Have a Healthy Iftar with El Corte Ingles’ Quick and Easy Spanish Recipes

With Ramadan looming, longer days and soaring temperatures, these recipes from El Corte Ingles’ gastronomic zone are easy to fix for a light, nutritious and filling Iftar meal that will help you maintain a balanced diet.

El Corte Ingles, Spain’s leading department store, has a whole dedicated gastronomic zone located right in the heart of Madrid in its Castellana flagship store spanning some 1000 square meters, where you can experience exquisite Spanish recipes and have the chance to sample haute cuisine from cutting edge chefs. You can also stroll the various stalls stacked with Iberian products that can be tasted and purchased for you to capture the soul of Madrid in your own kitchen whilst whipping up those Mediterranean dishes.

The Castellana gastronomic zone is the third of its kind opened by the group, following those in Alicante and the Goya centre in Madrid.

Sea bass fillet marinated in soy sauce with a bread and almond crust and avocado salad

Difficulty: easy recipe

Serves: 4

Ingredients

For the crust:
100 g of unsalted toasted almonds

200 g of bread from the day before

1 teaspoon of finely chopped chives and olive oil.
For the marinated fillets:
4 sea bass fillets weighing 100g, cleaned and de-boned

200 ml of soy sauce

1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger

1 drop of wasabi paste and olive oil.
For the avocado salad:
1 ripe avocado

100 g quinoa,

1 red onion,

2 fresh mint leaves

1 squeezed lime

300 g vine tomatoes

Olive oil and salt

Preparation

For the sea bass fillets, mix the soy sauce with the grated ginger and wasabi paste using a balloon whisk. Place the sea bass fillets in a deep dish and pour over the mixture. Leave to marinate for 20 minutes.

For the crust, chop the bread into cubes, put the pan on the hob to heat with a dash of olive oil, and toast the bread until crunchy (as if they were crumbs), then grind the bread with the almonds to create a powder, mix in the chives and add another dash of olive oil. Set aside.

For the avocado salad, put the quinoa in a pan to heat with water and salt and cook for 20 to 25 minutes. Drain and cool in cold water. Finely dice the onion, peel the avocado and chop into small cubes. Peel the tomatoes, de-seed them and cut them into small cubes. Finely slice the mint leaves.  Mix the ingredients and dress with lime juice, olive oil and salt.

Remove the sea bass fillets from the marinade and dry them with a paper towel. Put the frying pan on the hob with a dash of olive oil, sear the skin side for one minute, remove and place on an oven tray with the skin facing upwards.

Spread the almond and bread mixture over them and place in an oven preheated to 250º C for 3 to 4 minutes. Arrange a rectangular serving of cold avocado salad on a plate and place the hot sea bass fillet on top.

Chef's advice: To prevent the sea bass from curling, press on the fillet with a skimmer for a few seconds once the fillet is placed skin-down on the frying pan, to break the fibres. 

Creamy white chocolate ganache with almond biscuit and marinated cherries

Difficulty: medium

Serves: 6

Ingredients

Ganache:

400 g white chocolate

250 g liquid cooking cream

2 gelatin sheets

Almond biscuit:

150 g Marie biscuits (similar to rich tea)

100 g butter

50 g ground almonds

Marinated cherries:

½ kg cherries

1 glass of cheery juice

50 g sugar

Preparation

For the biscuit, crush the biscuit to create a powder, mix with the almond and melted butter until you have a consistent mass and place a small layer on the base of the individual silicone moulds.

For the white chocolate ganache, cover the gelatin sheets with cold water. Pour half of the cream into a saucepan on a low heat with the chocolate pieces. When the chocolate has melted, add the gelatin to dissolve. Let it cool and fill the moulds to the top, leaving it in the fridge for approximately 4 hours.

Place the cherries in a container, add the sugar and liqueur and leave to marinate for one hour. Drain and set aside. Once the ganache has set, remove it from the mould and place the cherries on top.

For more fun and interesting recipes, visit El Corte Ingles’ gourmet blog at http://blog.elcorteingles.eu/category/gourmet/