Mountains & Munchies in Mallorca - part 2

After spending the day in Pollenca old town, we headed back to the pool to cool off. 

We then got a bit spruced up and took ourselves back to Pollenca to a lovely little restaurant called Manzanas y Peras.

We booked, and if you go in the Summer months then I would definitely recommend doing the same. They don't have very many tables outdoors as they are set up on the first 20 or so steps of the 365 that lead up to an old chapel on top of a hill, and they were fully booked when we went.

Mallorca is fairly veggie friendly, although in a lot of restaurants you will find the same options.

But not at Manzanas y Peras - they had some of the most interesting and delicious vegetarian tapas that I have ever had.

We wined and dined while the sun went down and the atmosphere in the square became more romantic. Every table was lit with candles and the trees sparkled with fairy lights.

As romantic as this was, it didn't make the best lighting for food photos. But we had the tapas feast menu, and it really was. Look at this little lot...

The standout dishes for me were beetroot and chickpea puree with pitta bread, and artichokes & sultanas in Pedro Ximenez sherry. All inspired combinations, and things I have never had together before!

The whole town has such a relaxed feel at night, with people sitting around drinking wine while their children spin and play in the squares.

If you make one trip while in Mallorca, then head to Pollenca. And if you get hungry while you're there, then head to Manzanas y Peras for a tapas FEAST. But make sure you book!

Mountains & Munchies in Mallorca - part 1

Have you ever been to Mallorca? If not then I'm here to sell it to you in this series of posts. If you have - well, let's reminisce together. What's your favourite place in Mallorca?

Unfortunately I don't get commission for this, but I would happily go back and write a follow up post...so, ya know, holiday offers welcome...

Mallorca sometimes get a bad rep as a stereotypical Brits abroad, high rise resorts, lets-all-eat-McDonalds-kebabs-and-spag-bol kinda place. But outside of the big high rise resorts it is really a beautiful place with pretty seaside villages and dramatic mountains and scenery. Oh and tapas. And paella. And delicious wine...

We stayed in Port de Pollence, where we spent some time relaxing by the pool and on the beautiful beaches, mainly reading and snorkelling with the fish. And getting involved in our own friendly (competitive) bat & ball competition (I won). 

But there is a lot to see and do, and so we dragged our backsides away from our sunbeds and into our hire car. 

First stop Pollenca old town - complete with lots of cute alleys, atmospheric squares surrounded by outdoor cafes and pretty shops for window shopping.

Plus an AMAZING market every Sunday. It stretches through pretty much the whole town, and has fruit and veg..

...as well as jewellery, art, clothes, and so much more that we didn't have time to explore. Markets like this are one of my favourite holiday activites.

After walking what felt like miles around the market, we decided it was time for a change of scenery, and headed up the 365 steps to a sweet little chapel (with a couple of stops for appreciating the vistas and catching our breath).

Made it!

We had just enough breath left in our lungs to stop and enjoy the view and snap a quick selfie...

...before we headed back down and booked a beautiful little restaurant for dinner with a separate veggie (believe it or not) tapas menu. More on that later!

Three ways with courgette

My dad has an allotment, which is such hard work but also really rewarding. Most of the preparation happens during Autumn and Winter, but I'm a fair weather friend on the allotment. I like the hot summer days when the plants are dripping with firm pea pods or ripening tomatoes, and there is enough produce to put one in the box and one in your mouth while picking.

Some years the allotment isn't as successful as others, or some crops are far more successful than others. A classic problem of allotmenting is a glut - when you end up with so much of one thing that you can't possible use it all yourself. Great news if you are the scrounging daughter of an allotmenter and trying to live on a budget...

This bad boy was donated to me, because this year the courgette plants went mad and, really, how many of these beasts do you really need?! I managed to make three courgette-based dishes out of this one, and I was surprised how well they went down at dinner time.

Recipe 1 - Courgette fritters

1/3 massive courgette or 2 normal size courgettes - grated
2 tbsp flour (any, although self-raising is preferred)
25g parmigiana - grated
25g cheddar - grated
Handful peas (optional)
Few mint leaves - roughly torn
Olive oil
S & P



Courgettes contain a lot of water, and you need to get rid of some of this before you cook them otherwise you will end up with really soggy fritters that won't really work. I put my grated courgette in a colander or sieve, put it over a bowl, and pop a plate on top of the courgette with something to weigh it down (like a cookbook or even just a bowl). Leave these for at least 25-30 mins.

Mix the courgette, flour, cheese, peas and mint together in a bowl. Add a bit more flour if it isn't holding together. Season well.

Heat a glug of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan.

Take a tablespoon full of the mixture, roll into a ball, and then flatten to about a cm thick. (You might want to put a bit of flour on your hands for this bit.as the mixture will be stick)  Gently place your fritter into the hot oil, and fry until golden (approx 4 mins each side - try not to move them around too much, tempting as it is). Flip, and do the same again on the other side.

Serve with potatoes of your choice, and top with a poached egg. Easy, healthy, and delish!

Recipe 2 - Courgette and potato soup

This soup couldn't be easier. Winter is coming (cheeky Game of Thrones ref), and this will be a cheap and warming lunch for when it does.

2 large potatoes - peeled & chopped into chunks

500ml hot vegetable stock

1 onion - thinly sliced

1/3 large courgette, or 2 medium ones - grated

300ml milk

Dash of cream (optional)

White pepper, salt

Olive oil

Pop the potatoes and stock into a pan and bring to the boil. Simmer until the potatoes are tender. Then whizz this mixture up with a hand blender and season this mix well.

In the mean time gently saute the onions in some olive oil in a large pan until softened. Add the courgettes and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the potato mix, milk, cream (if using) and seasoning. Bring to a simmer, and cook until heated through and the courgettes are soft. 

Serve with a crack of black pepper and some crusty bread.

Recipe 3 - Courgette & bulghur wheat salad with halloumi

What did the cheese say when it looked in the mirror? Halloumi!

This dinner went down particularly well in the Store Cupboard Veggie household - mainly because we have a bit of an obsession with the salty and delicious halloumi, but also the zesty and fresh salad is really tasty.

200g bulghur wheat - cooked to packet instructions and cooled

1/3 massive courgette, or 1-2 medium ones - grated

Peas - raw if fresh, or cooked and cooled if frozen

Half a lemon

Olive oil

Lemon zest

1 garlic clove - crushed.

Fresh mint

1 pack halloumi

S&P

Again with this recipe it is a good idea to drain some of the water out of the courgettes first.

Pop the halloumi on to grill - either on a barbecue or griddle pan. 

Once cooled, combine the bulghur wheat, grated courgette and peas. Squeeze in half a lemon and add some of the zest to taste. Add a couple of good glugs of decent olive oil (extra virgin if you have it), garlic, and plenty of salt and pepper. Give it a good mix.

Serve garnished with torn mint, and topped with the perfectly grilled halloumi. Yummy!