Christmassy tasty! Christmas treats, salty and sweet! We did nearly a rhyme. By the way, the “tasty” column topic of December is a traditional Christmas dinner. Made in Spain, of course. We will taste some of the most common dishes that every family takes to the table for Christmas. Are you ready for our Christmassy tasting?
Whether you taste them in a restaurant or in your home with your flatmates or your family, Christmas food cannot be a bad idea, especially if you share it with someone! If you are not going back home for Christmas, flatmates will be the ones that will spend the Christmas with you, they are a little bit “family” though! But in order to have flatmates, you need a shared flat. As we like to repeat, shared flats are the perfect solutions for students and young workers that want to live alone for the first time. They let you share expenses, share the rent and, above all, share experiences.
Maybe it is better to cut the chase and go back to the topic of this blog post. We have to start cooking… great dinners are waiting for us ahahah. As we have already mentioned, today’s hot topic is… sound of bells… the best Christmas dishes that you have to taste if you spend Christmas in Spain! We have prepared for you an entire tasty menu that you will enjoy from the first to the last course. Should we begin our Christmas dinner? helpMadrid is ready!
Consomé Madrileño
Our Christmas dinner begins with a warm starter, a tasty soup that will whet your appetite! It cooks for hours and its ingredients are mainly meat and other products of animal origin. If you are vegan or vegetarian, this soup is not for you. Everyone else has to taste it at least once.
Red cabbage
Our second starter is a very traditional one: red cabbage with apple, pine nuts and vinegar. We are beginning our dinner with light food, but not be deceived; the real treat is yet to come!
Bream
After these tasty starters, a tastier main course! Actually, we have several main courses… Ready? The process to prepare this fish is quite long: after cleaning it and cutting it, you have to put some tomato, oil, lemon juice, garlic, laurel, parsley, salt and bread crumbs. Finally, put it in the oven with some potatoes.
Escarole and pomegranate salad
It is time to eat something fresh and light. A break before another delicious dish. As you may have guessed, it is a simple salad with escarole, pomegranate, garlic, olive oil, vinegar and salt. Simple, but tasty!
Prawns and lobster
This is the middle of our Christmas “binge”. It is fishmeal, as the previous one, and we absolutely suggest you to taste this dish even though you will not spend your Christmas in Madrid. Are you a seafood lover? This course will be your favourite one; it is so delicious.
Stuffed chicken
It is not over. You have to taste the last main course, a delicious chicken stuffed with meat (chicken or turkey), plums, raisins, apple, truffles and ham cooked with cognac. We are lucky that fish is usually light and we have left room for this delicious “Pullarda rellena”.
Almond soup
The very first dessert is this soup made of milk, almonds and a little bit of cinnamon. Let’s say so, as it is a soup, it leaves room for all the other super sweet desserts. Are you curious to discover the last course of our Christmas dinner?
Nougat and marzipan
The very first treat of our list is the traditional Turrón, nougat in English. It must be on your Christmas table! There is a little something for everyone in here: with white chocolate, with gin, with almonds or nuts, with caramel or salty, hard or soft, etc. Another small treat is marzipan and, useless to say, we are in love with it. As December is short, we suggest you to hurry up and taste them all!
Roscon de Reies
We saved this one for last, the king of the Christmas holidays traditional sweets, the Tortell de Reis. This treat is eaten during the Kings’ Day, the 6th January, but you can find it all over Barcelona even before Christmas. There are several versions of this cake and our favourite one is the one filled with cream… You are responsible for tasting it!
Are you stuffed? (Like the chicken above ahahah). In January, you must send us your weight. It is the right way to judge whether you have appreciated our tasty suggestions or not. Kidding aside, these tasty dishes may be part of your Christmas dinner, a great way to make your family taste the traditional Spanish food.
We want to share with you what we have learned during our several years of experience: everything tastes better if you share it with someone. What about a shared flat to organize a pre-Christmas dinner with your flatmates? This is definitely an amazing plan and a very good reason to share your apartment! Do you like our suggestion? Yes, we know you have read it many times, but, you know, repetita iuvant. If you are planning to move to Spain next year, remember to have a look at our offer. helpMadrid rents many shared flat in the city centre: isn’t this a great chance to share a Christmas dinner? By the way, keep in mind that we will always guide you through the hard choice of your accommodation by providing you with several useful (we hope so) tips and descriptions of Madrid’s neighbourhoods.
We have a dinner to prepare! Stay tuned and do not miss our Christmassy posts. We have planned such an unconventional month for all of you!
Enjoy your meal!