Table in a glass-enclosed dining room
It is autumn and the afternoons invite you to enjoy a table taking advantage of the last rays of sun. It’s not time for a fireplace, but I wanted a secluded place where one feels sheltered. In an old farmhouse, in the heart of Sierra Morenawe set up a buffet in blue and white tones. in this placeTrasierra, improvisation enters into the most ordered chaos. Everywhere you look there is beauty, so we put a cotton tablecloth and white dishes with a blue border and use trays and tureens in the same tones to serve the food. We diners spent the weekend there, so a very practical idea is to put some white bows on the napkins where everyone writes their name. The extra table is full of delicacies. Lentil salad, roast chicken, garden tomatoes… and, to finisha grape cake made by my friend Gioconda Scott that is a real delight.
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojasgrape pie
Ingredients (for 6-8 servings)
For the cake base
- 130 g whole wheat flour
- 70 g white flour
- 160 g butter (cold and cut into cubes)
- 1 pinch of salt
- a tablespoon of whole sugar
- a few drops of lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons ice water (or more if necessary)
Stuffed
- grapes 400 g
- large spoonful of whole sugar
- heaped teaspoon of cornstarch
- zest of 1 lemon
To bake
- beaten egg yolk
- brush
- whole sugar for sprinkling
Elaboration
Mix the flours, salt and sugar in a food processor and add the butter; pulse until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Add the lemon juice and ice water and pulse until you see the dough starting to clump together (don’t pulse too much because it can make a paste). Take out the dough and make a ball. Wrap it in film, flatten it into a thick disk and put it in the refrigerator for half an hour. Now for the grapes: get 400g of grain only. Mix in a bowl with the whole sugar, cornstarch and lemon zest. Massage the fruit with the mixture. Preheat the oven to 180º. Take out the dough, smooth it with a rolling pin until you make a disk half a cm thick. Put the base on a tray oven, stack the fruit on top and pinch the dough, folding towards the center to collect the fruit, leaving a gap in the center so the fruit can be seen. Brush the dough with the egg yolk and sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake 35-40 min until golden. Let it rest and serve with Greek yogurt or fresh cream.
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojas“We diners spend several days there, so putting ribbons with each person’s name on the napkins is a good idea”
© Alejandra de Rojasmy bathroom
Perhaps my bathroom is one of the corners that I have placed the most emphasis on when decorating my house. I wanted an antique bathtub that was lovingly restored in Seville and the furniture for my beauty products, neatly organized, I found it in Olofanein El Rastro in Madrid. The wallpaper gives it a very cozy touch and the old paintings turn it into an unexpected small living room. The clay floor, the vintage towel rack and the lamp hanging from the ceiling give it a special accent. a corner to pass the hours…
“The wallpaper gives it a very cozy touch and the old paintings turn it into an unexpected small living room”
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de RojasCrushes
© Alejandra de RojasWallpaper by @gancedo1945
© Alejandra de RojasVase in blue tones by @lafabricadehielo_art
© Alejandra de RojasChair by @lassillasdemanuel
© Alejandra de RojasToiletry bag by @theiqhomecollection
From the garden to the plate
I owe my passion for the garden to Thomas Tante Mora. He is perhaps one of the most interesting people I know and with whom I most like to spend time. Tomás helps me plant seasonal vegetables and fruits, know when to pick them and how to keep the garden clean and up to date. It is a daily job that requires perseverance and patience, but for me It is very meditative. The contact of the earth with your hands, the smell of tomato plants and peppers in summer, and the satisfaction of making a salad with vegetables that you have seen growing, is priceless.
A day in San Martí Vell
I unknowingly inherited from my mother an iconic bracelet that served to complete any look. I would sometimes wear it with a white t-shirt and jeans or wear it with a long dress. The Bone Cuffdesigned by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co, has been one of the designer’s flagships. From that moment I decided to follow her trail and discover more about this wonderful woman who made history. So I traveled to Catalonia, to San Martí Vell, a small town surrounded by nature that Elsa Peretti fell in love with and where she acquired several houses.
© Alejandra de Rojas“I enjoyed the visit with the eyes of a child and then had lunch at an ecological winery, which was owned by Elsa Peretti, with local cuisine and touches of flamenco”
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de RojasOver there I had the privilege to enter his rooms, those of his guests, his wonderful kitchen and his living rooms, where it seems that time has stopped. She felt like she was sharing space with those closest to her, from Andy Warhol to the fashion designer Halston who helped define the style of the 70s. I enjoyed the visit with a child’s eyes and then had lunch at an ecological winerywhich was owned by Elsa Peretti, with local cuisine and touches of flamenco. When reality surpasses myth, then magic arises.
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojas
© Alejandra de Rojas
