Bookish Recipe: Spanish Omelette


Welcome to Bookish Recipes, a feature on the blog where I cook or bake a recipe from a book I have loved and share the result with you. This week's recipe is inspired by The Altogether Unexpected Disappearance of Atticus Crafstman by Mamen Sánchez. This crazy story takes place in Spain, mainly in Madrid and Andalusia so all the food mentioned in the story was very familiar to me.

The Spanish Omelette has always been one of my favourite dishes since I was kid. So when one of the girls on the book takes the very English Atticus to a tapas bar in Madrid and they have tortilla de patatas, I thought I'd share with you how to make this simple yet delicious dish!



1) Scrape the potatoes. Cut them into slices (I usually cut them quite thin). Chop the onion.
2) To fry, I usually use sunflower oil because olive oil is a bit strong for me but if you prefer it, then go for it. Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the potatoes and onion and stew gently, partially covered, until the potatoes are softened. Strain the potatoes and onions through a colander into a large bowl (set the strained oil aside).
3) Meanwhile beat the eggs in a bowl. Take the potato and onion from the pan and mix it with the eggs. Add plenty of salt and pepper. Put a bit of oil in a smaller pan and tip everything into it and cook on a moderate heat, using a spatula to shape the omelette into a cushion.
4) When almost set, invert on a plate and slide back into the pan and cook a few more minutes. 


The tortilla is delicious both hot and cold so you can also leave it in the fridge for the following day. 
We always eat it with tomato bread (you cut a tomato in half and rub it against the surface of the bread until it is coated but not soggy, then add a pinch of salt and olive oil). Enjoy:


About the book: 
Title: The Altogether Unexpected Disappearance of Atticus Craftsman
Author: Mamen Sánchez
Published: March 26th 2015 by Doubleday
Amazon | Amazon UK

Blurb: Atticus Craftsman never travels without a supply of Earl Grey and his five favourite books – so he makes sure he has packed both after his father, distinguished publisher of Craftsman & Co., sends him to Madrid to shut down a failing literary magazine, Librarte.

When nobody has heard from him in three months, his father knows something must be very wrong.

Do not fear, Inspector Manchego is on the case. No, not the cheese. Manchego, as in the most valiant Don Quijote de la Mancha. Lacking a horse but with hapless derring-do, Manchego gets to work unravelling the mystery of the quintessential Englishman’s disappearance.

But there to block him at every turn are the five fiery and closeknit Spanish women who run Librarte, and who’ll do anything to keep their jobs – even if it involves subterfuge, the long-lost poems of Federico García Lorca and a journey to the gypsy heart of Andalucía...

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10 comentaris

  1. That looks so simple and so delicious. And I've never heard of tomato bread. Very interesting. Rubbing the tomato like butter, sort of. Thanks for sharing this. I'll have to try it out. :-)

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    1. Thanks for stopping by! You should totally try it! We love tomato bread here, good with everything :)

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  2. Oh man, this looks good (and the book sounds good too). I haven't heard of tomato bread either, but I'm definitely going to try it.

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    1. Thank you! :) It's really easy so good to fix for a quick dinner or the following day!

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  3. This recipe sound so delicious, I've got to have some! The book sounds good too, hope our library has a copy.

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    1. Thanks! Hope you can have both the tortilla and book! Enjoy! :D

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  4. Your Spanish omelet looks fab - I must try to do one myself. Cheers from Carole's chatter

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    1. Thank you Carole! Let me know if you try it! :)

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  5. I've never tried a Spanish Omelette. I did read and review The Unexpected Disappearance of Atticus Craftsman the other week though.

    Happy Cooking,
    Shelleyrae @ Book'd Out

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    1. And how did you find it? Heard lots of different opinions! Thanks for stopping by!

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