cover image Andalusia: Recipes from Seville and Beyond

Andalusia: Recipes from Seville and Beyond

José Pizarro. Hardie Grant, $40 (255p) ISBN 978-1-78488-226-6

This exciting cookbook by London chef Pizarro (Basque) features the cuisine of Andalusia, Spain’s southernmost region. The book highlights Andalusia’s diverse terrain and offers up recipes for powerfully flavorful dishes in chapters simply arranged by meat, fish, vegetables, and desserts. Fish dishes include grilled sardines with charred spring onions as well as salt cod “meatballs” in a pimentón-seasoned stew of white beans, while meat-centric options include breaded oxtail croquettes and pork loin cooked in lard to resemble carnitas. Each dish is a study in contrast and balance: rich slices of salted tuna loin pair with crisp green apple and cucumber, and a roasted chicken rubbed with anchovy paste sits atop rice dotted with sweet dried apricots. Intriguing vegetable options include roasted leeks and grapes with an almond-and-bread sauce inspired by the garlicky local white gazpacho as well as “rags” of quickly made dough in a vegetable stew. The area’s past under Arab rule is seen in sweets such as crisp olive oil cookies and alfajores with a cardamom dulce de leche. The recipe for gañotes, spiral doughnut cylinders with sesame seeds and anise liqueur served with warm honey, meanwhile, comes from Franciscan nuns Pizarro visited in Málaga. There could be a touch more information about local history and culinary traditions, but the food and recipes are truly enticing. (June)