Veggie Food Guide [Torrijas]

Happy Easter everyone! A day that is filled with family and chocolate, Easter symbolizes spring and new beginnings.

Animal Culture is still in Spain with author, Kalie Lyn, and here, they do Easter a little different. First off, they do not celebrate Easter Sunday, aside from attending mass. Called Semana Santa (Holy Week), Spain’s holidays started on Thursday and lasted until Good Friday with a two-day Catholic procession in the streets of Madrid and other cities. While there may be no egg hunt or Easter baskets filled with candy, one typical Semana Santa dessert makes up for the lack of chocolate.

Torrijas, a Spanish bread pudding, is a typical food eaten during Lent. This specific recipe, just like last week’s Garbanzo Soup, comes again from Angelines, Kalie Lyn’s Spanish mother-in-law. Made up of bread, sugar, and cinnamon, three ingredients combined that make a yummy treat, Torrijas is both refreshing and tasty.

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Fried and full of sugar, Torrijas hit the spot!

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Ingredients:

– 1 (day-old) White Bread Baguette

– 4 Cups of Milk

– 1 Stick of Cinnamon

– 1/2 Cup of White Sugar

– 5 Eggs

– Vegetable Oil for Frying (not olive oil!)

– Sugar and Ground Cinnamon to Sprinkle

– 1 full Lemon or Orange Peel (optional)

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Preparation & Cooking Steps:

– In a pot, combine the milk, cinnamon stick, sugar, and lemon/orange peel (this is for flavor). Bring to a boil, then set aside to cool down until warm.

– In a separate bowl, beat eggs.

– Slice the baguette, in sizes similar to this:

– Pour the milk that was boiling from the pot into a bowl, making sure the milk is warm, not hot. Throw out the lemon/orange peel.

– Dip each side of the sliced bread into the milk, letting each side sit and soak up the milk for 2 minutes, or until the bread is soft.

– Then, dip each milk-soaked bread side into the beaten eggs, and place them on a plate.

– In a frying pan, pour the vegetable oil until it covers the bottom of the pan. Heat up until it’s hot enough to fry. Put the milk and egg soaked bread into the pan, frying each side until they are golden brown. Transfer fried slices to a clean plate when finished.

–  Sprinkle each side of fried bread with sugar and ground cinnamon.

– Let sit, and put in fridge to cool and last (Torrijas are also better cold than warm).

– Savor and Enjoy!

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“Creature Spotlight” Answer:

It is now time for yesterday’s “Creature Spotlight” quiz answer!

Yesterday’s quiz asked:

“Harp seal mothers are able to identify their young by what distinct sense?”

50% of you said smell, while the other half said sight. The answer?

Just like human mothers can distinguish their child in a crowd by sound and sight, harp seal mothers can identify their young from hundreds of other harp seals by scent alone.

While harp seals’ sight and hearing are acute in the water, their sense of smell is good on land, making them able to find their babies among a slew of similar looking seal kids.

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*Sources: Animals.nationalgeographic.com*

Veggie Food Guide [Garbanzo Soup]

There is little that can compare to a good bowl of soup. Reminding us of home, soup awakens the senses and brings us to a comforting place.

Since Animal Culture is still in Spain, we thought it only right to start out “Veggie Food Guide” with a hot bowl of a typical Spanish vegetarian soup. Garbanzo soup, or Potaje in Spanish, is full of deliciousness and nutrients, especially the protein that us vegetarians need.

This specific recipe comes from Angelines, Kalie Lyn’s Spanish mother-in-law. Simple and definitely hitting the gastronomical spot, Potaje is a recipe worth trying.

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And, of course you can’t have a good bowl of soup without a good loaf of bread!

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Ingredients:

– 1/2 Cup (per person) of Garbanzo Beans

– 1/4 Cup (per person) of White Beans

– 1 Pound (or 2 Cups) of (well washed) Chopped Spinach

– 1 Medium Onion (chopped)

– 3 Garlic Cloves (minced)

– 1/2 Teaspoon of Sweet Chili Powder

– 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil

– Salt and Pepper to Taste

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Preparation & Cooking Steps:

– Soak the garbanzo beans and white beans in cold water overnight. Put enough water to cover the beans, and add 2 more cups.

– Drain the beans and rinse with fresh water. Combine beans in a large pot with enough water to cover the beans, and add 2 more cups of water. Add salt. Boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 1 hour. Add more water if needed.

– In a sauce pan, pour oil and let pan heat up on low. Combine onion, garlic, and sweet chili powder. Cook on low, stirring occasionally, until onions are clear and soft.

– In a separate pot, boil spinach in enough water to cover it until spinach is tender.

– Combine the spinach with the oil, onion, and garlic. Add a pinch of salt, and stir, mixing everything together.

– Combine all of the ingredients to the pot of beans. Bring to a boil for 10-15 minutes, then turn heat on low. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let sit for another 30 minutes to absorb the flavor.

– Serve and Buen Provecho!

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“Creature Spotlight” Answer

Now, at the end of every “Veggie Food Guide” recipe, the answer to yesterday’s “Creature Spotlight” quiz will be revealed.

Yesterday’s quiz asked:

“Vegetarians, adult elephants eat about how much food a day?”

66% of you said 300-400 lbs, while 33% of you said 500-600 lbs. The answer?

With a diet consisting of grass, leaves, bamboo, bark, roots, and sometimes sugarcane and bananas grown by farmers, adult elephants eat about 500-600 lbs of food per day.

That is the equivalent of eating 1,650 bananas!

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*Sources: Defenders.org, Corsinet.com*