Vanilla Salt (39 page)

Òscar leaves very late. Annette starts to clear the table. “Leave it. We’ll do it tomorrow. We’re too tired now,” Àlex says affectionately.

“The kitchen’s a disgusting mess, Àlex, and the black chanterelles are still sitting in the sink waiting for you to clean them.”

“You seem on edge. What’s up? Ah, I think I can guess. This story of Òscar’s about how he made the news credible – that’s it, isn’t it? You don’t like these messes, I know.”

“You’re right. I don’t like them. I feel like a sunflower. Just when I start enjoying the sun, and the stronger and happier I feel, things I can’t control come along and slap me down so I have to feel guilty for something I’ve never done.”

Àlex comforts her, half-joking. “Sunflowers are beautiful, resilient, and they observe nature’s cycles. It’s not a bad thing to be like a sunflower. I’ve always been called a cactus. So what would you prefer to be?”

“A cactus. That’s not a bad idea. Did you know it was one of the plants that most impressed the Spaniards in America?”

“Don’t start now! Come on, let’s get some sleep. Tomorrow you can fill my head with your cactus stories, but now I’m tired and I want to love you to bits.”

Once they’re in bed, Annette murmurs, “Well, the conquistadors were so keen to Hispanicize all the plants they found in the Americas that they called the cactus fruit
higo chumbo
. They added the adjective ‘prickly’ to this ‘fig’, because it wasn’t as delicate as the Mediterranean one, which it resembled.”

“You don’t miss a chance, do you, when it comes to doing American proselytizing? I like it when you tell me these things, as you know, but the bedroom isn’t the most suitable classroom. I want you to tell me about juicier things.”

“Juicy things are not for talking. They’re for doing. OK, let’s refrain from talking.”

“You’ve turned into a real little Catalan-speaking beast. So where did you pick up ‘refrain from’ then?”

“From Frank! You know, we foreigners will end up speaking better Catalan than the locals, because you don’t care enough about what you consider belongs to you.”

“She huffs and she puffs… so besides being an anthropologist, teacher, writer, businesswoman and cook, she’s turned into a Catalanophile as well. Bloody hell!” He grabs her wrists and tickles her with her own hair.

“Stop!” she cries, laughing uncontrollably.

“I won’t stop till you desist from lecturing me about food in bed and succumb to my bestial pre-Columbian Catalan desires.”

“By the way, did you know horses don’t come from America?”

“Enough! Enough! Enough!” Àlex fondly orders.

They make love, slowly and gently. They’ve found their little corner of the world, a place where they belong. They’re happy. They know that nothing will happen to them on this small island, within the walls of this house in the Maresme, surrounded by friends like Frank, Òscar, Graça, Albert, Gladys and Eric. They feel as if they’re living in a bubble, but their experiences along life’s winding paths have taught them that threats are always lurking outside the bubble, lying in ambush, ready to attack, like a huge envious needle poised to prick the bubble in order to drain out the happiness inside it.

Lying there side by side, they gaze at one another. Annette doesn’t want anything to spoil this miracle which has given her a home, a place in time and a family. Àlex has learnt to read her freckles, and knows that despite their happiness, she worries about the fact that they’re not in charge of their own destiny.

“Tomorrow we’re going to have the salt-cod salad I started making for dinner. It’s been left half-done in the fridge.”

“We’ve just made love, and the only thing that occurs to you is to talk about what we’re going to eat tomorrow. What a romantic conversation,” Annette complains.

“When I was breaking up the
bacallà
, I noticed a very aggressive stink. There must have been a bit that had gone off in the batch we bought. Bloody hell, what a stench!”

“Aha, the sweet nothings are getting sweeter! So we make love and, afterwards, not only do we decide what we’re going to eat tomorrow, but we also go into all the details of the rotten fish we bought. Who on earth would want to get involved with a chef?” she laughs.

