Spanish Holidays & Feasts

Sautéed mushrooms and alioli potatoes tapas start this autumn meal, followed by mixed green salad and Catalan chicken and rice. End the meal with creamy apple tartlets and espresso.

Hosting a paella party is a great way to add Spanish flare to your entertaining, either a casual summer patio party or a holiday celebration. With a little planning up front, you won't be slaving in the kitchen. Preparing the paella while everyone enjoys a tapa puts you at center stage surrounded by your guests. We've put together an entire...

The Spanish love to celebrate with big "fiestas," processions, parades and fireworks. New Year's Eve is a classic Spanish party, starting at midnight and lasting until well after sunrise. Spanish sparkling wine, tapas and sweets are included in the celebrations. We've put together a list of food and drinks for your Spanish New Year's... Don't...

Everyone wants a special breakfast menu on Christmas morning, but nobody wants to spend all their time in the kitchen. So, prepare a Spanish breakfast including thick and rich Spanish hot chocolate, "churros" or "torrijas", fresh juice and a tropical fruit salad.

Spain is a culinary crossroads, a cuisine formed by the confluence of different cultures over the centuries. Christmas is the time when this rich gastronomic mix is at its high point. There is so much variety that you’ll want to taste everything!

Did your Thanksgiving plans fall through, or unexpected visitors arrived and now you need to plan a meal? Whatever the reason, if you haven't planned the meal, we have a Spanish menu for you that will serve 6 – and it doesn't involve defrosting a turkey! If you have been asked to bring a soup, salad or dessert, check our Spanish menu...

In Spanish, Christmas Eve is called La Noche Buena or “The Good Night” and in Spain it is celebrated with a large family feast that is eaten late in the evening and can last a couple hours. Follow our menu to prepare your own Spanish Feast this Christmas.

Spain makes some very fine sparkling wines called cava. It is made in the "méthode champenoise" or “Champagne method,” which is the same method that is used to make Champagne in France. Learn about how it is produced and which type to buy, depending on your taste!

How many years have you eaten burgers and dogs on the fourth? This year try something new! Add a bit of Spanish flare to your July 4th BBQ with any or all of these mouth-watering Spanish dishes - Spanish potato salad, melon and Serrano ham, turron ice cream and lemon sorbet. Or, just grill some lamb chops or Spicy Spanish pork "picadillo." Be sure to make lots of cold sangria so your guests don't…

Breakfast and lunch unite to make a wonderful variety of dishes in brunch. Isn’t that why everyone enjoys it?! Our Spanish Easter Brunch menu is exactly that – a variety of the best breakfast dishes like a Spanish omelet and fresh squeezed orange juice to lunch dishes like soup, fresh seasonal vegetables, Spring lamb or rabbit with rice and...

Spain is a Catholic country and during the season of Lent, the 40 days before Easter, Catholics abstain from eating meat on Fridays. If you are looking for a meatless "tapa", you won't run out of ideas with this list!

Spain is a Catholic country and during the season of Lent, the 40 days before Easter, Catholics abstain from eating meat on Fridays. If you are looking for a meatless "tapa" recipe for Lent, you won't run out of menu ideas with this list of Lenten recipes!

If you are planning an Easter Day Menu, why not go Spanish?! This menu has a recipe for each course, from easy appetizers and fresh mixed green salad, to wonderful roast lamb and potatoes to delicious dessert of Catalan cream. Make one of the simple side dishes, the dessert, or go Spanish all the way.

Are you having mom over for Mother’s Day? Would you like to make a meal that she will remember? Or, maybe you are a mother and you would like your family to prepare a special meal for you?! Try these Spanish dishes for a fabulously tasty meal that is not difficult to make.

Create a romantic Spanish dinner on Valentine's Day with these easy recipes and you'll have more time to sit and enjoy a glass of bubbly Spanish "cava" with your sweetie! Langostinos with Pink Sauce for starters, then Mixed Green Salad and lean Pork Loin Madrilene and Paprika Potatoes. End with Spanish turron with a glass of "cava." This menu...

