Today is a very special day. We celebrate Galician Literature so I made a special playlist.

I love Galicia and I love literature, so today is a day I’ve always enjoyed. I remember when I was a little girl, this day meant a very well deserved holiday very near to the end of the school year. The weather would be warm (even if it rained, because here we have a lot of rain, always) and we could ejoy a pre-summer free day amongst all the crazyness of finals. This sounds too good to be true. It isn’t really true for me though. I’ve always been a bookworm and I was probably studying, who am I kidding…

Nonetheless, celebrating Galicia made so much sense for me. That’s why since forever, I’ve cooked a Galician dish on the 17th of may, as well as on July the 25th (Galicia Day). I am not one of those people that holds a flag and rejects any other culture except theirs. No way. But I’ve always felt proud of the place I was born, and I am so grateful for my roots and my culture. Yes, even our weather. I wouldn’t change Galician weather for any other. 

Galicia is green. Some Galician accents sounds sweet, others sound harsh. We have beautiful words such as bolboreta (mariposa), lucecú and vagalume (lightworm), escarallar (break), toxo (gorse; I had to search this one), riquiño (lovely/cute, there’s no translatable way of saying it. Someone who is nice and charming, maybe?), morriña (nostalgia, but with so much feeling).

Galicia has cold humid houses made of stone a hundred years ago, with a lareira (fireplace) that is actually a small room designated to cook and make fires to warm up the house (I live in one of those). Galicia is the smell of the sea and the yellow of the xestas (broom bush). The land of the meigas (witches), and muñeiras (Galician dance).

But apart from being so magical and special, besides all the folklore that makes Galicia unique…it is the land of eating. We are probably (together with Asturias) most known for not letting anyone leave our houses with even the tiniest space in their stomachs. Our grandmas will make sure you eat everythig they can offer and please, don’t forget to eat some Galician sourdough bread with that. By the way, I am in love of French baguettes and Italian ciabattas, I enjoy a good Irish soda bread and can’t resist a homemade Naan or a warm Chapatti. I know bread, I cook bread, I devour bread (even if I try not to eat that much gluten lately). Nothing compares to Galician bread. Nothing. I swear. It’s the most amazing thing in the world. I could survive on Galician bread happily. I wish I don’t have to because I really love vegetables, but please…if you ever visit Galicia…try the freaking bread. 

Galicia is everything for me, and I love learning from other cultures and integrating different thing in my life, but Galicia is always what makes it all better. Pa amb tomàquet, with Galician bread = better. Summer with Galician weather = better. Green peppers are nice, but what about Padrón peppers? = better 😂 

Jokes aside, I am just proud of living in such a wonderful place, but that doesn’t mean it’s better than any other place in the world. Home is where the heart is, that is clear. Today, my heart is in Galicia, but my heart is very big and love is endless. I think that everywhere is perfect and you just have to appreciate what you have right now and where you are right now. 

I hope you are all well and enjoying your day. Today, in Galicia, feels like Summer. As always, have fun and keep fooding. 

Here you have some Galician recipes before you leave 🤗:

Galician Fergese (a vegetarian Albanian dish with a Galician twist)

Filloas (Galician Pancakes)

Vegan Pancakes (the vegan version of our filloas)

Sardine Stew

 

Thank you! 🥰