Mellow Yellow…

All kids are flavourists – in training! Remember those days, when you were excited for a trip to the corner 7-Eleven? How about when tasting an explosion of red and blue could only mean one thing – ICEE? I do! Most of all, I recall leaving ample room in my cup to pour equal amounts of both blue raspberry and cherry slush. Best of all, years of overfilling my cup and gulping the mound of syrupy shaven ice – to finally fit the lid – resulted in self-directed training to handle brain-freeze.

Developing a taste for sweets, children embrace desserts and feel they’re championing against rule enforcers when opportunity strikes to consume ‘afters,’ first. Similarly thrilling is hearing an enchanting musical tune – the clue – announcing the arrival of summer’s
beloved freezer box on wheels. In absence of the “Good Humor Man” truck, distance is no match for a curious traveller’s pursuit of local refreshers, even overseas.

Space oddity! Location: outside Barcelona’s art museum, known as M.N.A.C. (Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya). Weather: humidex alert. Of my own accord and discretion: a cold treat. Spinning wheels at work, I sighted a strangely familiar machine – a slush-maker. Covering two of the three primary colours of slushie, earlier in life, I noticed a zesty flavour twist to complete the trio. When life gives Spaniards lemons, they make semi-frozen lemonade – ‘granizado de limón’ (iced lemon drink). Accurately representative of this yellow citrus, lemon ‘granizado’ is balanced in tart and sweet flavour compounds.

Polar bear dip, in Barcelona? On a hot day, it would be a shame not to take the plunge – into this lip-smacking beverage. Straw provided, of reasonably proportionate circumference – not bubble-tea variety – I steadily appeased my thirst with sips of congealed ‘limón.’ Also available in ‘naranja’ (orange) and ‘lima’ (lime), seasonal hot-heads can welcome Mr. Golden Sun with a cooling cup of tangy ‘granizado.’ Who knew multi-tasking can be so relaxing? ‘Granizado’ in hand, anyone can extinguish the heat by taking a chill-‘fill’ – of vitamin C!

Copyright © DISHFUL, 2013.

Sí-trus Delight! …La Boqueria

Wherever I go, I am drawn to food. It’s quite comical because among taking part in typical tourist-type activities, while vacationing, I often frequent grocery stores – private or commercial, I’m unbiased. Without question, I must eat. I must-indulge!

It’s no wonder I immediately knew to visit food markets, upon arrival in Barcelona. Also, cognizant that Barcelonans spoke Catalan, a language foreign to me, I was confident in my Spanish-speaking skills enough to make appetite-pleasing purchases. Luckily, hunger is an international language.

I’m enthusiastic about absorbing food in its entire splendor. And, given that I first eat with my eyes, I was eager to uncover unseen fresh and authentic national products, which I couldn’t get back home. In avoidance of mass-produced finds, and local chains, I had my heart set on La Boqueria. The quintessential open food market, in Barcelona!

Along La Rambla, a long path bustling with street performers and independent vendors, I spotted ‘the sign,’ Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria. The sign was my entry way; an open access, the ‘in’ into this action-packed buying/selling haven of good eats.

Look to your right or left and you’ll find something delectable. Whether raw, cooked, cured, dried, sweet, salty, or savoury you name it, and you can find it. Whatever ‘it’ is, ‘it’ is here! Once you do claim your heart’s desire, your options don’t stop at La Boqueria. You can indulge your fabulous food finds in-house or “para llevar” (take-out). The choice is yours, and you have plenty!I always heard of good seafood smelling like the ocean, and it’s true; the coastal catch of the day had a pleasant essence of sea salt. Being a visitor, I had no kitchen to pan sear fresh tuna or scallops. But, I did find floor-to-floor coverings of stacked, packed, wrapped, and overflowing rows of gummies, nuts, fruits, vegetables, deli meat, and much more; all ready to be taken, cooked and eaten.Acquiesce to your senses? Gladly! Conveniently accompanied with a fork, I bought mouth-watering fruit salad ranging in a rainbow of colours. All the produce looked vibrant and lively, as if it had just been picked off the tree. Taken aback by the perfume of Spanish oranges, I could no longer resist temptation; I have had a little taste of heaven, and I now I wanted more.

Finally, in good conscience, I decided to sacrifice comfort and lugged a bagful of these spherical treats back to my hotel room. Citrus so luscious, scrumptious, and ever-so-juicy; the best oranges I’ve had. Sweet dreams indeed!

Copyright © DISHFUL, 2013.