Andorran Cuisine

Andorran Cuisine

I apologize for the delay in posting. This post was meant to appear weeks ago! Apparently, I had been gone for so long that Google thought my attempt to sign in was obviously a mistake. So I was locked out for some time. But I'm here now! And we're going to talk about Andorran Cuisine.

Andorra is a tiny country nestled between France and Spain. There are hints of both of these country's flavors and traditions in Andorra, yet it still manages to stand strongly on it's own. Andorran dishes are packed with flavor, rich and filling.

First, we'll talk about meat. The meat that is used here is from local producers and marked with a special seal specifying "Meat of Controlled Quality from Andorra." This includes ox, beef, veal, lamb, goat and horse meat.
(Source: http://all-andorra.com)

Andorra is known for its wine. The high altitude gives Andorran wine a unique and specific taste. Casa Auvinyà is a winery in Sant Julià de Lòria, in the south of the Principality of Andorra. It is in the village of Auvinyà at an altitude of 1.200 m. Its vines are grown on the steep slopes looking east. This vineyard is known for it's Black Wine, made from Pinot Noir sorts and Syrah varieties (a wine sort, used for preparation of red and rose wines)

(Additional Source: www.casaauvinya.com)

In autumn, there are numerous food festivals. One is the Festival of the Noble Mushroom (Fira de bolet). And on the eve of Halloween, special confectionery goods panellets are being cooked. The dough is made from sweet potato and served with dried fruits and nuts. This is served with white sweet muscato.

(Source: http://all-andorra.com)

There were so many dishes to choose from. I decided to make Escudella, a traditional Andorran dish. It is served at many winter festivals, during hunting seasons and on national holidays. There are many variations. The recipe I made can be found at:

 http://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/andorran-escudella-466175

ESCUDELLA (serves 8)- GENEROUSLY!

Ingredients: 2 cups dry white beans (I used a 16 oz package of the small white ones)
1 ham bone
1 marrow, bone
3 chicken thighs (the recipe called for 1/4 of a chicken, but boneless-skinless is so much easier)
14 ounces raw pork sausage, rolled into balls
1 thick ham steak, cut into chunks
1⁄2 head green cabbage
1 large white potato, cut into large chunks
1⁄4 cup uncooked rice
1 cup pasta shells
1 cup canned garbanzo beans
salt and pepper

Directions:
Roll the raw sausage into one- or two-bite sized balls.
Rinse the dry beans in cold water.
Meanwhile, cook the sausage balls over medium heat.
Dice the ham.
Put the beans, sausage, ham, chicken and bones into the pot with 8 cups of water.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer, covered for two hours. The chicken should be very tender, almost falling apart.
Remove the bones and bring the remaining stock and meat back up to a boil (if there isn't a lot of liquid you can add more water).
Add the cabbage, potato, rice, pasta shells, garbanzo beans and salt and pepper.
Cook for another 30 minutes, or until the potatoes and rice are tender.

 And that is the final product. It was a very filling dish. It took several hours to make. I could not believe how many different forms of starches and different varieties of meat there were in this one dish. It was certainly tasty. My husband gave it a thumbs up. I confess this will not be added to our regular menu as I simply don't have time to make it on a regular basis! It certainly demanded some attention. I can see why this would be served on holidays and for special occasions.

See you soon when we visit Angola!

ANDORRA

FLAG:  The national flag of the Principality of Andorra was adopted in 1866. The flag is a vertical tricolor of blue, yellow, and red with the coat of arms of Andorra in the center. Although the three vertical bars may at first appear to be of equal width, the center yellow bar is slightly wider than the other two so that the ratio of bar widths is 8:9:8. The overall flag ratio is 7:10.

The design is related to the flags of France, Catalonia and Foix, the lands historically linked with the small country. A flag of three bars is similar to that of the French Tricolor, while the pattern of a wider middle stripe can be noted on the Catalan flag (as the old royal symbol of the Crown of Aragon) and on the arms of the old County of Foix (currently part of France). The blue and red of the Andorran flag are also found on the French flag, with red and yellow also being the principal colors of the colors of the other two flags. From 1806 to 1866, Andorra's flag was a vertical bi-color of yellow and red. The motto in the coat of arms in the middle stripe Virtus Unita Fortior means "Virtue United is Stronger".

(Source:  Wikipedia)

ANDORRA

(That tiny little country by the arrow - Distinctive co-principality between France and Spain)

CAPITAL:  Andorra la Vella

POPULATION:  71,000

LANGUAGE:  Catalan, French, Spanish and Portuguese

LIFE EXPECTANCY:  84 years

LAND:  468 sq km

MAJOR RELIGION:  Christianity

CURRENCY:  Euro

Andorra is a small land-locked country bordered by France and Spain.  Little known facts about this tiny country.  First, yes....it is a country.  Not a fictional place conceived by George Lucas :D  

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It is about 1,000 years old, it has a seat in the United Nations, an Olympic team and diplomatic relations with other countries.  It is the 16th smallest country in the world, by land, and 11th in population.

Tobacco is one of the main crops in this little country...

(From 8 Facts About Andorra - link below):  One fact that surprised me here is how much tobacco is produced in Andorra. It takes up a lot of what little farming space exists here. There used to be a cigarette factory in Andorra and because of its status as a tax haven, you can purchase cigarettes here much cheaper than you can in Spain or France. Cigarette smuggling has been a long problem (tradition) in Andorra where people would head up to the mountain tops to take smokes into Spain or France. Andorra is also one of the few places in Europe where you can still smoke indoors in public places.

Andorra is the world's only Co-Principality:  A principality is a place ruled by a prince. Monaco is an example of a principality. Andorra, however, is a co-principality. They have two princes who jointly share the position of prince. Neither of the two is from Andorra, however. One is the President of France, who is currently Nicolas Sarkozy. The other co-prince is the Bishop of Urgell who is currently Joan Enric Vives Sicília. The position is a constitutional one similar to the British Monarchy and holds no real power. Except for limited things, the two princes must exercise their authority together, not separately. They are the only country where one of their heads of state (the President of France) is democratically elected by another country. The other prince (the bishop) is appointed by the head of state of another country (the Pope).

Andorra is the only country in the world with CATALAN as its official language:  Catalan is spoken in Spain, bits of France and an even smaller hunk of Sardinia. However, the only country where it is the official language is in Andorra. I’m sure there are many people in Catalonia, however, who would like there to be at least one more country :)

Andorra has never been in a war in over a thousand years!  (We could learn something from these folks)....Given its non-strategic location in the Pyrenees Mountains and lack of natural resources, Andorra has been without conflict almost since Charlemagne came through to fight the Moors. Technically, Andorra did declare war on Germany in WWI but never sent anyone into the conflict. Given Andorra’s lack of participation in WWI, they were forgotten about in the Treaty of Versailles and didn’t officially declare peace with Germany until 1957!

(Source: https://everything-everywhere.com/8-facts-about-andorra/)

Well, I am totally impressed at how many "only"s this little country has!

Because of its rugged terrain, earthquakes and landslides are a common occurrence.  

What a fascinating little "micro" country!  Hope you enjoyed (and learned) reading about ANDORRA (again, not the Star Wars place OR Darren Steven's mother-in-law)  :D

Next stop:  ANGOLA!