Terra
“La terra d’on som” - The land where we come from
Many of the customs and culinary tastes of the time have endured to this day. Our streets keep the memory of the passage of time revealing a past and a history which revolves around our fields and our gastronomy. Nothing does more to help us appreciate the history and beauty of this Mediterranean mountain range than savouring some of our most traditional dishes, made with recipes and produce that have been proudly passed down from generation to generation, creating a link between its descendants that distorts the concept of time.
At Venta Guadalest we are very proud to offer you the opportunity to taste the most traditional cuisine of the Alicante lands with the products of the orchards of the valley.
Aperitives
Pericana
Is the most typical and traditional aperitive in Alcoy area. Its ingredients mix with passion the elements that define the Mediterranean coast: dried peppers from its orchards, Capellán (a small variety of cod) from its sea, and oil from our olive trees of its rugged mountains. In the history of the Alicante mountains, this meal has been ever present in the diet of shepherds and farmers because of its important nutritional value, and how easy it is to prepare, store and transport.
Mintxo (The most typical in Guadalest)
Without a doubt, Mintxo is the most well-known dish in Guadalest. Although it may look like a simple turnover pastry at first glance, it's much more than that. The mixture of wheat, cooked in boiling water, demands vigorous stirring and skill to prevent lumps in the dough. Then, while still warm, the resulting dough is rolled out and filled with cabbage, spinach, and chard, all previously boiled and later fried to avoid making the pastry soggy. Finally, the resulting turnover is placed in a pan, where it's cooked slowly with a drizzle of olive oil from our own olive trees.
Starter
Olleta de Blat (Wheat pot stew)
Soups have always graced every dining table, whether steaming hot during the winter or refreshingly cool in the summer, they are well-known for their remarkable nutritional value. "Olleta de Blat" is one of the most renowned dishes in the Guadalest Valley. A harmonious blend of beans, grains, vegetables, and pork meat, all slow-cooked for hours, with the star ingredient being wheat ("Blat" in the Valencian dialect). This was a customary dish during chilly winters, a fixture on every family's table. Like any traditional recipe, each household had its unique rendition, but we're confident that this will be your favorite one.
Main course
Charcuterie board
At every table, in the past & in the present, the meat is the main focus. In the Middle Ages, the Muslim and Christian cultures found, in Guadalest, a place to coexist. The former, consumers of lamb and established since the 11th century, left their mark both in the kitchen and in the castle that dominates the silhouette of the town. The latter, by inheritance from the Roman Empire, left us the tradition of pig slaughter in the Winter months, a reason for celebration and family reunion. Venta Guadalest’s charcuterie board is a taste of our multicultural past, with sausages from here, made in the traditional artisanal way without preservatives.
Dessert
Family's Secret
Chocolate and carob are two products deeply rooted in the history of the province of Alicante. The first, thanks to the small town of La Vila Joiosa, has been the centre of national chocolate production for several centuries, and the second, which, thanks to its multiple applications in food and its great energy stores and nutritional value, has been widely used as a food.