Viva La Comida Latina!

We've had two meals this week that were of Latin origin, the first at Viva Barcelona in Westlake and the second at home. Viva Barcelona (www.vivabarcelona.com) advertises its fare as being Spanish & Mediterranean. It's definitely a more upscale sort of place, very dark and staffed by tuxedoed waiters. The atmosphere was pleasant, but was marred by the basketball game on in the bar area adjacent to the dining room. I am on a mission to find a Cleveland area restaurant that will be an acceptable replacement for my beloved El Meson. Viva Barcelona is not that restaurant. The food was perfectly acceptable, but I will probably not return because it's just not what I am looking for and if I want to spend the kind of money one spends there, I'd just as soon head elsewhere. The kind of Latin cooking I am interested in comes better from my kitchen than theirs.

I had intended to go in for a few tapas, hoping to find things like tortilla espanola and choripan. I didn't see anything like that, so had decided that we could get the camarones al ajillo and the chorizo. J suggested, at that point, getting an appetizer and an entree. I would have been happier not to, but agreed. She ended up liking the food much more than I did, I am afraid. The camarones were fine, and certainly plentiful, but I like mine with a pure olive oil and garlic sauce, no tomato added. The bread and salad were both boring. I wanted to order the pork chops in garlic sauce, but the waited informed me that they were tough that night. I don't know if that was fair consumer warning or an attempt to get us to spend more money. If it was the latter, it worked. We ended up ordering the filet with Cabrales sauce. It was kind of a weird combination for me, the strong and very salty cheese sauce overwhelming the filet. J was very happy with it, however, so all was well. The dessert was the best part of the meal, a creamy flan with an impeccable sauce.

Tonight's meal made me happier, good home cooking. I made fideos with chorizo and zucchini, accompanied by corn, romaine salad and spiced peaches. I had no idea I was getting spiced peaches, but they were good. I meant to get plain old canned peaches. I can't find the wonderful raggedy O'Sage ones I usually get and love, so I had settled for Del Monte. The spiced ones were a nice change of pace.

Fideos with Chorizo and Zucchini

1 lb. chorizo, removed from casing
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cans chicken broth
16 oz. salsa
1 chipotle chile, finely-chopped (from small can of chipotles in adobo)
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. cumin
10 oz. bag fideos (or 10 oz. regular vermicelli)
1 zucchini, chopped
8 oz. queso blanco, grated
1/4 c. minced parsley

In stock pot, brown chorizo with garlic. Drain fat. Add next 5 ingredients. Bring to a boil. Cover & simmer 15 minutes. Add pasta & zucchini. Cook 5 minutes more. Add 1/3 c. queso blanco and parsley. Serve topped with remaining cheese.