Spanish Through Gastronomy

Course Description

*Extra fee required. Please see note below.

DESCRIPTION AND GOALS
The main goal of the course is to improve students? communicative and cultural competence in Spanish. Meal times and the development of personal and professional relations around meals are very important aspects of the Spanish culture. Students will become familiar with Spanish food culture by focusing on vocabulary and grammar structures pertaining to the topic, as well as on habits and traditions in different regions in Spain. They will also get to know the process of cooking some of the most typical dishes of Spanish cuisine and, particularly, of Basque cuisine (tortilla de patata, paella, natillas?).

CONTENT
1. Mediterranean diet: local products.
2. Ingredients: Products with protected designation of origin.
3. Traditional vs. new cuisine.
4. Renown Spanish cooks.
5. Restaurants awarded with Michelin stars.
6. The origin of pintxos:
-Pintxos or tapas?
-Pintxo tasting in Bilbao.
7. Spanish wines:
-Crianza or reserve wines?
-Spain, land of good wines: albariño, txakoli, Rioja, cava, Rueda, Ribeiro??
-How to taste wine: looking, smelling, and tasting.
8. Cuisine by regions:
-What is eaten where: Valencian paella, Andalusian gazpacho, Basque hake?
9. Spanish meal times.
10. What do we need to cook? Measures and utensils.
11. The grammar of recipe books.
12. The vocabulary of food in fixed expressions.

METHODOLOGY
In-class lectures will alternate with several field work sessions in a txoko (Basque gastronomic society where people cook, eat and socialize, located off campus). In the txoko, students will participate in the elaboration of dishes and will taste those dishes for lunch later on. Instructors will show the steps to be followed in order to cook the dishes with the help of professional cooks.

Instructors will focus on the vocabulary, grammar structures, most common expressions, and cultural habits related to Spanish cuisine, both in lectures and in the txoko.

One of the field work sessions will be a pintxo (tapa, small food sample) and wine tasting at a popular pintxo area in the city.

ASSESSMENT
Grades will be calculated according to the following breakdown:
Tasks and final project: 45%
Field work (txoko): 45%
Participation: 10%

*FEE
Fee for class materials (not included in tuition fees): 155€, paid on-site.

** The student must be registered for Spanish II (Intermediate Spanish) or have an equivalent level of Spanish.
***Note: Class attendance is essential in all courses. Therefore, it will be checked daily. Missing
classes will negatively affect the student?s final grade.