Since the United Nations has declared 2008 the International Year of the Potato, José begins his trip to these stunningly beautiful islands of Canarias by cooking up a fascinating local dish of wrinkled potatoes and two great sauces, a mojo rojo and a mojo verde – then visits the potato fields on the island of Tenerife. While there, of course, José stops off at a great winery and a fabulous restaurant, then ventures on to the island of Lanzarote (but not before creating a superb sancocho–a local version of fish stew).

José explores one of the most sophisticated regions of Europe, Basque Country, and cooks some of the iconic dishes of the countryside – from pintxos (small regional tapas) including one named after a movie star, to the delicate cod dish known as bacalao al pil pil. He takes us to the traditional place in Spain for eating bacalao – a cider bar; explores the beautiful city of San Sebastian; and he visits Arzak -- the restaurant of one of his mentors, and one of the greatest restaurants in all of Spain.

In the mythical forests of Aragón, a heavenly region almost too beautiful to be real, José is inspired to cook two very earthly regional dishes: Migas, an ancient dish based on breadcrumbs (in this case, paired with mushrooms and serrano ham) and pollo al chilindron, a chicken stew made with a green and red pepper sauce. He returns to Aragón to walk the Pyrenees Mountains, fish for trout, and even hunt for truffles, the old-fashioned way.

After cooking two quick tapas – one with a local cheese from Extremadura, the other with the region’s cherries – José makes a sweet escape to the startlingly beautiful cherry fields of Extremadura, meets the cheese makers (and the sheep) responsible for the decadent creamy cheese known as Torta del Casar. After giving a pinch of pimentón—Spanish paprika —to the traditional Extremadura salad known as Cojodongo, José’s inspired to return to the region to visit the fields and factories where the unique sweet and smoky Spanish spice is made. And he reveals why a French culinary tradition must pay thanks to a small monastery here.

A return to Valencia makes a star out of the region’s nuts. José whips together a nutty dessert called postre de turrón, then heads to Valencia to show how turrón – a nutty paste – is made, starting with the beautiful almond trees in Jijona and ending in the factories and stores that make and sell this regional Christmastime delicacy. He even visits a horchateria where tiger nuts are made into a creamy drink! There are stops at great wineries along the way, time out to cook up a delicious Valencian noodle dish known as Fideua, and a stop at the wild, fire-filled Valencia Fallas festival. José winds up at one of Spain’s most famed restaurants, El Poblet—where he watches his old friend, chef Quique Dacosta, prepare a dish made with real gold.

Exploring the fertile peaks, fields and valleys of Cantabria, the area known as Green Spain, José creates a unique tapa pairing Cantabria’s most prized product—anchovies—with a surprising ingredient: nectarines. José returns to Cantabria to follow the anchovy trail and see how the locals eat the–then heads to the thriving capital city of Santander and the beautiful town of Santillana del Mar, to explore ancient cave paintings. After quick stops to a great bakery, a great restaurant, and a great cable car ride, it’s back to Washington D.C. to create a super steak with Cantabria’s creamy blue Picón cheese.

José travels to Andalucía’s Granada, the city that made cold soup famous, and creates two of his own–the famed gazpacho, and the purely Andalucían delicacy, ajo blanco. He dances his way through one of Spain’s most famed festivals, the Feria de Abril in Sevilla, and takes us on a tapas bar-hopping trip to sample the local delicacies —all sandwiched around a visit to La Alhambra, one of the seven wonders of the modern world.

José travels to Iles Balears where he begins by making a unique omelet with sobrasada, a rare spreadable sausage—then takes us to the islands where those sausages originate. At a black pig farm on Mallorca he rediscovers a delicacy from his childhood–then takes us to a patisserie that makes a famed local dessert from the pork lard! Then onto the island of Menorca for some lobster fishing (and a traditional lobster dish, of course). José visits both a great cheese maker and one of the worlds most renowned gin makers—where he reveals the recipe for the perfect gin and tonic.