Portuguese Cuisine

 Our days in Portugal are numbered. We will soon be completing our mission and moving on. 

One of the pleasures of Portugal has been the 'food experience' and, lest I forget, I want to share what I consider to be some of Portugal's culinary hits (ones I have actually tried)... 

Pastel da Nata

A creamy egg custard filling in a flaky pastry shell. Powdered sugar and/or cinnamon is sprinkled over the top to taste.

Caldo Verde

Green in color and made with a particular dark green cabbage that is not widely available beyond Portugal's borders. A combination of potato puree, slices of chourico sausage and olive oil complete this delicious and hearty soup.

Bacalhau

Grilled, baked, canned, or fried - they say there are over 1,000 ways to prepare this codfish.

Sardinhas

Grilled sardines seasoned with two Portuguese kitchen staples - salt and olive oil. Locals eat the entire sardine including the head, often with fried potatoes and rice, leaving only the boney carcasses. 

Bifanas

(The National Portuguese Sandwich)

 Made of marinated pork served in crunchy white bread. The marinade is made with spices including paprika, garlic, and white wine. 

Bifanas are often served with a bowl of soup and fries.

 

Chicken Piri-Piri 

An amazingly tasty roasted chicken flavored with a small spicy chili pepper known as Piri-Piri (African devil), brought from Africa during the Age of Exploration in the 15th and 16th centuries. 

Today it's served with chips or french fries and small lettuce, tomato, and onion salad.

Arroz de Pato

Duck rice. What more can be said? They then top it with fresh orange slices. The result is deeply flavorful and downright delicious.

Polvo à Lagareiro

A show stopper to be sure - the tentacled cephalopod atop a bed of roasted potatoes. Beyond the octopus and olive oil, other ingredients include onion, garlic, bay leaves, and salt.

Serra da Estrella Spreadable sheep cheese. The country's most lauded cheese.

Choco Frito

Fried cuttlefish

Close relative to the squid and the octopus, it has a very chewy texture.

Arroz Doce

Sweet rice pudding is among Portugal's most traditional deserts. Made of short-grain rice, milk, and lemon peel in addition to egg yolks and sugar. Here it always comes with cinnamon on top.

 

Mousse de Chocolate

The Portuguese recipes all tend to use very dark chocolate, so it's quite rich and decadent.

Tarte de Maça

An apple tart

Bolo Rei

King's Cake is a sweet bread made with eggs and filled with dried and candied fruits, nuts, and raisins, then formed into a donut shape and given a generous dusting of powdered sugar.

A favorite holiday tradition.

Pão

I consider myself to be a bread appreciator and love trying all the different Portuguese breads.

Our little bakery across the street makes the best bread!

My two favorites - pão de milho com sementes (made with corn flour) and pão natural com sementes (made with wheat flour) - both with the addition of seeds (those are the sementes)

Crusty, dense, soft and chewy. A perfect combination!

Bom Apetite!

The Kids Came!

 We ended 2022 and began 2023 with 13 wonderful days of family.

Nathan, Kristy, Christian, Dayah, Michael, Finn, Esplan, and Austin arrived December 28th - they hit the ground running and never stopped!

We loved showing them around this beautiful land of Portugal - the sites, the sounds, the food - you name it.

(They were even able to make it over to the Azores for a couple of days!)

And then, just like that, we were back at the airport wishing them boas viagens (safe travels). 

This little dose of family has made us even more excited to see y'all again in a few months!!

BTW
Only 151 days until the Cruise. 

Just saying...