Saturday, 22 June 2013

Rambling through La Boqueria

Ham legs at La Boqueria

It's the start of the holiday season, with people jetting off to warmer climes in search of some sunshine after the total washout that has been this year's British Summertime (based on the evidence so far).

I've just returned from two weeks in the baking Egyptian heat myself, hence my recent radio silence here. After a hectic start to 2013 it was fantastic for my man and I to finally stop rushing around and just relax; the biggest decision we had to make was how many slices of cake we could manage to squeeze into our day...and into our stomaches!

Sadly I don't have any photos of our holiday diet to share, because no matter how delicious the all-inclusive buffet tasted, it didn't lend itself to food styling. So instead I've decided to bring you some vacation inspiration with a host of snapshots of my favourite moment from last year's trip to Spain, which I completely failed to post up at the time.

La Boqueria is Barcelona's answer to Borough Market: a cavernous food hall located just off the main shopping street Las Ramblas, filled with the freshest produce for home-cooking and an array of ready-made delights to enjoy immediately. In my view, no trip to this city would be complete without a tour of this sensational market...the vast selection of thirst-quenching fresh fruit smoothies is reason enough to visit!

Hanging hams at La BoqueriaSliced ham at La Boqueriaham bouquets at la Boqueria

Gigantic cured ham legs available to buy whole or transformed into mouth-watering meaty bouquets to snack on whilst wandering round the market

Whole fish at la Boqueria Small fish at la Boqueria calamari at la Boqueria

Shoals of fresh fish in every size and variety, perfect for grilling on the barbecue or baking in the oven in the traditional Mediterranean style

Crustaceans at la Boqueria crabs at la Boqueria scallop shells at la Boqueria

Armoured crustaceans and beautiful decorative scallop shells that I wish I had brought home with me

tropical fruit at la BoqueriaFresh figs at la Boqueriawatermelon at la Boqueriafresh fruit at la BoqueriaFruit juice at la Boqueriafresh veg at la Boqueriapadron peppers at la Boqueria

Incredibly vibrant fresh fruit and vegetables, plus the most refreshing and flavoursome smoothies I've ever tasted!

Dried peppers at la Boqueriaantipasti at la Boqueriaolives at la Boqueriapeppercorns at la Boqueriaspices at la Boqueriasundried tomatoes at la Boquerianuts at la Boqueria

Buckets of peppercorns and spices in every colour, alongside baskets of nuts and trays of antipasti

seafood tapas at la Boqueriaprawn skewers at la Boqueriapizza at la Boqueriabagettes at la BoqueriaEmpanadas at la Boqueriapita at la Boqueriataco at la BoqueriaSavoury crepes at la BoqueriaChocolate walnut crepe at la Boqueria

Classic Spanish tapas and every type of snack to satisfy us greedy tourists

round nougat at la Boquerianougat and marzipan  at la Boqueriaalmonds at la Boqueriafruit sweets at la Boqueriasweets at la Boqueria

Enormous blocks of nougat and marzipan, plus mountains of neon sweets to keep children (and bored boyfriends!) happy

bar boqueria at la Boqueriaentrance to la Boqueria silver pig at la Boqueria

The bar was packed with locals catching up over tapas and tequila, showing that La Boqueria is still at the heart of life in Barcelona

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