Olives and Ham

Spain is obsessed with HAM! They eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner and then for snack and dessert too. This was a typical scene...



I thought that this advertisement was hilarious. As if they weren't already intamately familiar with this meat product....




In addition to ham, Spaniards pop olives like they are candy. Case in point:



Olives in a vending machine conveniently located between the KitKats and the HoHos.


Olive orchards are everywhere in Spain (sandwiched between the almond orchards) and as self-proclaimed olive oil addicts, we decided to go on an olive oil tasting. It was so interesting to learn how it is made.



A 300 year old olive tree.



In the orchard we visited, the families were still using a 700 year old Moor irrigation system which fed the trees through a system of collecting spring water on the mountain, running it through small aquaducts and directing to the trees using gravity.

To harvest the olives, you must wait until the olives are very dark, then you place a net underneath the tree and hit the branches to make the olives fall.



Then the olives with their pits and stems are placed in the center of this mill. A mule was used to push the mill around and grind the olives into a thick paste.



The the paste was layered into mats and placed under this press. It looks like a seesaw with the mats on one side...

And the operator on the other who would turn the screw thus putting more pressure on the mats and pressing the paste until liquid would drain from the paste into a vat underneath. The liquid would separate into olive oil on top and water on the bottom. This created the first cold press and is considered the highest quality of oil. This process was used until the early 20th century!