One of the pleasures of shopping in Spain is that you find plenty of new things to enjoy. One thing worth looking out for is “Tortes de Aciete” which, misleadingly translates as oil tarts.
In fact these are crisp wafer thin biscuits about five inches across made with virgin olive oil, flour sugar, aromatic herbs, and anise. “They crumble as soon as you bite into them but they make an excellent snack with a cup of tea,” says Sharon.
The pack we bought in the supermarket was found with a selection of traditional baked items, such as tarts and dry pastries. The wording on the wrapper says: “Las legitimas y acreditadas tortas de aciete de Ines Rosales.”
Give them a try.
Herbalists have long valued anise, which is native to the Eastern Mediterranean and must not be confused with the Asian star anise. The plant grows to about three feet tall and is very aromatic with a licquorice-like flavour. It has also similar to fennel.
It is a firm favourite in European cookery, and can be found in treats such as Greek dolmas and English aniseed balls and humbug. It is drunk with hot water after meals in India as an aid to digestion. In fact, the herbalists cite it as an important digestive helper. It is also thought to be effective against parasites and to relieve toothache. Aromatherapists say it helps with colds and flues.
Anise is found in many strong alcoholic drinks, including Arab arak, French absinthe, anisette and pastis, Greek ouzou, Italian sambuca and Turks raki.
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© Phillip Bruce 2009.
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