• preparation

The night before, put the chickpeas in a large bowl and cover them with cold water at least twice their volume. Leave to soak overnight or up to 2 days
The next day, drain the chickpeas. Place a medium saucepan over high heat and add the drained chickpeas and baking soda. Cook for about three minutes, stirring constantly. Add the water and bring to a boil. Cook, skimming off any foam and any skins that float to the surface. The chickpeas will need to cook for 20 to 40 minutes, depending on the type and freshness, sometimes even longer. Once done, they should be very tender, breaking up easily when pressed between your thumb and finger, almost but not quite mushy.
Drain the chickpeas. You should have roughly 3 2/3 cups now. Place the chickpeas in a food processor and process until you get a stiff paste. Then, with the machine sill running, add the tahini paste, lemon juice, garlic, and salt to taste.
Finally, slowly drizzle in the ice water and allow it to mix for about five minutes, until you get a very smooth and creamy paste.


Transfer the hummus to a bowl, cover the surface with plastic wrap, and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. If not using straightaway, refrigerate until needed. Make sure to take it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before serving.
This hummus will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days.

• preparation

Whisk together the chickpea flour, salt and pepper in a large bowl
Slowly add the water and whisk to combine. Cover and allow the mixture to rest for at least 2 hours and preferably overnight. (If resting the batter for more than 2 hours, store it in the refrigerator.)
When you are ready to bake the calentita, preheat the oven to 400°F. Pour the olive oil in the bottom of a 9x13-inch glass or metal baking dish and swirl it around to coat the bottom. Place the baking dish in the oven while it is preheating so that the dish can get very hot.
When the oven has reached the desired temperature and the baking dish is quite hot, carefully, remove the baking dish from the oven and pour the calentita batter into the dish. Return the dish to the oven.
Bake the calentita until firm and golden brown on the top, 55 to 60 minutes. Remove from the oven and cut into squares. Leave to stand for a while. Serve immediately.

• preparation

For the crust: Whisk the chickpea flour and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt together in a medium bowl. Whisk in 1 1/2 cups water and 2 tablespoons olive oil until smooth. Cover and let stand at room temperature for 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F with a pizza stone or baking sheet on the bottom rack. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Whisk the baking powder into the chickpea mixture and pour half of the batter into the hot skillet, swirling to evenly coat the bottom. Cook until just set, about 2 minutes. Transfer the skillet to the hot pizza stone and bake until the edges and top are browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Flip the crust in the skillet and bake until the top is browned and crisp, about 3 minutes more. Transfer the crust to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Make another crust with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and the remaining batter.
For the toppings: Brush the crusts lightly with olive oil. Arrange the mozzarella on top and sprinkle with Parmesan. Divide the tomatoes between the two crusts and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roughly tear the basil leaves and scatter over the top. Bake on two sheet pans, switching the position halfway through, until the cheese is browned and bubbly, 10 to 12 minutes. Drizzle with some olive oil and serve.

• preparation

Cut lobster meat into chunks.
Wash and scrub the live mussels, and remove beards. Cover sausage with water and simmer for 10 minutes.
Use kielbassa or other garlic smoked pork sausage.
Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Brown both sides in half of the oil.
In a heavy cast iron pot, heat the remaining oil. Stir in the onion, garlic, peppers, and cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Add chopped seeded tomatoes.
Stir in rice, saffron and stock. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add the browned chicken, all seafood and sliced sausage.
Bake 25 minutes at 375 degrees.
Steam peas for 5 minutes and sprinkle on top. Serve hot in serving dish.

• preparation

Cut the octopus into large pieces. Slice the fish into 1-2 inch cubes. Peel the shrimp and wash the scallops. Toss each of them with some salt and set aside separately.
Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or large stew pot over medium-high heat for a minute or two, then add the onion and celery. Saute for 3-4 minutes, then add the green and red bell peppers and the baby octopus.

Saute the octopus, peppers and onion for a minute or two, then add the garlic and mix well. Cook for one minute, then turn the heat up all the way and add the white wine.Mix well, and add the hot and sweet paprika and mix again. Let the mixture boil fiercely until half the wine is boiled away.Add the chopped sage and rosemary, then the fish stock. stir and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer and let this cook for 35-40 minutes.Test for salt and add if needed. Test a piece of octopus: If it is tender, proceed. If not, cook a bit longer.Once the octopus is tender, add the tomatoes, the shrimp, fish and scallops, then add half the parsley. Cook this at a simmer for 4-5 minutes.Add the rest of the parsley and the basil. Stir to combine and serve.