KOCHI: Going through ‘Sangria,’ Manuela Requena’s novella, is a sensory experience. The reader can almost smell the lemon grass and rosemary and taste the ‘divine paella’ or the ‘sensuous Spanish stuffed eggs.’ But then, they really can, as the recipes of all the dishes mentioned in the novel constitute the second half of the book.
‘Sangria’ (which means ‘the drink that warms the blood,’) is probably the first ever cookery book in novel form, or perhaps a novel which incorporates cookery. Romance, family, food and friendship are all woven into the 90-page novel, in which Rose, a young woman, is in search of her lost senses of taste and smell. A gypsy lady whom she comes across slowly introduces her to the magic of ancient herbs and recipes and she gets back her lost senses.
“Rose has a lot in common with me, as I myself lost my sense of smell and taste for three months following an illness,” says author Manuela, a native of Spain whose family migrated to Australia when she was 12 years old. With her jet black hair and eyes, Manuela looks every bit a Spaniard.
This is her third visit to India and she fell in love with Indian cuisine right at the beginning. “Outsiders think that Indian cuisine is all abut butter chicken and pakoras. But there is a lot more to it,” she says.
Manuela feels that there is a lot of similarity between Spanish and South Indian cuisines.
“Both are vibrant, colourful and spicy. We also use a lot of tomato, pickles, saffron, spices and herbs.
The Spanish paella, for example, is very similar to biriyani. I found Italian and Chinese cuisines in plenty here in Kerala but never Spanish cuisine. I wanted to introduce it, and expose the similarities to South India.” This was the inspiration for ‘Sangria’.
All the recipes in the book are simple with all the ingredients easily available. None of them are fancy.
“It is all home food, recipes which have been handed down to me by my mother and grandmother. I believe that food will taste nice when it is cooked with love,” she says. This is also one of the messages put across in the novella. “Food can actually bring a family together,” says the author.
The tempting recipes in the book, many of which are family secrets, include Manuela’s indulgent fresh date and pistachio baked apples, dazzling chicken with wine and thyme sauce, grandma Rosario’s chicken and rice and, of course, sangria.
Though Manuela is passionate about writing and cooking, she has a full time job in Australia where she does project work in HR. The author was at the Reliance Time Out, Oberon Mall, recently for the release of her book, which is priced at Rs 375.
ashaprakash@epmltd.com