So needless to say, this cake is not a Spanish recipe. You know Mama Ía blog is the place for Spanish cooking in America. But as I say in (more…)

September 6, 2017

Crispy Battered Zucchini, from a home vegetable garden

Natacha Sanz Caballero Vegetables calabacines, figs, huerto, side dish, summer, vegetable garden, vegetarian

So many zucchinis! When I planted my vegetable garden back in the spring, I didn’t realize I would get such a generous bounty. My friends Cort and Kathleen share the produce from their amazing garden as well, so I’ve ended up with quite a few of them! All the better, since crispy battered zucchini are a hit with my family.

I didn’t realize either, when I dug the holes for the seedlings, how large the zucchini plants would get. Lesson learned for next year: I need more room for the zucchini plants, and more space between them and the next variety of vegetable. But the lesson for this year, which I learned early: wear garden gloves! Those zucchini leaves are very spiky.

Granadas del Taron, pomegranates, Mama ía blog

Pomegranates from El Taroncheral (photo Marlen Caballero)

Figs from El Taroncheral (photo Paula Sanz Caballero)

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June 3, 2017

Lavender Lemonade, and the Vegetable Garden

Natacha Sanz Caballero Drinks citrus, huerto, lavanda, lavender, lemonade, limonada, summer, summer drink, vegetable garden

With the higher temperatures, which seem to have come now to stay, lemonade is my drink of choice. I like to make mine, because I can control the amount of sugar I add. And I particularly like lavender lemonade, because lavender is one of my favorite aromas, and I like lemon on just about everything, so putting the two together seems very logical to me. The lavender comes from my garden; the lemons —I wish.

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