SpiceLines

Here’s how to stage your own Andalusian feast--even if, like me, your grove consists of a single olive tree in a terracotta pot on the back deck.

1. Scrub all traces of winter off the old wooden table. Stack with assorted plates, glasses, paper napkins and eating utensils. No matchy-matchy please.
2. Put a potted olive tree—google on-line nurseries—in the middle of the table.
3. Figure out the seating. Cushions on the steps? Motley chairs around the table? That old couch you’ve been meaning to de-accession? Anything goes as long as it’s comfy.
4. Oh, yes, call up some friends. Six should do it, though more are merrier.
5. Put some cerveza on ice. If you can’t find Alhambra Reserva Especial, try a Mexican import like Corona or Pacifico. Open a few bottles of Rioja or Ribera del Duoro, not too expensive, and let them breathe.
6. Make the pipirrana. Yes, it really means “frog pee.” But this ubiquitous Andalucian salad—sort of a soupy, chopped gazpacho--is very, very tasty. It will be even better if you make it with sun-ripened tomatoes, and dress it with your finest Spanish extra virgin olive oil and sherry vinegar. (See recipe below.)
7. Set out bowls of plump manzanillo olives stuffed with anchovies—Ybarra's bottled olives are pretty good—and a plate of toasted Marcona almonds. (DIY version: Pour boiling water over two cups of whole almonds and soak for 10 minutes. Slip off the skins, spread out on a baking sheet and toast in a 350 oven for 10 minutes, turning once or twice, until golden. Sprinkle with olive oil and sea salt if desired.)
8. Turn up the music. I'm partial to the beguiling Dos Guitarras' Sol Caliente—we found the musicians on narrow street in Granada—but flamenco or any other latin rhythms will create the right mood.
9. Grill the lamb chops. Figure on three little loin chops per person, two to three ounces each. For a crowd, add pork chops and links of chorizo. No olive wood, no problem. Build a big fire of hardwood charcoal mixed with chunks of oak, hickory, or mesquite wood, in your grill and cover while cooking. This will give the meat a deliciously smoky taste. (See recipe below.)
10. Put a bottle of that excellent Spanish olive oil on the table, along with a baguette or loaf of rustic bread, and serve at once.

Pipirrana

This is the recipe for a very simple pipirrana, to which I’ve added manzanillo olives—the buttery flavor plays nicely with the tangy vinaigrette and crisp vegetables. Another time you might embellish it with oil-packed tuna and sliced hardboiled eggs--or as Jose Andres does, with seared rare tuna. But you can find lots of variations, especially on the web. Try LaTienda’s recipe for Pipirrana of Avocado with Flakes of Cod en Confit, or Allrecipes down home version with potatoes. Or add chunks of country style bread and a spoonful of mayonnaise as a friend of Teresa Barrenechea’s does (See her recipe for Pipirrana de Jaen in Cuisines of Spain.)

Pay special attention to the olive oil and vinegar: In the spirit of the original feast I used Melgarejo Seleccion, a complex, moderately fruity extra virgin oil pressed from picual olives grown in the Sierra Magina region and intense Garvey Reserva Sherry Vinegar, both made in Spain and available at Corti Brothers, but really you could use any high quality extra virgin olive oil and flavorful red wine vinegar, or even a white balsamic.

To serve 6

Ingredients:

2 large, sun-ripened tomatoes, peeled and chopped, ½ inch dice
1 large green pepper, chopped, ½ inch dice
1 small sweet yellow onion, either Texas 10-15 or Vidalia, ¼ inch dice
1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped, ½ inch dice
½ cup manzanillo olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
4 tablespoons fruity, extra virgin Spanish olive oil
1-1/2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
Sea salt to taste

Method:

1. Combine all the vegetables in a large glass or stainless metal bowl. Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar and sea salt, and stir into the salad.
2. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours. Taste before serving and correct seasonings. The salad should be a little soupy—the salt will draw out moisture from the vegetables, especially the tomatoes, but the other vegetables will remain slightly crisp.

Grilled Lamb Loin Chops with Olive Oil and Lemon

For six, plan on three succulent lamb chops per person. But for a crowd, serve each guest just one or two chops--add thinly sliced grilled pork loin and links of chorizo as second and third courses.

To serve 6

Ingredients:

18 lamb loin chops, 2 to 3 ounces each, about 1 inch thick (3 per person)
Extra virgin olive oil
1 lemon, cut in half , seeds removed
Coarse sea salt
Rosemary sprigs (optional)

Method:

1. About an hour before cooking, bring the lamb chops to room temperature. Lightly brush with half a lemon dipped in a glass or small bowl of olive oil.
2. In the grill, build a strong fire of hardwood charcoal mixed with a few chunks of oak, hickory or mesquite wood. Rub the top grate with canola oil and set aside.
3. When the coals are red hot and covered with white ash, put the grate in place and let it get very hot. Unless you have nerves of steel, set the grate 2 to 3 inches above the coals. Fearless cooks can lower the grill, or build up the coals, so that it sits right over the fire.
4. Dip half a lemon in a glass of olive oil and again lightly brush the surface of the lamb chops on both sides. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Put half the chops over the coals, cover and cook for 2 to 3 minutes per side for medium rare. They should be brown and crusty on the outside, pink and juicy on the inside. Repeat with the remaining lamb chops.
5. Remove to platter, garnish with rosemary sprigs if desired, and serve immediately.