It was terrific cooking Spanish Cuisine last weekend, June 20th, 2026, and what an exceptional class it was with 2 Spaniards attending, thereby creating such an authentic mood in our cooking discussions, and the cooks all excelled! The dishes were so flavourful, the sofregit was a hit, a ‘flavour bomb’, and the Tarta de Santiago de Compostella had a perfect balance of flavouring with lemon and orange zest, as well as a great almond crunchy texture. Melanie gave it an extra finishing delight with a ‘serious’ covering of icing sugar topping, highlighting the Cross of Santiago. David’s precision with the mushroom garnishing and the deep green in the herb oil was fabulous and the mussels Catalan anchovy topping was a taste sensation. Melanie perfected the delicious Aliöli, the Spanish version of aïoli, the Provençal garlic mayonnaise, with the addition of saffron to the wonderful garlic flavour. I love adding this on top of the paella., and it goes with any of the tapas dishes as well. I was delighted withthe class and they gave it an enthusiastic ‘thumbs up’ in the Google reviews. I am always excited when everyone enjoys their beautiful day here. It was perfect all-round.
David, one of the Spanish cooks, complied a wonderful photo collection, to which some others from the class added as well. I thought it would be good to add the collection my ‘Musings’ so you can all see the photos at your leisure.
In the week following the class, David emailed me to say he and Andrew had made a perfect paella with an excellent socarrat following my recipe precisely…of course!
Do let me know of your paella successes also. It is such a colourful dish and perfect for any party, small and large.
