Spanish Omelette

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon is definitely one of the most entertaining books I've read in recent times.

Suspense, intrigue, revenge, love (of books, unrequited love, lost love, first flush of love ), the difficult journey from childhood to adulthood - this page turner has it all.

10 year old Daniel Sempere is introduced by his father to the Cemetery Of Forgotten Books - an old and secret place that houses books that even time seems to have forgotten. This is a place that is not many are privy to and the tradition here is that the first time someone visits the place, he must choose any book he likes and then become its caretaker, so to speak.

Daniel chooses a novel Shadow of the Wind by Julian Carax - though this is an author that he, the son of a book shop owner, has never heard of, it seems to him that this book has been waiting all along for him. It is a novel that makes its way to his heart and soon, Daniel is seeking out other works by Carax.

To his dismay and shock, he discovers that someone has been systematically destroying every single copy of every novel that Julian Carax has ever written. In fact, the one copy that he has of the Shadow of the Wind seems to be the only one that has survived and someone seems to be intent on getting that from him as well.

Why is this person so keen on destroying Carax's work and who is Julian Carax? Daniel's curiosity is piqued and he starts to find out all he can about the mysterious and elusive Carax. But what starts as simple curiosity of an admirer leads him over the course of the following 10 years to a labyrinth of secrets, lies and revenge. As he delves deeper and deeper into the mystery of Carax's life, Daniel soon realises that he and those closest to him might be in great danger...

There are several food references throughout the book - Fermin Romero de Torres, Daniel's friend and mentor, has a voracious appetite - ham croquettes, brioches with butter, sandwiches, omelettes, chocolates and sugus sweets - he seems to be able to wolf down large quantities of food with great alacrity.....

"Did you hear that?" Fremin suddenly said. "Sounded like a drumroll for a somersault."
"No."
"Yours truly's rumblings. Look, I'm suddenly terribly hungry...."

I wanted to make patata bravas but in the end, I was too lazy and ended up with the Spanish Omelette which is something we have pretty regularly at home.



"Would you object to a stop at the bar in Plaza de Sarria to polish off two well-endowed omelette sandwiches, plus trimmings?"

The tortilla de patatas or Spanish omelette - is a typical Spanish dish consisting of an egg omelette with fried potatoes and is one of the most popular tapas in Spain. In fact different regions in Spain have their own ways of making this omelette, here's how I make Spanish Omelette at home.

Spanish Omelette

Ingredients:

Eggs - 3

Potato - 1 large

Bell pepper, red - 1/2, chopped

Onion - 1/2, chopped

Coriander leaves - 1 tbsp, chopped

Green Chillies - 2, chopped

Olive oil - 1.5 tbsp

Salt and pepper

Method:

Parboil the potato and slice it into circles. Heat oil and fry the potato slices till done.

(Traditionally, raw potatoes are fried in a couple of tablespoons of oil, the idea being that the potatoes should be stewed in the oil - I balk at the idea of using too much oil and so parboil mine).

When the potatoes are nearly done, add the onions and fry them till pink.

As the onions fry, gently beat the eggs and add the remaining ingredients. When the potatoes and the onions are done, transfer them into the eggs in the bowl and mix gently.

Tip the eggs into the pan and cook, covered, on very low heat till done.

Cut into wedges and eat as is or with some salad or bread.

Here's what the other members of the Book Club made:

Simran made Swiss Hot Chocolate and Curry Leaf made Patata Bravas with Citrusy Sangria

Next month, we are reading "A Space between Us" by Thrity Umrigar. Want to join us? Write in to Simran!!