Try some tasty 'Tapas' for your next get-together

This is quite simply a classic. In many ways, it’s the national dish of Catalonia, where you’ll find it at the start of any good tapas meal — in homes, bars, and restaurants. There’s something deeply satisfying, even comforting, about the combination of warm bread, ripe tomato, and golden oil. You can top it with anchovies or cheese instead of ham if you like. Here are two versions of the dish: In the first, more traditional recipe, we rub the tomato directly on the bread, and the crunchiness of the toast acts like a grater. In the second, we use a grater, mixing the tomatoes with olive oil and salt. The grater works well if you are preparing this dish for a party.

The traditional way:
Toast the bread. Set aside. Cut the tomatoes in half. Rub the open face of the tomatoes into one side of each piece of toast until all the flesh is grated. Throw the skin away.

Drizzle olive oil, as liberally as you like, over the tomato. Season with salt to taste. Place a slice of ham on top. Drizzle with a little oil again. Serve.

The modern way:
Cut the tomatoes in half. Place a grater over a large mixing bowl. Rub the open face of the tomatoes into the grater until all the flesh is grated. Discard the skin.

Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to the grated tomato in the bowl. Season with salt to taste.
Toast the bread. Spoon the tomato mixture over the slices of toast. Place a slice of ham on top of each. Drizzle with a little more oil, and serve.

You might think that using chips — even good-quality, hand-cooked ones — would be a cheap twist on the classic tortilla de patata. You’d be wrong. This may be fast and easy (so fast that you can create a wonderfully smooth tortilla in just a few minutes), but it’s also amazing. Moistening the chips with the egg makes them come alive, as they return to their natural roots with incredible speed. This dish proves that a good tortilla is simply egg, potato, and the right frame of mind.

Break 6 of the eggs into a large mixing bowl. Add the chips and stir, crushing them a little as you blend the eggs together. Allow the mixture to sit until the chips absorb a lot of the egg, 5 minutes. Then beat the seventh egg and add it to the egg-chip mixture. Add the salt.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a small sauté pan (no bigger than 6 inches in diameter) over a medium flame. Add the egg mixture and stir briskly a few times with a wooden spoon to prevent the eggs from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Shake the pan in a circular motion for 10 seconds to keep the mixture loose as the eggs start to stick together. Then lower the temperature and cook for another minute.

Place a plate over the pan and invert the pan and plate together so the tortilla winds up on the plate, raw side down. If the pan looks dry, add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Return the tortilla to the pan by sliding it back in, raw side down. Continue cooking for another 60 seconds. Serve immediately.