In a shop near the market, the grandmother buys a bucketful of red and black beans that she will soak in water overnight. The little girl walks around the shop intrigued by the strong smells and enchanted by all the different products … *** The kitchen is filled with natural light, illuminating the blue and white tiles covering half its walls. The brown rectangular table is ready with all the ingredients … *** ‘We are going to bake an egg pudding today!’ announces the grandmother. They have a special bond in the kitchen and she hopes that one day her granddaughter will cook these dishes for her own friends! In Cooking for Friends you will be taken right into author Julieta’s childhood kitchen in Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal; back to a time when she was just a little girl helping her grandmother to cook wonderful dishes. With delightful personalised introductions to each recipe, you will be taken on a journey of traditional flavours and customs. You will feel like you are right there in the little Portuguese village, enjoying the hustle and bustle of the wet market decorated with typical blue and white tiles depicting fishermen in traditional boats, or scenes of men working in the fields with cattle. You will understand how being so close to the river Tagus and the Atlantic Ocean makes fish one of the most important ingredients in Julieta’s recipes. Cooking for Friends also gives you an insight into some of the quirkiness of the eighties, when metal meat grinders were common and you needed to use a rotary dial telephone if you wanted to call your friends to invite them over for a meal. In this book Julieta shares popular traditional Portuguese recipes that her grandmother taught her when she was a little girl. She learned that there are three secrets for a good recipe: fresh ingredients, a passion for cooking and an overnight marinade! She learned that recipes are merely a basis from which to create and improvise. Most importantly, she learned that every meal tastes better when it’s shared. Cooking for Friends features impressive yet simple starters such as grilled chorizo; mouth-watering main courses such as salted cod with broccoli; and traditional Portuguese desserts such as sweet egg threads. This is a unique culinary journey into delightful and delicious meals that are meant to be shared and enjoyed with friends!