“I removed the rotten
bacallà
and the rest is perfect, smelling like sea and salt, and absolutely delicious. If I hadn’t got rid of it, the whole lot would have gone off.”

“Yes, yes, you’re right. But I want some romantic words, some words of love, an ‘I love you’ and a few caresses. And all you can talk about is salt cod. What a disaster.”

“Annette, we need to keep our noses on the alert to pick up any pong of putrefaction that gets inside things and taints everything around it. You and I have to be very attentive, so we can keep our love and save it from anything that might harm it. If we make sure that nothing rotten comes into our house, and we prevent any possibility of spreading decay, we’ll be fine. The threats come from outside, not inside.”

“I love you, Àlex. I want us to travel together in search of the sun, defying the darkness. We won’t let any bit of rotten fish spoil our happiness. We’ll struggle against anything bad that comes along. Let’s be rebel sunflowers.”

Àlex is in paradise watching the freckles dancing all over the body of this woman he loves so much.

GLOSSARY

Abadal Picapoll
: A Designation of Origin (DO), fresh, slightly fruity white wine made with Picpoul (
Picapoll
) grapes from the Pla de Bages region of Catalonia. It is best drunk young.

Ànima Negra
: An aromatic, flavourful, oak-aged red wine made from Callet grapes from the village of Son Negre near Felanitx, Mallorca.

Aromes de Montserrat
: A herbal liqueur, containing thyme, juniper berries, lavender, cinnamon, cloves and coriander, inter alia, supposedly invented by the Benedictine monks of the Montserrat Monastery.

bacallà
: The Catalan name for the Atlantic cod. Salt cod has been popular in Catalonia since the latter half of the seventeenth century and there are literally hundreds of
bacallà
recipes in Catalan cuisine.

bacallà de bany d’or
: The name Àlex’s grandmother gave to her dish of salt cod and garlic, emulsified in golden olive oil.

bellota
(Spanish): In the context of ham, this word meaning acorn refers to Spain’s highly prized ham made from free-range, acorn-fed, thoroughbred Iberian pigs.

Bonet
: This well-known brand of herbal liqueur is made in the Bonet family distillery in Sant Feliu de Guíxols on the Costa Brava.

botifarra
(1): This famous Catalan sausage made from raw pork and spices is based on ancient recipes going back to Roman times. It comes in several shapes, forms and colours.

botifarra
(2): An obscene gesture, the Catalan equivalent of the
bras d’honneur
, a silent but eloquent “Up yours”.

botifarra amb mongetes
: Sometimes known as
botifarra amb seques
, this dish of grilled
botifarra
served with white beans cooked with garlic and parsley is often regarded as typically Catalan, although it only dates from the nineteenth century.

calçotada
: A popular gastronomic event held in Catalonia in late winter or early spring, in which green onions (
calçots
) are grilled and served with
romesco
sauce.

capipota
: Stewed calf’s head and foot, said to have originated in the Barcelona municipal slaughterhouse where it was cooked by the workers in the early hours of the morning.

cava
: A sparkling wine, mainly produced in the Penedès region of Catalonia from the Macabeu, Parellada and Xarel·lo local grape varieties. Of Designation of Origin (DO) status, it is produced in the Champenoise traditional method but, under European Union law, cannot be called “champagne” as Champagne has Protected Geographical Status (PGS).

chorizo
(Spanish): A spicy pork sausage made with paprika, known as
xoriço
in Catalan.

churro
(Spanish): A fried-dough pastry which is popular as a breakfast snack, dipped in hot chocolate or coffee.

Conca de Barberà
: A region in the Province of Tarragona, well known for its fine wines and with its own Designation of Origen (DO).

Embruix
: A full-bodied oak-aged red wine made from Carignan, Grenache, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes in the Vall Lach winery, established in the 1990s by the singer Lluís Llach in the Priorat region of Catalonia.

