This has been a food heavy week so that makes it a good week. We have walked almost every day, which is good considering how we like to eat.
One of my current reading objectives is to read French authors. Try as I might, Dumas’s serial style does not work, so I have started Peré Goriot by Honoré de Balzac. The first pages are a captivating detailed description of Maison Vauquer, the boarding house in the Latin Quarter of Paris which is at the heart of the story. I did a painting of how it might have looked.
After posting our blogs last Friday, Tricia roasted some shrimp and mashed cauliflower for our lunch – two of my favorite things.
Saturday was pintxos day. We spent quite a bit of time experimenting.
What are Pintxos? You will see the word spelled two ways: Pintxos (Basque) or pinchos (Spanish). Both are from the word for “stabbed or poked” because originally they were bite size snacks on a peice of bread “stabbed” with a toothpick. We use the pintxos spelling since they come from the Basque region, which includes part of both France and Spain.
Pintxos are different from tapas. Tapas are small shared plates, pintxos are bitesized. Most restaurants that offer one offer both. In Donostia (San Sebastian) this was our favorite place, the pintoxs are in a display case and you point to the ones you want then take them to your table. In Helsinki we found a pintxos place called Deliberi, yes in Helsinki, and it was so good we went twice.
Saturday we tried quite a few combinations, all were good. We used slices of baguette and of a dark European thin-bread. Pintxos are certainly a fixture in our regular eating now.
We have been re-watching the Eugene Levy series The Reluctant Traveler, I often sketch.
Yesterday, Thursday, Tricia made celeriac cakes. If you have never tried this odd, gnarly looking vegetable you should give it a try.
It was hot here in The Pearl this week so staying in a lot and eating well was a good idea. When it hit 100F on Wednesday we were thankful for our AC, it was quite different just a couple of weeks ago when we were in the Paris heatwave.
I hope your summer is going well, that you are enjoying food and friends, and staying safe and cool. Thanks as always for following.
theTravelsketcher 
Oh my days!! The food looks amazing!! 😀
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Thanks you, we do like to cook.
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I enjoyed Emile Zola’s “The Belly of Paris.” Have you tried that French work?
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It is on my list.
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Well, now that you have made me hungry with all these amazing food photos. I will go eat. 😊Our temps have been tin the triple digits too and more to come starting tomorrow. I too am thankful for AC.
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Eat well, hope you had something really good.
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I had a bowl of mixed vegetables and a banana. 😊
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Sounds good.
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We’re currently in San Sebastián
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Is it very busy, Sheree?
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It’s busier in August but bearable now.
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Wow, have some pintxos for us.
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Will do!
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The pintxos look excellent – a nice glass of sherry with them perhaps? Celeriac is good combined with potatoes in a mash. The sketches from the Eugene Levy series are fun.
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Yes, we have mashed them and they are good. Had wine, but your idea is good.
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Love the whole post but naturally keep on going back to the pinxos . . . sorry to have been greedy but helped myself to one from each plate . . . totally my kind of food . . . 🙂 !
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Glad you enjoyed.
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Lots of good food this week! I do love pintxos, and it’s been so long since I’ve had Basque food (hopefully to eat it sooner than later…). Sounds like the heat wave is also hitting the Pacific Northwest, and I hope you and Tricia are staying cool!
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We are cool, so all is good, but feeling the discomfort of our friends in France.
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Hello Terry,
What a wonderful week of food, the pintxos look interesting- I think I’ll have to have a go and make some – what a lovely way to eat and get lots of different tastes.
I use celeriac to make soup in the winter, it’s also good mashed up with potatoes. But celeriac cakes sound good.
Linda
Sent from my iPad
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Hope you enjoy them. And yes celeriac makes good soup.
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