"Catalan culture is my expression," says Santi Santamaria. "We must never forget our roots. We have to set out to find our own culinary identity while remaining open to the influence of other people and products from around the world, but without ever letting our own culture disappear from our cooking. It has to underlie our evolution and continue to reveal itself in what we create."

I asked a historian friend, Senhora Eliane Thibaut-Comelade to provide some background on medieval Catalan cooking so that you could better understand our roots and how this cuisine has evolved up to the present day:

In the medieval era, Catalan cooking was looked upon as one of the most important cuisines of the Mediterranean.
It was the cuisine of the counts of Barcelona and the kings of Catalonia/Aragon who had conquered Sicily. One of the very first cookbooks on the European continent was written in the Catalan language by the cook to King Ferran of Naples, son of Alfonso the Magnanimous. It was called the "Libre del Coch," and was published in Barcelona in 1520 to explain the arts of the table, presenting a lavish cuisine and describing in particular the extraordinary abundance of fish in the Mediterranean. The book is a faithful testament to the cooking of a people who were rapidly expanding throughout the Mediterranean region.

However, there are also earlier texts, dating back to the end of the 12th and the beginning of the 13th centuries: I would like to talk about the collection of recipes called the "Libre de Sent Sovi."

This manuscript allows us to see the influence of Catalan cooking on pre-Renaissance Italian cooking, an influence that until now has seldom been pointed out in accounts of the evolution of European cuisines. The Neapolitan manuscript of "Martino Platina" in particular includes Catalan recipes (rose water sweetened with cane sugar, preparations for pigeons.) This influence is really not surprising, if you consider that the rule of Naples and the two Sicilies had been tied to the Catalan-Aragonese crown: therefore their customs and eating habits were Catalan.

The "Sent Sovi" can be considered a fundamental work not just for Catalan cooking, but for all Mediterranean cuisines. Taking into account just the preparations for fish, we find an impressive number of recipes using bass, monkfish, salmon, sole, turbot, bream, skate, conger, swordfish, tuna, mackerel, eel, sardines, mullet, rockfish, octopus, squid, rock lobster, crab, oysters, mussels, softshell clams… Salted fish were greatly valued: conger, sardines, tuna. This magnificent, even sumptuous, cuisine symbolized the apogee of the Catalan countries.

The kingdom of Majorca continued the Mediterranean expansion begun by Jacques I. Thanks to a rich and diversified economy, Majorcan Catalan power was very great, while Barcelona grew into a veritable maritime empire and the ports of Collioure and Port-Vendre saw extraordinary growth. The Catalans exported olive oil, almonds, salt, honey, cloth and leather. In Egypt, they rivaled the Genoese merchants at Constantinople. This important economic growth would continue throughout the 14th and 15th centuries.

And while we have two medieval culinary treatises, Catalan products had already been mentioned earlier in Roman manuscripts in the writings of Pliny, Estrabo, Cato, Varro and Columelle. They include mentions of Tarragora oysters; thick, golden olive oil; fruity wines; delicate clams; wonderful saffron; hams from Cerdagne. These texts also mention that at Roses there was a fabulous fishpond built by the Greeks when they passed through Empuries.

To get back to the "Sent Sovi," in the matter of everyday food there were beans, peas, chickpeas, lentils, carrots, turnips, squash, asparagus, eggplant (introduced by the Arabs), spinach, artichokes, cabbage, chard, leeks, onions, lettuce, salsify, garlic, celery, parsley, cress, endive…. There is also mention of wheat flour, couscous and rice (the expansion of its growing region was also due to the Arabs). As for fruit, there were pomegranates, figs, apples, cherries, plums, grapes, dates, bitter oranges, lemons (the juice of these last two were used in cooking), as well as dried fruits, an abundance of almonds, pine nuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, dates, figs and raisins.

We must not neglect to mention the frequent use of rose, orange flower, broom and squash petals.

Honey was used as a sweetener since sugar was too expensive. The cultivation of sugar cane was introduced by the Arabs into the Valencia region, but sugar was also imported in cake form from the Orient.

This flourishing economy was also due to the "hortolans" (gardeners) who dominated the markets. They grew cereals, olives, grapes and vegetables, providing themselves with a comfortable living. Perpignan had markets for fowl, oil, wheat, bread… (Plaça de la Gallineria, de l'Oli, del Blat, del Pa.)

The list of fowl also presents a very interesting variety: chickens, hens, capons, ducks, geese, pigeons and peacocks reserved for ceremonial feasts; and in the category of game birds, there were cranes, partridges, pheasants, quail, thrushes and woodcocks.

Animals raised for slaughter were, first and foremost, pigs, followed by sheep and lambs whose meat is one of the most prized in Catalonia. But no beef. For game, there were hare, boar, deer and bear.

Fresh or dried cheeses and sheep's or goat's milk represented an important source of food. Eggs were also widely used and were seen as having powerful restorative properties. Sweets included fruits candied in honey, walnuts and almonds. Almond paste or "massapà" constituted the original touron, or nougat. The pantry or "rebost" was filled with all kinds of confections.

