About Lanzarote + book/ podcasts to recommend
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This summer, we went on holiday to Lanzarote!
The last time we had a major holiday like this was over 7 years ago (!) to Japan, so it was a biggy for us.
The landscape was breathtakingly extraordinary. Everywhere you look, it is typically red, ochre & black. Lanzarote has around 300 volcano peaks which makes for the most surreal scenery.
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At the Timanfaya National Park (Fire Mountain), we ate chicken that’s been grilled over the volcanic heat from below! (but the chicken was tough…)
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Our favourite restaurant was Casa Torano in the tiny fishing village called El Golfo. We went there twice on our holiday. In the evening, we happily sat there & watched the sun set behind the undisrupted view of the Earth’s horizon. We also saw that the horizon is slightly curved. – It’s obvious, yes I know that Mr.Galileo said Earth is indeed round, but it was a rare view for us! It was a reaffirming & humbling experience.
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At the restaurant, we ate amazing seafood:
(Must squeeze lemon over deep fried seafood! Because it cuts the grease & helps in digestion as it emulsifies the fats so that they don’t sit in the stomach! Also, squeezing Lemon (extremely alkaline) over fried seafood (extremely acidic) bring the body into perfect PH balance!)
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Unfortunately, there were no exceptional sweet desserts to report back to you from this holiday… Dessert-wise, we just ate a lot of juicy watermelon back at our rented apartment. It was a perfect way to rehydrate our skin & body after a day out in the sun (watermelon is about 92% water). Watermelon also contains lycopene, which is a nutritional protection against skin damage from the harmful rays of the sun too! Double perfect.
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Finally, let me share with you my holiday book of choice. It is the ‘Nutrition Diva’s Secrets for a Healthy Diet’ (~What to eat, what to avoid, and what to stop worrying about~) by Monica Reinagel. It’s a book packed with useful information & I loooove the book. In fact I’m a big fan of the author. I also listen to her podcast shows religiously! I first got to know about the Nutrition Diva via Clotilde’s chocolate & zucchini, when Clotilde posted about the food podcasts she listens to. If listening to podcasts is your thing, check her list out.
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And while I’m writing about podcasts, the only other one I listen to is ‘Crimes Against Food’, hosted by Gloria Lindh & Mia Steele. It’s two girls from Yorkshire talking (hilariously) about the worst food crimes. ~ I smile & giggle along with them when I listen, & it makes me happy. :)  :)  :)
(Reading on Famara Beach.)Â
Lovely scenery :) I’ve always wondered, however, how do you eat an octopus? Do you peel off the skin or….?
Comment by jonquil - September 25, 2012 5:22 pm
Jonquil, cheers! :) As for the octopus, you don’t need to peel skin. The octopus sold in shops are cleaned, so all you have to do is to cook them/ chop them, however you want to. – I must say, I very rarely.., actually, pretty much never buy octopus – only when I eat sushi in restaurants that I eat them. The picture with the funny shaped lemon in this post is actually baby-octopus. Those you eat as whole. It is soft & very yummy! If you get a chance, please give octopus a try! Recommended! x ~ Actually, now I crave for some after writing this… Maybe a trip to the fishmonger tomorrow…!! Also, by the way, have you ever tried soft-shell crab that’s been deep-fried? That is also very very tasty…!
Comment by tamami - September 25, 2012 7:47 pm
Hello Tamami!
The pictures look fabulous. Especially the one of the restaurant where the sun is setting. I wish I was there! And thank you for the tips – I will try to download the podcasts!
Louise x
Comment by Louise - September 26, 2012 3:09 pm
There is a typical dessert of the Canary Islands called “bienmesabe”. Here is a link in English to a recipe, the only thing is that the real recipe calls for the inclusion of sponge cake, as far as I am aware. It’s served on icecream, often. All the best. http://spanishfood.about.com/od/dessertssweets/r/bienmesabe.htm
Comment by Maya - September 26, 2012 4:05 pm
The octopus in the lemon pic I could eat. The ones that have the suckers still on them, would be harder for me. Similar to cow tongue, which I have trouble with because it still looks like the skin is still on, no matter what my Mom said!
Comment by jonquil - September 26, 2012 4:07 pm
Louise! Thank you!! xx Yes, sitting there at the restaurant was really lovely!! I wish I was back there! xx
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Jonquil, I know what you mean about cow tongue! I guess if one’s not used to growing up with that type of cuisine, it’s a hard one to get used to! For me it is the fish-eyes – I squirm of the thought of eating those, but my dad for example loves them…!
Comment by Tamami - September 26, 2012 4:20 pm
Hello Maya! Damn!!! That dessert looks & sounds great…! Such a shame I missed eating that… – Thanks for the link! I’ll try it soon. xx
Comment by tamami - September 26, 2012 7:41 pm
Sounds like an amazing holiday – I don’t know what looks better, the landscape or the seafood! xx
Comment by Rachel - October 4, 2012 7:29 pm
Hi~ Rachel!! ♪♪
Yup, it really was, and now I want to go on holiday all the time…!! ~ Anyway, hope all is well!! Best, T xx
Comment by Tamami - October 4, 2012 8:23 pm
T- You are always educating me….I had never heard of Lanzarote and so was motivated to read about it. And I wanted to let you know that I found the Nutrition Diva’s book on USA Amazon.com and am reading and enjoying it, thanks for bringing it to our attention! I agree that it is so important to be aware about food issues since the advertising media is so persuasive and many times untruthful. I work for a children’s hospital and see daily what a diet of mostly junk food can do to children’s health. I can go on and on about that subject, but I will stop now!! Thanks again for the lovely pics and your post and the geography lesson!!
Comment by Heidy - October 23, 2012 2:54 pm
Heidy!!! Really good to hear from you! :)
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Wow, I’m so glad to hear that you are enjoying the book that I like! And I didn’t know that you work at a children’s hospital!! :)
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I totally agree with what you say ~ being aware of issues surrounding food lead to better health! You’ve reminded me of… there is a word called è¡£é£Ÿä½ (ishokujyu) in Japanese, the literal meaning is “Clothing, eating, living(housing)”. It summarises the three pillars that make up one’s “lifestyle”.
Food eating is a major act in in daily life, & so I agree, it’s a shame when children are eating too much junk food as you say…! Good luck with you excellent work! Warmest regards, Tamami
Comment by Tamami - October 24, 2012 1:07 am