Sharon, maybe it wasn't you because she's called Tenerife Sharon from the Carnary Islands and Germany. She wasn't on Trip advisor, though. It was on betterbidding, but the questions were about traveling. Sorry, she "looked" just like you. LOL. That really is a small world -- two people both named Sharon from Tenerife with German connections. My DH says I'm spending way too much time on the internet! LOL.

Depending on the hotel you will surely have a room service menu available at all hours of the day, especially in a business hotel. Remember too that the midday meal in Spain is the main one, usually from 1 to 4 pm with supper starting around 8 pm until 11 or midnight. Also most hotels have a bar where snack foods are available at all hours...toasted ham & cheese sandwiches, bocadillos de jamon (ham in a baguette), fruit, juices, coffee and drinks. South of Spain is known for having wonderful almonds and dates which you should be able to buy in the airport when you arrive. Cheese and crackers make a good snack. Try and buy some Manchego semi-curado (semi-cured) cheese once you're there and don't forget to pack a little cutting board and cheese knife. The crackers we see here are usually non-salted and come from England, called cream crackers, but a nice Spanish cracker is called TUC, which are salted and small like saltines. Tins of olives are readily available if you like them. Bring a can opener in case you come across tins that don't open with a tab pull. Hazlenuts, called avellanas, are also seen a lot in Spain. I hope you have a good trip and enjoy your stay! SharonCb

Here are some empanada and pastie recipes from Spain: (on the leftof the photo) These are wonderful little turnovers (empanadas) made from spinach, pine nuts and raisins. The dough: 8 oz water 4 oz olive oil 4 oz. orange juice 100 grams lard (just under 1/2 cup) 1 egg 700 grams flour (5.5 cups) The Filling: 3 bunches spinach, washed, drained and chopped 100 grams seedless raisins (3/4 cup) 25 grams pine nuts (1/4 cup) 3 spring onions, washed and chopped fine sweet paprika - to your taste salt olive oil - 2 TBS 1) Put oil in saucepan and lightly stirfry the onion, without browning them. Add the spinach, salt, raisins and pine nuts and stirfry a few moments more. Remove from heat and add paprika. Mix well and reserve. Put egg, orange juice and lard in a large bowl and mix with fork until creamy. Add water and oil, mix again. 3) Add flour a little at a time to make a consistent dough. Roll out into circles, fill by putting a spoonful of filling in the centre of each circle and fold over, press edge. Roll up edge over filled part and shape into corded edge, as in photo. Place on greased cookie sheet in 350F oven for 20 minutes until golden. Source: Chatbalear.com Here is a delicious sweet potato pastry turnover which is typical to Canary Islands, and which I love: Filling: 2 1/4 cups sweet potato (batata) (500 grams) 2 cups ground almonds (250 grams) 1/2 cup fine granulated or castor sugar 3 egg yolks grated rind of 1 green lemon anisette liqueur \- a few drops rum \- a few drops 1 teasp powdered aniseed 1 teasp powdered cinammon pastry: 3 TBS lard 1/2 cup olive oil 4 1/4 cups flour (500 grams) Preparation: 1\) Filling: Boil, peel and mash the sweet potatoes and mix with the ground almonds, lemon rind, sugar, yolks, a dash each of anisette and rum, and a teaspoon each of powdered aniseed and cinnamon. 2\) Pastry: Mix the lard, oil and flour to a consistency suitable for pastry. Leave for half an hour, then roll out thinly on a floured board. Cut out saucer\-sized circles, place some filling on one side, flip over the other side to cover, press the edges together and flute with a fork to decorate. Pierce one side of each trucha lightly with a fork. 3\) Finally fry pasties in abundant hot oil, drain on kitchen paper, sprinkle with sugar and arrange on serving dish. These pasties will keep well in an airtight tin. (My advice \- best keep in the fridge in warm weather if not eaten all at once.) Source: 'The Best of Canary Island Cookery' Centro de la Cultura Popular Canaria SharonCb ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tuna PatTurnovers (Empanadas de