Who doesn’t love a bit of Spain- especially when it is served up on a plate!

Good thing that newly opened Taperia tapas bar, located at Thornton Heath Pond cooks up pretty much everything ranging from palatable paellas  to sweet sangria drinks, writes Chronicle food columnist Aisha Jade.

I had a sangria to drink and with citrus fruits and apples pieces in it. I could savour the red wine just as much as the fruit juices. 

To start the light, smoked flavoured chorizo pate went perfect with the crustiness of the house bread. 

Next up, calamari which in my opinion could have been fried a bit longer but my  next dish lamb cutlets and rice was excellently presented on slate. The lamb was well done with great firmness. To  

end things a traditional Spanish dessert – churros, with a deliciously rich and slightly bitter chocolate dipping sauce. The churros were nice and thick I would prefer them just a little bit sweeter!  Service was on the whole great. I would highly recommend visiting Taperia and will be back. I thought that overall the food was good and I am impressed by Spanish food after eating at this restaurant. 

The Spanish Caribbean island, the Dominican Republic has one of the most intriguing cuisines. A favourite of mine being the Morir Soñando – a milk and orange juice based drink and perfect for Dry January writes Aisha Jade.

This mixture doesn’t go together often and probably sounds a bit weird and sickening to some. However, the Dominicans knew exactly what they were doing when they combined these ingredients to create this delicious beverage which translates to: 

Servings: 2 

Ingredients:

300 ml milk 

300 ml orange juice 

2 table spoons of honey 

2-3 drops of vanilla essence 

a sprinkle of grated nutmeg 

ice (optional)

Make sure both the milk and orange juice are very cold to prevent the drink from curdling.  Add the honey to the milk and stir until it has completely dissolved. 

Next add the drops of vanilla and then some freshly grated nutmeg and stir well. 

The next step is to slowly pour the orange juice into the mixture whilst stirring. Once all of the ingredients have been mixed together and have a good consistency, you can pour them into glasses filled with ice. 

You can even add an orange slice as a fancy garnish! This is my spin on this classic Dominican drink but you can also put your own twist on it. I hope you enjoy!