We must also emphasize the important role of spices, particularly cinnamon - to which many virtues were ascribed - followed by ginger, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom and saffron, all imported from the Orient with the exception of saffron which was grown in Valencia and Roussillon. Similarly, there were aromatic plants: sage, marjoram, basil, tarragon, mint, rosemary, fennel, bay, thyme and parsley, used abundantly in all savoury dishes.

Spices, aromatic flavourings and ground almonds are the elements of "picada," which forms the basis of the Catalan sauces, found in no other cuisine in the world and the signature of Catalan cuisine. The cooking juices from foods are thickened with this picada, skillfully spiced and flavoured. Besides its gustatory role, it also has an important dietetic interest because of its dextrin content, serving as a replacement for heavy starches and cooked butter.

Finally, the role of olive oil cannot be overlooked, a fat that is used both raw and in cooking. Two other important characteristics of this cuisine are the use of sweet and sour, or sweet and savoury, combinations (e.g., lemon juice or vinegar and honey) and the pairing of fruits with protein products, such as duck with fruit. I will end this overview of medieval Catalan cuisine by mentioning the custom of cold drinks, certainly introduced by the Arabs: it is interesting to learn that even in medieval times they had learned to stock and conserve ice and snow, evidenced by the number of ice wells in the Valencia region and the Canet wells in Roussillon.

It is important to have a meal in the middle of the day, but it should not be too substantial.

He recommends chewing thoroughly and taking the meal in calm surroundings, accompanied if possible by soft music.

He points out that it is necessary to eat moderate amounts so as to avoid digestive troubles.

He clearly states the importance of diversity in eating, even within one meal, so as to stimulate the appetite. He introduces the concept of adapting the choice of foods to make them appropriate to a person's work, age and health.

It is best, he says, to drink wine abstemiously during the meal, and to drink a great deal of water after the meal, depending on the outdoor temperature.

In his writings we are presented with a true treatise on food and health: indeed, all modern rules for healthful eating can be found in the work of Arnau de Vilanova.

We can therefore address the subject of diet/nutrition and the medieval gastronomy of Catalan countries. Without going into the subject in depth, we can point out that this cuisine presents a well-rounded food complementation, that is, it uses milk/cereal combinations (rice cakes, couscous; greixonera), milk /legumes (molses i purée), fresh vegetables and legumes (dried vegetables), thus revealing the importance of vegetable proteins in the diet.

To sum up, Catalan countries had, from the 14th century onward, a treatise on diet and nutrition, a cookbook, as well as a tract on manners and behaviour at table ("Com usar bé de beure e menjar") by Francesc Eiximenis. With an affable tone and in rich, colourful language, he compares Catalan table manners to those of other nations, thus demonstrating the obvious moral superiority of the Catalan nation.

Take care not to lick your fingers or anything else.

Never for any reason take the choicest foods that you find before you.

Never wear a belt or overly-tight garment to table.

Under no circumstances ever scratch your head or any other part of your body while at table.

Never blow your nose into your bare hand, make any noise or blow your nose at table with your head raised… if you wish to sneeze, lower your head.

Conversation among guests must be on happy, pleasant topics that will not offend anyone.

Never refuse any meat that is offered to you.

When you are a guest, see that you arrive on time and do not keep your hosts waiting.

Never yawn at table under any circumstances.

Through thirteen chapters he draws a detailed picture of Catalan society, its customs, its use of foods according to the seasons, and even the matching of wines and dishes: green wine from Majorca with fish and full-bodied red wine with game.

In the 17th century, we find interesting information in the travel accounts of Brother Berthomieu Joly who accompanied a French visitor on an inspection visit to Spain. Amid other descriptions, he recounts that at the beginning of the meal they were offered sliced oranges, salads, grapes, pomegranates and melons. "These are people of good taste," he wrote.

In the 18th century, treatises on pastry and sweet-making appeared, among others. One work, "El collégi de la bona vida," provides insight into bourgeois and aristocratic customs. We can see the enduring combinations of sweet and savoury: pairing melons, figs, peaches and apples with meats and fish, and always with good wines. To the popular cooking of the Principat are added the baroque styles of the Valencian lands, and the order of dishes seems to show a French influence, contrary to earlier rules.

At the end of the 18th century and until the mid-19th century, many Swiss and Italians arrived and Catalan cuisine - particularly in restaurants and in Barcelona - felt their influence. But travelers also left us with very descriptive accounts of gardens and markets.

The northern part of Catalonia (presently the Department of the Eastern Pyrenees), which had become part of France under the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659, learned to cook in the French style, particularly amongst the bourgeoisie, while the Catalan cuisine of the Principat experienced a golden age in restaurants. In 1840 a guide to restaurants, hotels and inns was published for Barcelona. The period saw a great surge of cafés, that served large doughnuts, orgeat, hot chocolate, iced coffee and cinnamon-flavoured iced milk.

Today's Catalan Cooking: the Cuisine of a Community of Land, History and Culture
Though the cooking from Salses, France to Guardarnar, Spain (the linguistic boundaries of the Catalan language) has undergone some transformations, generally speaking it has not lost its essential characteristics. It cannot lose them, for this cuisine goes hand in hand with our products and the changing seasons, which are different in the Mediterranean region. It is the cuisine of a community of land, history and culture, fashioned using its own products.