"La Tomatina" Festival - Tomato Fight in Bu ol, Spain is one of the strangest food festivals! Situated in one of the principal tomato-growing regions of Spain, it seems appropriate that the famous tomato fight takes place in Bu ol, near the city of Valencia. Every year for one hour, the streets turn red from ripe tomatoes being hurled in...

What better way to make mom happy than to show her that you aren't just eating your vegetables, but know how to cook them, too? Fresh seasonal ingredients of Spring make this menu perfect for a Mother’s Day brunch or a dinner party in May.

This menu is perfect for anytime, but it's especially good after the holiday season when everyone has eaten lots of rich food. The Red Peppers Stuffed with Tuna is simple, light tapa, and so is the first course - Grilled Eggplant in Tomato Vinaigrette. The entire menu can be made ahead of time, except the fried potatoes. You want them to serve hot & crispy fries with the Rioja-Style Chicken. A pe…

Christmas Day, New Year’s Day or any day this winter that you’d like to host a brunch or open house is a good day to try this Spanish holiday brunch menu. Some of the dishes require no cooking and most can be made the day before. The menu includes Spanish Cava, omelets, bacalao, turron and mantecados.

The following brunch menu includes a potato omelet or "tortilla espanola," asparagus with alioli sauce, eggplant vinaigrette and garlicky shrimp. To finish off the meal, fresh "macedonia de fruta tropical." And what brunch would be complete without cold sparkling wine?

There isn’t a holiday in Spain that doesn’t include eating tasty "tapas", feasting on an enormous meal, or munching delicious sweets and "Dia de los Santos Inocentes" is no exception.

The rest of the world might focus on food on the Tuesday marking the end of "Carnaval", called Mardi Gras or Shrove Tuesday, but the Spanish chose a different day of the week. The Thursday that starts Carnaval, which is the week before Ash Wednesday is known as "Jueves Lardero" and the Spanish clean their pantries, eating lots of bread, chorizo...

How to Roast Suckling Lamb or Lechazo Asado. The Spanish love roast suckling lamb, especially in Central and Northern Spain. It is simple to roast a suckling lamb. If it's not available from your butcher, purchase a leg of lamb and prepare it like the Spanish do - roasted slowly with garlic and olive oil. Serve the lamb with roast or fried...

Every year on June 29th, the town of Haro in the heart of La Rioja is the site of a major battle. Hundreds of Spaniards celebrate by soaking each other with wine, using any means possible.

Are you out of ideas for Father's Day menu? Try some Spanish dishes for dinner. Choose the Cool and Casual Menu, with Grilled Eggplant with Vinaigrette and Grilled Kabobs, or the Traditional Dinner Menu with Spanish Mixed Green Salad, Pork Chops with Peppers, Garlic and Brandy and smooth Garlic Mashed Potatoes. Both menus include cool, summer...

Everyone loves a picnic, and so many Spanish foods travel easily... Why not give your next picnic a Spanish theme? Make some "empanadillas", a "tortilla de patata", a batch of "gazpacho" and pack a bottle of "cava", Spanish sparkling wine and/or a light albarino. Finish the meal with some "crema de limon" or morsels of classic almond candy,...

This Spanish dinner menu perfect for a summer buffet for six. Cucumber and Tomato salads, a Spanish omelet, breaded beef fillets accompanied by slices of Spanish chorizo sausage. Be sure to slice rustic baguettes and open a bottle of Spanish red wine. Serve a classic Spanish dessert of Membrillo and cheese.

Orujo, a traditional Spanish liqueur made from grape skins has its own festival! Every year on the second weekend of November, the small Cantabrian town of Potes hosts a three-day festival dedicated to the traditional distilled liqueur, called orujo. Fireworks, processions, demonstrations and free orujo tastings attract thousands of visitors...