Atun) \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- 3 different recipes for the pastry: Recipe 1: 4 cups (500 grams) all purpose flour 1 TBS cooking oil 1 TBS baking powder 3/4 cup cold water Method: Put flour in a bowl and make a well in the centre. Put the oil, salt and baking powder in the well, add the water and mix together. Mix with hands until the dough no longer sticks to hands. Then roll out with rolling pin and cut out circles with saucer. Fill each with mixture, fold over to form half moon and close with tines of a fork. Deep fry in abundant oil. Recipe 2: 3 TBS lard 1 small glass (4 oz) olive oil 4 cups (500 grams) all purpose flour Method: Mix the lard, oil and flour to a consistency suitable for pastry. Leave for half an hour, then roll out thinly on a floured board. Cut out saucer\-sized circles, place some filling on one side, flip over to the other side to cover, press the edges together and flute with a fork to decorate. Pierce one side with a fork and fry in abundant hot oil and drain on kitchen paper. Source: The Best of Canary Island Cookery Recipe 3: 2 1/4 cups +2 TBS (275 grams)all purpose flour 1/2 cup (100 grams) butter or lard 1/2 teasp salt 6 1/2 TBS (100 ml) water or wine Method: Place the flour in a bowl and add chilled butter or lard, cutting it in with a knife until mixture is crumbly. Add salt and then the liquid. Mix into a ball and knead very briefly on a floured board. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least two hours. Roll out the pastry dough and cut into circles about 4 in (10 cms). Place a teaspoon of filling on each pastry round and fold over, closing and crimping the edges with the tines of a fork. Fry the empanadas a few at a time in hot oil until golden or bake in a preheated hot oven. Source: The Best of Spanish Cooking \- Janet Mendel Note: The above pastry recipe of Janet Mendel is used for Pork Pasties, in which case the filling will be as follows: FILLINGS: \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- Pork Pasties: 7 oz (200 grams) minced pork 2 TBS oil 2 TBS minced onion 1 clove of garlic \- minced 3 TBS tomato sauce 1 TBS chopped parsley 1/4 teasp crushed oregano 1 TBS brandy or sherry 2 oz (50 grams) pitted or stuffed olives, chopped 1 egg, beaten salt & pepper Method: Fry the minced pork in the oil until browned. Add the minced onion and garlic. Then stir in the tomato sauce, parsley, oregano, brandy and chopped olives. Simmer until the liquid is reduced. Stir in the beaten egg and season with salt & pepper. Fill according to pastry recipe above. Tuna Paté \- 4 recipes Recipe 1: 2/3 cup (150 grams) butter 3 hard boiled eggs 11 oz (approx 300 grams) drained tuna in oil 2 small tins anchovies pepper Method: Soften butter and put in blender, adding all the other ingredients. Blend until smooth. Put in container in fridge or spread on pastry rounds to make deep fried turnovers. Recipe 2: 1 tin tuna drained 1 small tin red sweet pimento drained 3 small triangle portions of soft spread cheese (eg Laughing Cow) Method: Blend together and put in fridge or make into tuna paté turnovers. Recipe 3: 2 tins tuna in olive oil, drained 1 small tin anchovies, drained 1 hard cooked egg Method: Chop together and blend until smooth, using a bit of oil from the tins to moisten. Use as paté or in turnovers. Recipe 4: 2 eggs 1 tin of tuna in oil 1/2 red pepper, finely chopped 1/2 onion, minced Method: Boil the eggs 10 minutes until hard cooked. Finely chop together the tuna and hard cooked eggs, the red pepper and the onion. Fill the circles of pastry, fold over and close with tines of a fork. Deep fry until golden. SharonCb

