Spanish Tapas Board
I studied abroad in Madrid during the Fall semester of my junior year in college and the highlight (food-wise) was my roommate’s birthday. Our host mom, Marta is an amazing cook and for the special occasion, she put together an INSANE spread for a late lunch (that’s the big meal in Spain – the equivalent of dinner in America!). She set the table with a nice linen tablecloth and her best dinnerware. There were plates of tapas scattered across the table, ranging from slices of Manchego cheese and Jamón Ibérico to Marta’s famous croquetas (basically decadent balls of fried bechamel…enough said). For the main course, she entered the room carrying a massive pan of freshly made paella – it had to be bigger than she was. Everything was absolutely delicious and the meal is something I still remember distinctly to this day.
My family and I recently decided to “travel” to Spain with a paella + tapas night at home. We started off with a white sangria with raspberries and peaches – so delicious and refreshing. For the paella, we riffed off of this recipe from Gerard’s Paella, one of my favorite restaurants in the Bay Area. We ended up omitting the garbanzo beans and asparagus and adding squid, lobster and peas at the end. Highly recommend if you’re looking to make paella!
For the tapas spread, I had a vision which was inspired by Marta’s tapas in Madrid. I thought I’d share the board and what I did to make it. It’s a fun mix-up from the traditional cheese + charcuterie board and a definite crowd-pleaser. Great for summer entertaining!
Before I get into the components, something I want to highlight is how I built the board. We were eating this around a table outside, so to avoid my family members having to reach across to grab what they wanted, I mirrored all of the components so there were some of each item on both sides of the board. I scattered the pan con tomate down the center so it was easy for everyone to grab. It’s a win/win because it’s perfect for munching and ends up looking really nice too!
TAPAS BOARD COMPONENTS
Manchego Cheese – this is a very traditional Spanish Sheep’s milk cheese that you can find at most grocery stores! I like to thinly slice it into triangles with the rind still on. At the store, you’ll usually have a few options of time the cheese has been aged. The longer the aging, the firmer and more complex the cheese will be. I personally prefer a 6 months aged Manchego. It’s the perfect balance of creamy, mild and tangy.
Marcona Almonds – I love a crunchy salty item on a board and these Marcona Almonds are perfect! They’re a traditional Spanish almond that’s flatter in shape than a traditional almond and they’re super easy to find at your local grocery store.
Prosciutto or Jamón Ibérico – Jamón Ibérico is the creme de la creme of aged ham in Spain. It can be hard to find and can be very expensive, so I recommend opting for something like Proscuitto or Coppa instead.
Castelvetrano Olives – similar to nuts, I love to have some sort of briney, salty olive component on my boards. I used Castelvetrano olives in this case, which technically are a Sicilian olive but if you want to go all in on Spanish theme, opt for Manzanilla olives which are a widely available Spanish green olive.
Pan con Tomate – this is one of my favorite tapas bites and it is so incredibly easy! Here’s how to make it:
– Toast or grill your favorite sliced bread until golden and/or charred.
– Peel a garlic clove and slice it in half. Rub the sliced end on the toast.
– Slice a tomato in half. Rub the sliced side of the tomato on the toast until the toaste is covered in tomato pulp.
– Top with an anchovy (can omit if you prefer) and sprinkle with Maldon salt and a drizzle of some good quality olive oil to finish.Patatas Bravas – these are one of my favorites – crispy potatoes served with a spicy tomato sauce. They actually originated in Madrid but we ate these all over Spain and they’re seriously addicting. You’ll traditionally see them made with a spicy tomato puree and garlic aioli but other versions have just one sauce – a spicy, tomato-y aioli which is what I did here. For the potatoes, we didn’t want to fry them but we wanted a nice crispy texture so my mom made this amazing recipe from Emily Blunt via Ina Garten. They result in the CRISPIEST potatoes that you’ll swear are fried! For the tomato aioli sauce, heres what I did:
– Sauteed 2 sliced shallots and 1 whole clove of garlic in 1 Tbsp of olive oil over medium-low heat until soft.
– While that was happening, I roasted 1/2 cup of cherry tomatoes in the oven at 400 degrees for ~10 minutes or until soft.
– I allowed the shallots, garlic and tomatoes to cool to room temp and then transferred to a food processor to pulse until smooth
– I added 3/4 cup homemade aioli (can also use mayo), 2.5 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper and 2 tsp sherry vinegar. I pulsed all ingredients again until a smooth sauce formed then tasted for salt.