Besides the unique geographic situation of the Catalan lands, we must also single out the individualism and inventive mind of the Catalan people. One recipe can have many variations within regions and even within families.

The extravagant character of this cuisine is also noteworthy: it can show ascetic qualities in a simple garlic soup or grilled herring flavoured with vinegar, or it can be lavish for religious or family festivals with a feast of lobsters, pastries and touron (nougat).

It is particularly in southern Catalan regions that the salty/sweet and sweet/sour combinations have been best preserved: fruits stuffed with meat, pork, goose or lamb, rabbit with apples or pears, hare with chocolate. And virtually unchanged since medieval times is the use of cinnamon, mint, basil and bitter orange juice. But this cooking is marked in particular by the obligatory and incomparable "picada" which provides the palate with sweetness, smoothness and the flavour of almonds combined with the strength of spices and a full-bodied wine.

In northern Catalonia, in the French department of Pyrénées-Roussillon, Catalans have substituted French sauce-making technique in making picada. On the gastronomic level the perfectly balanced combinations of these "picades" are in my opinion unequalled; furthermore, since they do not overwhelm the tastebuds with spices, wine moves from being simply a drink to being a harmonious and complementary accompaniment to food. Pairing the appropriate wine with a dish whose cooking juices have been thickened with a picada leads one to understand just what gastronomy is all about.

The geographical context provides three kinds of cuisine:

• A very important coastal cuisine
• Cuisine of the plains (inland), which often incorporates products from the sea
• Cuisine of the foothills and the mountains, with a much smaller variety of recipes

For these three kinds of cuisine, you have to consider the "pagesa, burgesa i popul" interpretations, or "peasant, bourgeois and popular," at least as regards food for feast days. Examples:

Coastal
Fishermen's cuisine: All cremat, suquet
Bourgeois cuisine: Feuilleté de Collioure.

Plains
Vegetable grower's cuisine: Escalivada
Bourgeois cuisine: Leg of lamb with honey and eggplant fritters

Mountains
Rural cuisine: Escudelles
Bourgeois cuisine: Estofat de vedella amb pèsols
Popular cuisine: Crema cremada, cargolada, pa d'ous

As regards spices and aromatic flavourings, we find those of the medieval period, but in reduced quantities, particularly for cinnamon and ginger. Products from the Americas are also highly valued, particularly pepper and various kinds of chiles: cayenne, "bitxo," "pebrina," "nyores." Among other things of which Catalans are fond, we should mention coffee, to which rum is added in winter to create a flambéed drink called "cremat."

Red and green sweet peppers are widely used - grilled on their own, stuffed, and used in fillings and in dishes such as rabbit with peppers; eggplant with tomatoes and peppers; and cod with peppers. On the other hand, while the tomato is highly prized as a vegetable, either raw or cooked, it is used sparingly as a flavouring, unlike in Provençal and Italian cooking. It is never an ingredient in picades, and it is included in certain fried dishes, such as rabbit with snails, only in small quantities. Unfortunately in the Pyrénées-Roussillon region, many restaurateurs have not grasped this subtlety, which is unfortunate, for Catalan cuisine is not a tomato-based cuisine. The predominant flavouring vegetables remain onion and garlic, raw or cooked. When it comes to fats, olive oil has remained firmly entrenched in the south, though Catalans in the north have also learned to cook with butter.

In the past, the cooking of the mountain regions used pork fat almost exclusively, and until the Second World War every farm raised its own pigs. However now, with a few exceptions, olive oil and other vegetable oils have taken the place of pork fat. Today the consumption of pork fat continues as part of the Catalan's understandable appetite for the excellent traditional charcuterie products, which I recommend that every visitor sample.

I will end with a mention of the most common methods of cooking. There are those that date from the medieval period:

• Grilling, in the coastal and plains regions, preferably by cooking over the embers of vine canes, on a grill or "planxa."
• Roasting for large pieces of meat, poultry and game, large fish, with or without stuffing.
• Covered moist heat in thick containers with heavy lids in which foods cook in their own liquid. The technique is called "sofregit" for the beginning of the process and "picades" at the end of cooking.

I must also mention the numerous rice preparations, many of which constitute a whole meal. Other complete meals include "escudelles" or soups served as three dishes: concentrated broth, meats, green vegetables and starches.

You will notice the lesser importance of sweet dishes compared to the numerous first courses and main dishes made with meats or vegetables. This is due to the fact that many varieties of fruits are abundant throughout practically the whole year, as well as to the fact that the climate and sun encourage outdoor leisure activities, reducing the desire to stay indoors and bake pastries. On the other hand, women in rural areas have always known how to make jams and fruits in syrup.

Catalan cooking is a cuisine of the sun, of warm conviviality, of unexpected combinations, full-bodied wines, a cuisine whose healthfulness comes from the choice, quality and variety of its ingredients. This Mediterranean cuisine is drizzled with olive oil, enlivened with garlic and bitter orange, and softened by its incomparable ground almonds. More than a mere regional style, this is an entirely unique cuisine set apart by its own methods and characteristics.