Olives at La Boquieria Marketplace in Barcelona
Whole olives or olive oil? As we flew into Seville, Spain, our plane passed over vast groves of olive trees…so appropriate a welcome. I can’t help but wonder what is consumed more – olives in their tasty, meaty entirety? Or the olive oil that goes into virtually every dish? Even at breakfast the Sevillanos drizzle garlic infused aceite de olivos on their toasted bread. It is the foundation of every dish I can think of; from Spanish tortilla, a potato, onion and egg omelet-pie, to insalata, to fried calamaris and fried-virtually-anything-especially-fish, to gazpacho, the cold soup this region is famous for.
Oggling Olives at La Boquieria Market in Barcelona
Then again, whole olives are proferred at nearly every opportunity and gathering. They are to bar snacks for Spaniards what peanuts are for Americans. I was enjoying a tinto verano (poor man’s sangria) at a lovely restaurant in Barrio Macarena, when I saw the bar tender dumping the olives back in to a Costco-sized drum! They do olives on an industrial level here.
Anyways, the point is, they enjoy olives here, in case you didn’t know 😉 . What form is comsumed more? I’m sure I can wikipedia or google this statistic, but I like pondering it and putting it out there for speculation.
(All photos by G. Stark)
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*sigh* it must be my ethnic roots, but I have to tell you, I could LIVE off of olives. LIVE i tell you! When I lived in Long Beach the attendant that worked the Wild Oats olive bar knew me by name and would let me know when something new and yummy would come in. Seriously.
Ahhh now that I know your weakness, Elena, I will need to introduce you to these ginormous green olives from Italy called something-something Cerignolas 🙂 I have only been able to find and procure them in Santa Barbara..but will keep you and your needs in mind!
I havent had anything with olive oil in it in a long time. That might be to my ethnic roots though
Well, that should be remedied – and soonly! Drizzle some on a salad with a squeeze of lemon juice. Add some parmesan shavings and pine nuts and you’re going gourmet 😉 Simple, tasty and oh-so-very healthy for you.
Gina! I KNOW Cerignolas! I. LOVE. CERIGNOLAS!!! You can usually get them in Whole Foods and in Long Beach I would walk across the street to the Olive Gourmet Grocers (mmhmmm Long Beach is THAT cool) and buy myself bunches and bunches of them. Sigh… I think that Idyllwild needs an olive bar!
I’m so glad you know them, though I’m not surprised, seeing your fuudie site! 😉 I will allow you to open said Olive Bar. I will even patronize it! 🙂 G
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