Hi folks! I’m back again — but this time with less waffle and more photos. After all, a picture’s worth a hundred words, isn’t it?
The topic’s the same as last time — the beautiful Sierrezuela of Posadas which forms part of the vast Natural Park of Hornachuelos. View on (and please consult the following links for more… https://www.posadas.es/turismo/patrimonio_natural/parque_periurbano_la_sierrezuela and http://turismoposadas.es/wp-content/uploads/guia-educacion-ambiental-sierrezuela.pdf — both great for your Spanish!! Also, not forgetting my illustrated book An English Lady in Cordova, available from me and also from here https://www.etsy.com/es/shop/GillysWork?ref=search_shop_redirect. View for more descriptions of this neck of the woods and to learn of my humorous adventures!)
Route through the Sierrezuela – 
The path dips and rises… 
it is also level 
and wends its way under lofty trees and past dense shrubbery 
with white sticky gum cistus (‘jara pringosa’) 
and pink cistus too, 
(‘estepa’ / ‘carpazo’ in Spanish) 
and by squill – handle with care – used for rat poison! 
‘cebolla albarrana’. 
Spot the white butterfly! 
They are here already! 
There are barbeque areas 
and picnic areas 
with stone benches and tables… 
A great place to have a picnic and barbeque! 
Cool and shady 
under the lofty pines 
with its natural chiaro-oscuro, 
making a partly shady walk in summer. 
With great views: looking south over white-washed Posadas 
and the flat plains of the Guaddalquivir Valley… 
past olive groves and arable land 
and towards Ribero, a sister village of Posadas. 
Peeping out from the pines, northeastwards, 
the land rises again towards the hills of the Sierra Morena. 
There are holly oak bushes 
and loads of dwarf fan palm (‘palmito’) 
and squill again! 
– and fragrant wild thyme 
with lots of wild asparagus bushes 
and green-brown wild asparagus 
‘trigueros’ 
growing amid the palms. 
Posters describe the plants 
and wild fungi. 
Overgrown shrubs and thickets provide refuge for the wild animals… 
and there are watering holes for them. 
There are excercise bars
along the way
and an adventure zone area 
with ziplines 
and an informal bar / restaurant 
and another bigger one with delicious food!! 
But guess what I’m going to have for din-dins today? Hint – see the recipe below!
Recipe for wild asparagus in a rich tomatoey sauce (my way)
Ingredients
A bunch of wild asparagus
Olive oil
Some tomato concentrate (‘tomate frito’ if you are in Spain – about 220 g) and a couple of chopped tomatoes if you have them
A fat onion, chopped
A couple of cloves of garlic, squashed
2 cloves
Cumin powder and smoked sweet paprika – a tsp of each
Small glass of red wine or ‘fino’ or ordinary white, if that’s what you happen to have
Salt, pepper and brown sugar to taste
Croutons fried in olive oil (don’t let the oil smoke!)
Method
Cut the tender top parts of the asparagus into 1 cm pieces (or to your liking). In a pan, fry the chopped onion in a generous amount of olive oil, on medium fire. Add the garlic after about a couple of minutes, when the onion is translucent. Cook for a further minute. Now add the cumin and paprika powders and the cloves. Stir-fry a bit longer, then chuck in your asparagus bits. Increase the fire and throw in the booze. Let it bubble away so that most of it evaporates, then add your tomatoes and puree. (If you don’t have chopped tomatoes, don’t worry, add more puree. You’re aiming for a rich tomato gravy.) When it starts bubbling a lot, add your salt, pepper and about a teaspoon of sugar (wild asparagus can be quite bitter). Let it simmer with lid half on until the asparagus is tender and a rich, tomatoey gravy has formed. Check for seasoning. You can always add more cumin and smoked sweet paprika if you like. In a separate frying pan, cook your croutons in olive oil, then add to the cooked asparagus dish.
And Bob’s your uncle — ready to eat!
PS. If you don’t want to waste the woody, prickly stalk of the asparagus, you can simmer these together with other vegetables, to make a stock. Might have to add a pinch of sugar or extra carrots to balance out the bitterness though.
And as for my vegetable patch — no photos this time because it is looking pretty much the same — except it now has the addition of a worrying amount of furry caterpillars that are steadily and stealthily invading the whole of the countryside! Let’s see if my Swiss chard and spinach seedlings escape their voracious jaws…
That’s all for now — thanks for reading — back soon!
An English Lady in Cordova 