Equilibrista
: An oak-aged red wine with hints of ripe red fruits and chocolate, made from Carignan, Shiraz and Grenache grapes in the Ca N’Estruc winery near the mountain of Montserrat.

escabetx
: A traditional form – going back to the fourteenth century – of conserving food (usually fish or fowl in Catalonia) in a vinegar-and garlic-based sauce, usually flavoured with bay leaf, thyme, rosemary and paprika. It seems that the name is derived from the Perso-Arabic word
sikb
j
(vinegar stew).

escalivada
: The name of this appetizer dish is taken from the Catalan verb
escalivar
(cook in hot ashes,
caliu
). The two main ingredients are aubergine and red peppers, which are served in strips with a touch of garlic and olive oil.

escudella i carn d’olla
: The word
escudella
means bowl and
carn d’olla
is meat cooked in a saucepan. Deemed by the author and gourmet Manuel Vázquez Montalbán (and many others) to be the
Summa Theologica
of Catalan cuisine, this rich, complex broth is made from root vegetables, cabbage, chickpeas, meatballs, chicken, sausage, etc., simmered for hours and usually served with large shell pasta. In many families it is considered the
sine qua non
of Christmas lunch.

Figueres onion
: Excellent in salads, this mild, sweetish onion, slightly flattened in shape and with purple skin, is typical of the Figueres and Alt Empordà region of Catalonia.

Foraster Trepat
: A young oak-aged red wine produced in the Montblanc area of the Conca de Barberà region by the Mas Foraster winery. Trepat is a grape variety that is unique to Conca de Barberà.

Godello
: A variety of white wine grape grown mainly in Galicia, in north-western Spain. Fine white wines are produced from this grape, notable amongst which are those from Valdeorras.

gratapaller
: Literally meaning “haystack scratcher”, this is a particularly prized free-range chicken.

higo chumbo
(Spanish): The fruit of the cactus
Opuntia ficus-indica
. Some common English names for the fruit are Indian fig opuntia, Barbary fig, cactus pear and prickly pear.

Joselito
:
Jamón Joselito
is considered by many famous chefs to be the best ham in the world. The acorn-fed pigs are raised in Extremadura and the ham is cured in the Guijuelo factory, in the Province of Salamanca.

Kripta
: A fine brand of
cava
made in the Penedès region of Catalonia by the Agustí Torelló Mata winery.

Lepanto
: A brandy made by the company González Byass in Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia and notable for its golden colour and the toasted almond, vanilla and caramel notes in its flavour.

‘L’estaca’
: A song by the Catalan composer and singer Lluís Llach. The word
estaca
means “stake” which, in this case, is extrapolated to mean “without liberty”. Composed during the Franco dictatorship, it is a call for unity of action to achieve freedom.

llonganissa
: A very popular long pork sausage, typically made in the Osona region of Catalonia.

Mas Comtal Petrea
: A prize-winning oak-aged red wine (Merlot) from Avinyonet del Penedès (Designation of Origin Penedès) in Catalonia.

migas
: (Spanish: crumbs) a typical dish of Spanish cuisine using leftover bread, soaked and cooked in olive oil with paprika and, depending on the region, spinach, pork ribs, chorizo, bacon and sometimes grapes.

mongetes
: A generic word for beans, qualified by an adjective, for example
mongetes tendres
(green beans). In this case (
botifarra amb mongetes
), the reference is to white beans, often served with
botifarra
and
bacallà
.

Nacarii
: A brand of caviar from sturgeon raised in the Vall d’Aran, 700 feet above sea level in the Pyrenees.

nyora
: A small, round variety of sweet pepper, usually used in its dried form.

patxaran
: This liqueur made from sloe berries and coffee beans and flavoured by a vanilla pod, is popular in Navarre, the Basque Country and the Pyrenees. It is usually served chilled or on ice.

pebrots
: The Catalan word for peppers (and also testicles).

Los Peperetes
: A Galicia-based (in Vilagarcia de Arousa) brand of high-quality tinned foods.