Hi Bean....Yes I think this first version (Version 1) was not the one I used, but I did post the recipe to show how the meatballs are different from others. The one I use is the second version, which has more anchovies. I'm wondering why I didn't credit the source as I now don't remember where I got it. I have had the recipe given to me once by a German lady and perhaps it is her version but if I remember I'll come back and make note of it. These klopse are so good. Wolfram always asks me to make them and I will do so hopefully very soon. KONIGSBERG MEATBALLS (KÖNIGSBERGER KLOPSE) (Version 1) ============================================= Serves 6 1 cup (2 oz) fresh breadcrumbs 500 grams (1 lb) minced lean beef 250 grams (8 oz) pork, minced 2 spring onions (scallions) chopped 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon rind juice 1/2 lemon 1 TBS juice from jar of capers 2 anchovy fillets, chopped 1 teasp salt freshly ground black pepper 2 eggs, beaten 1 egg white, beaten 3-4 cups (24 fl oz - 1 liter) beef stock Caper Sauce: 2 TBS butter 1 spring onion (scallion) chopped 2 TBS flour 1/2 cup (4 fl oz) white wine 1 egg yolk 1 TBS capers juice 1/2 lemon salt freshly ground pepper 1) Soak the breadcrumbs in water, then squeeze out and add to the minced beef and pork. Mix well together. Add the spring onions, lemon rind, lemon and caper juice, anchovies, salt and pepper. Combine all ingredients, then add the beaten eggs and egg white. 2) When the mixture is smooth, form it into 5cm (2 in) meatballs. 3) Bring the stock to the boil and while it is boiling rapidly, add the meatballs, making sure not to add too many at one time. Cook them for approximately 15 minutes until they rise to the surface. Remove the meatballs with a slotted spoon and keep them warm. Strain the cooking juice and set it aside. Caper Sauce: 1) Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the spring onion and cook until it is soft. Stir in the flour and cook for a few minutes. Add 2 1/2 to 3 cups of the strained cooking juice. Add the wine and simmer for a few minutes until the mixture is smooth and thick. Reduce the heat and add the egg yolk. Make sure that the sauce does not boil as it will curdle. Add the capers, lemon juice and season to taste. If the sauce us too thick, add more stock. 3) To serve, add the meatballs to the sauce and keep them warm until they are ready to be served. Traditionally, they are served with potatoes and a green bean salad. Source: 'German Traditional Cooking' Omega Books Limited 1981 SharonCb ************************************ (Poached meatballs in lemon & caper sauce.) (Version 2) Here is a German dish which originated in Königsberg, former capital of eastern Prussia, now part of Russia and called Kaliningrad. Having a pleasant, mild flavour, these meatballs are also a low calorie dish as they are cooked in water. They're well known in most German households and are often a family favourite. Ingredients: 1/2 lb finely ground veal (225 grams) 1/2 lb finely ground lean pork (225 grams) 1 large onion - peeled and finely chopped 8 finely chopped + 2 finely chopped later for sauce (total 50 grams) 2 TBS capers finely chopped + 1 TBS whole capers later for the sauce 1 lg egg, beaten 3 slices firm crusts removed, soaked in water juice of 1/2 lemon - or juice of whole lemon if it is very small 2 bay leaves 2 whole cloves (aromatic spice cloves) 1/2 TBS oil for frying onion 2 TBS flour mixed with water salt & freshly ground pepper 1. Sauté onion gently until golden and put aside. 2. Mix the two ground meats with 8 of the chopped anchovies, 2 TBS chopped capers, beaten egg and the soaked bread which has been squeezed dry. Then mix in the cooled fried onion and some salt and pepper. 3. In a wide saucepan put 3 3/4 cups of water and add some salt, the lemon juice, bay leaves and cloves. Bring to the boil. 4. Meanwhile form large meatballs with hands and place on a plate - about 14 meatballs. If water boils, turn off until all meatballs are formed. 5. and bring it slowly back to the boil then lower heat and let simmer gently for 30 minutes. Turn meatballs once or twice during this time. 6. When cooked, remove meatballs with slotted spoon to a casserole and keep warm. Mix flour and cold water to a paste and add to the cooking water, stirring to thicken. Add the last two anchovies, chopped fine and 1 TBS whole capers. Bring to the boil and simmer 2 - 3 minutes. 7. Pour and serve with boiled potatoes and green beans. I actually had more sauce than what appears here in the photo. I kept the rest in the pot on the stove for keeping hot. Note: They turned out very well. My lemon was VERY juice and I used all the juice which was a bit too much. Go easy on the lemon juice if it is a large lemon. SharonCb