I’ve been thinking a lot over the last week or so about what to feed my family this Christmas time, experimenting with ideas and recipes old and new. We need joyful, bright food this year, to counter the almost savage sadness of another empty place at the table. My sister-in-law Lesley died quite suddenly in…
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Roasted balsamic onions
Onions are an integral part of my cooking, and their sweet, aromatic flavour adds depth and intensity to so many dishes. But in this dish they shine on their own. I saw something like this on Nigella Lawson’s Nigellisima Italian themed cooking show, and have been itching to make a version of my own ever since.…
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Granola – breakfast bliss
When I decided to make my own granola I looked at lots of recipes and found several that I liked, but they all seemed far too sweet for my taste, so I made up my own recipe that was loosely based on one by David Lebowitz via Nigella Lawson via Andy Fairfield with a large…
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Cinnamon palmiers
Crisp, cinnamon scented, buttery pastries and excellent coffee were what was called for at our place today. Treats are most needed when exam season begins. The wickedly rich chocolate ganache we had with them might have been a little too indulgent, but then chocolate always makes studying easier! Palmiers are a traditional French pastry, often…
Read MoreYoghurt cream with strawberries
Strawberry season has started early where I live and these beautiful, luscious, sweet and juicy strawberries were just begging to be eaten. I read in a wonderful book by one of my favourite authors, Helene Hanff, of 84 Charing Cross Road fame, a 19th century quote about strawberries – “Doubtless God could have made a…
Read MoreSimple pizza dough
We make pizza fairly often at our place – with teenaged boys in the house, it’s a real crowd pleaser. However, pizza, like pasta, presents challenges when one member of the household is a coeliac and needs to have a strict gluten free diet. Most of the meals I cook work for the whole family…
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Potato and pea salad with hazelnut dressing
This salad is not much like the mayonnaise flooded, stodgy version of potato salad familiar to many. It has a nutty hazelnut and mustard dressing that has a great bite and contrasts with tender potatoes and crunchy peas. It’s perfect for when sugar snap and snow peas are in season. It can be served warm,…
Read MoreSweet potato soup – winter joy
Pumpkin soup is ubiquitous as a winter time meal in my part of the world so I thought I’d mix it up a bit and try a sweet potato soup instead. Lots of spices and a bit of heat make this soup a little different and it would be a good introduction for the uninitiated…
Read MoreLemon and pine nut muffins
There was a bit of nose wrinkling at our place when I first floated the idea of lemon and pine nut muffins, but when they were ready; warm, sticky with lemon glaze, and topped with lightly toasted pine nuts, there was no shortage of testers, and plenty of positive feedback. I love the sweet nuttiness…
Read MoreBaby capsicums stuffed with feta and herbs
Sometimes I need to sieze the moment and make something delicious just because I see an item at the fruit and vegetable shop that screams, “Buy me!”. These baby capsicums did just that. I scraped out the core and the seeds, stuffed them with marinated feta and heaps of herbs and roasted them for about 15 minutes in a hot…
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Simple food 