Gofio With Almonds

Gofio with almonds

Since early times gofio has been a healthy food of Canary Islanders.

I have written about it before (here's a link to a previous post with details about gofio)  but I have tasted it myself on only a  few occasions. It's made of toasted grains ground into a flour which is then eaten by mixing the flour with milk or broth.  Canary Island mothers often mixed gofio with milk in their babies' bottles and today gofio is still eaten as a breakfast food with milk or as a thick paste served on the center of the dinner table, eaten with spoons by family members. 

I had a chance to buy some gofio amasado con almendras the other day when I visited a food and craft fair here on the island. It's a fudge-like mixture of gofio and almonds, probably together with some sugar, formed into a fat sausage shape and as I have tried it before I know that I like it.

Here's some gofio amasado that I saw at a food market tasting table last year.  

It was soft, nutty, fudgy and delicious with a wholesome taste that reminded me a little of peanut butter!

For the past week there has been an artesanal craft fair in town, and apart from the displays of handicrafts, there are also local homemade Canary cakes and sweets.  When I saw this sign on one stall I could imagine that what was being produced by this bakery in Vilaflor, (one of the highest villages in Spain, and here on the island of Tenerife) was going to be interesting.

Dulces Artesanales Chasneros means handmade sweets from that area, made by the lady whose name is underneath....Doña Isidra Dorta Fumero.

Here is the net-covered display of baked goods, some familiar to me and others not:

At one side I noticed the log-shaped roll of gofio with almonds set in a tray with an interesting looking pumpkin cake topped with walnuts. 

These are in the tray at the right side.I had to take home some of that gofio.

I also bought a piece of that pumpkin cake - tarta de calabaza ....it was good!

Well that's a little about the local food and next time I'll be showing what else I saw at the craft fair.

There were hundreds of stalls from Africa, South America, Mexico and Tenerife.

For now, have a safe Halloween evening.  Thanks for your visit and hasta la vista!

86 ~ Carnival in Canaries

A member of the female murga Las Hechizadas (The Bewitched)

It's that time again when the world celebrates carnival, or carnaval as it is written in Spanish. And next to Rio de Janiero, the Canary Islands has some of the world's most extravagant carnival celebrations.

This year the activities run from January 26 with the selection of candidates for carnival queen until February 21, ending with the traditional antique car show and final fireworks display.

Carnival photos here and above credited to the official Tenerife Carnival website.

Murga Los Bambones

The murgas are popular satirical groups which create and sing irreverent protest songs about current local issues and political personages, to the accompaniment of noisy percussion instruments. Competitions pit different murga groups against each other for the best costumes and the sharpest wit in their performances.

Los Bambas, a childrens' murga

As well as a carnival queen chosen from a selection of young women, there is also a Reina Tercera Edad, a senior queen chosen from older women.

Reina Tercera Edad (Senior Queen)

Everyone joins in the spirit of carnival here, no matter what age. There is also a children's queen, La Reina Infantil.

La Reina Infantil (Childrens'Queen)

Each of the seven Canary Islands celebrates its own carnival and there are many shows, parades and queen elections even in smaller towns. But the biggest shows are always that of the elections of Carnival Queen on Tenerife and Gran Canaria, the two largest islands, in the cities of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria respectively.

Tenerife will elect her queen tomorrow evening in a grand televised gala.

Las Palmas already has a carnival queen, elected a few days ago. Here she is, in a spectacular costume of an indian princess in white feathered and bejewelled headdress, stepping out of an enormous Native American dream catcher.

Photo credit to Las Palmas Carnival website

Here's the sound of Carnaval en Tenerife!

I will come back with more photos from Carnaval en Tenerife.
Until then, ...¡Hasta la vista!