Pastel de Zarangollo con salsa de Pimentón

Every Monday a bar near Murcia's grand cathedral hosts a foreign language conversation exchange.  After covering occupations, family whereabouts and likes/dislikes in English we switched over to Spanish for the last part of the evening.  When I explained I was learning about Murcian recipes and rustled out a cookbook from my bag, everyone in the group leaned in simultaneously from their folding chairs and instantly started a running commentary on the contents.  When it came to Zarangollo, a very typical combination of zucchini and onions, a debate ensued.  One attendee gestured at the book's glossy, overly styled photo of the vegetarian fare, scoffed at its lack of authenticity and rallied his fellow Murcianos. "Have you ever seen your mother prepare that at home? No!"  Another faction took issue with the ingredient list and its lack of potatoes/inclusion of eggs while others countered that of course their family never/always uses those components in their rendition of the dish.

Made this..

The vegetable medley-as-bar talk theme continued when I grabbed a beer with a Murcian friend and the conversation turned to food just as the lights were getting switched on at the end of the night.  As we were collecting our jackets he asked if I had tried the classic zucchini dish and I explained that it just so happened to be in the line up for the coming week; the only thing left to do was pick between the two recipes I had at home.  As the bartender (a bearded, brooding type who had previously communicated exclusively via one word answers) flipped my chair up onto the table I heard him mutter "hay solo una receta para zarangollo," with the certitude of an old-time sheriff declaring that there is not, in fact, enough room in town for the both of them.  Unfortunately, I didn't have time to inquire about the details of this supposedly peerless preparation before we were herded outside by the pub's staff.

With that

I picked up ingredients at the market that week and settled on a Zarangollo from "Las 50 Mejores Recetas de la Cocina Murciana", published by the local tourism board circa 1965 to offer home cooks and visitors alike a blend of "platos tradicionales y renovados".  This version featured the two main ingredients in a sort of crustless quiche called a pastel and adorned it with a sauce made from Murcian pimentón and ñora peppers.  The method called for straining the pepper mixture through a chinoix and blending in cream to render it both unneccesarily silky and overly rich enough to land it squarely in "renovado" territory.  Having neither a fine mesh strainer or full-fat diary on hand I decided to leave the sauce on the rustic side and spread it on top of the baked pastel, resulting in an aerial view that looked remarkably like meatloaf.

Post-lunch and post-siesta Yolanda and I set out out on a little trail in the nearby mountains and came upon a grandfatherly gentleman striding along and looking quite content with his surroundings and life in general. As he made his way around the bend (bounce in step and all) he walked in time with music from a mini radio he had velcroed to his walking stick.

Wild thyme

After greeting us with a wide grin he turned away for a moment and then        brandished two small bouquets of freshly plucked wild thyme, presenting    them with a slight bow and the air of a happily retired magician.    Delighted by the unexpected little gift (and the fact that I could use it in a Murcian mussel recipe) we struck up a conversation and I mentioned I was trying out all kinds of local dishes on Yolanda.  After I rattled off a few examples he nodded over to her and joked that someone with the ability to get a traditional meal on the table and facilitate English practice would make a good catch for a Murcian boy.  When he asked if I had cooked Zarangollo yet Yolanda and I  both replied "si!" in unison, explaining we had just finished a plate of it during lunch that day. Lifting his hands to his heart in mock confession he stopped for a moment, let out the kind of dreamy sigh you'd expect to see at the end of a silent film and declared "I think I'm in love".

Pastel de Zarangollo con salsa de Pimentón
Adapted from "Las 50 Mejores Recetas de la Cocina Murciana"

Yield: Light main dish for 4
Ingredients

For the pastel:
Extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, very thinly sliced
2 medium zucchini, seeds scooped out and sliced into thin crescents
Salt
3 eggs, beaten

For the sauce:
Extra virgin olive oil
2 large leeks, green parts removed and white parts chopped into a rough dice
2 ñora peppers, seeds, ribs and stems removed (cut one in half and chop one roughly)
Salt
1 small zucchini, seeds removed and sliced into crescents
1 tsp. Pimentón

For the pastel:
-Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit
-Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat until just smoking
-Add onions and a pinch of salt and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally
-Cover the pan for 3-5 minutes, then uncover and stir
-Repeat until onions are translucent
-Add zucchini and another pinch of salt, cooking for another few minutes and stirring occasionally
-Cover the pan for another 3-5 minutes, then uncover and stir
-Repeat several times until the vegetables have shed their liquid and begun to color
-Uncover and increase the heat to high, stirring frequently until the vegetables are golden brown
-(If the vegetables begin to stick at any point, add a little water and scrape up the bits of fond on the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon)
-Pour the vegetable mixture into a large bowl
-Add the eggs and stir until just blended
-Pour into a loaf pan well-greased with olive oil or non-stick spray, or lined with aluminum foil
-Bake until the eggs have set, about 15 minutes
-Let cool a bit, then run a butter knife around edges of the pan and turn pastel out onto a plate

For the sauce:
-Place the ñora pepper that has been cut in half in a small bowl, cover with water and microwave for one minute, then set aside to soften for 8-10 minutes
-Heat olive oil in a medium pan over medium heat until just smoking
-Following the method above for onions and zucchini, cook the leeks and zucchini until golden brown, adding the pimentón and the other (chopped) ñora pepper to the pan at the beginning of the process
-As the vegetables begin to cook, remove the ñora pepper from the water, but do not discard the soaking liquid
-Using the back of a butter knife or spoon, scrape the now soft flesh from the inside of the pepper and then run a chef's knife through the pulp a few times and add to the pan
-When the vegetables are ready, blend in a food processor or immersion blender with the reserved liquid from soaking the ñora pepper
-Season to taste and spread over top of the pastel