OMG. I just spent, like, 15 minutes writing a post about this and accidentally closed the window before it was posted!! Ugh. I guess I'll start over. I think I was going on too long anyway.
I live in Barcelona, and have done for about five years. And when it comes to Spanish food Yakuta is absolutely right-- they don't know about spices here. Parsley, paprika, and garlic-- that's about it. What they do know about is ingredients. They have some of the most wonderful products in the world here. The fish is fresh, firm, and wonderful. The meat is, too. The fruits and veggies are 10 times better than anything you'd find in the States outside of a farmer's market. And so dishes here are simple in order to let the ingredients shine. It's not unusual to get a piece of fish or meat or a salad dressed only with olive oil-- they use a TON of it here. And it's wonderful. You just have to accustom your taste buds to something simpler.
Some of the best Spanish foods to try are tapas. I'm sure you can find a tapas place in your area that might give you a good idea of what this sort of food is like-- tapas are becoming increasingly popular all over the world. They're tasty and a LOT of fun to eat. Some of the my favorites are: gambas al ajillo (spicy garlic shrimp in olive oil), patatas bravas (fried potatoes with a spicy-tangy sauce and, if you're lucky, a nice scoop of alioli), croquetas, montaditos (small toasts) with cheese and cured meats, fried calamares, and... well, just about anything you can order. I could survive on nothing but tapas-- and it's all fried in olive oil, so you don't have to feel QUITE so guilty about the fact that it's all, well, fried.
The best tapas in the world are, of course, in Sevilla (a GORGEOUS city and worth a visit), but they have wonderful ones all over Spain. They're also great in the Basque country, where they're called pinxos (pronounced peench-os) and you pay by the "toothpick." Say, one euro a toothpick, a toothpick being one large croqueta or one small bocadillo (sandwich).
In Barcelona you can also get good tapas, and since it's the most international city in Spain, there are a TON of great restaurants. (There are also a ton of crappy, overpriced ones-- you have to know where to go.) Barcelona is especially big on fusion cuisine, and many menus combine Mediterranean cooking methods and with Asian ingredients-- really interesting and often delicious.
The bread here is also wonderful, and we have pastries to rival France. The Spanish are not much for baked goods in general (at least, not like we are in the US), but one taste of a flaky, rich flauta de chocolate and you're hooked. Have it with a cafe con leche or just a cafe (which is a plain espresso). While Charlie is sorta right about the coffee, he's also sorta wrong. You can get it black here. The espresso is absolutely wonderful. Strongly flavored, so you sip it very slowly instead of gulping like you would an American coffee. (Sorry if I sound snobbish, but I think American coffee is the pits.) Need your black American-style coffee? Just order a cafe americano.
If you're really considering coming here, my advice is: do it. It's a wonderful country. Barcelona is a little difficult as it considers itself quite separate from Spain. They speak a different language here (called Catalan-- but you can get around with Spanish just fine). They people aren't friendly the way they are in, say, Sevilla. But it's a very international city and, IMO, one of the most beautiful in the world. I LOVE it here. Put your toes into the sparkling Mediterranean just once and... boom, you're in love.
So yeah. The local food can be a little boring. But the ingredients are top-notch, the relaxed lifestyle is a wonderful change from the US, and the wine is the best (IMO) in the world and SUPER CHEAP. You can get a decent bottle for 3 euros at home, or 7 euros in a restaurant. It's awesome.
As for cooking, I would try to find a tapas restaurant if I were you. And if you want to make things at home, this website has some decent recipes:
Spanish Food Recipes
The website's a little wonky, but the recipes are good and, for the most part, authentic.
Feel free to post here if you have any more questions or want more details about Spain. I love it here and could talk about it for hours.
Good luck with the position-- I hope you decide to come. Spain has a lot to offer and is, unfortunately, often overlooked in favor of France and Italy.
I was quite happily wrong about the food. I grew to really love the fresh seafood, trying many things for the first time in my life (fresh octopus, bocorones, etc) and loving them. I also quite liked the tapas culture, the gazpacho, the sangria, the fresh food markets... ahhhh, Spain. How I miss thee. 
