This is an Asian style soup which is by no means authentic but I love the fresh hot and sour taste. This version is easy to make (don’t let the list of ingredients scare you, they are predominantly store cupboard staples) as well as being light and healthy. I use a mixture of fresh and…
Category: Recipe
Smoked Mackerel Paté
This is another very simple recipe and great to serve with drinks and other nibbles when entertaining. If the portion size below is too much you can keep this in the freezer and simply defrost and enjoy another day. If you’re using plan soft cheese I would add some fresh herbs, like chopped chives to…
Cannellini bean soup
This is very much a store cupboard meal idea. A hearty and healthy soup that really doesn’t take long to cook at all! If you’d like to make this vegetarian, you can swap chicken stock for veg stock. If you’d like to go vegan, you can remove the Greek yoghurt and Parmesan cheese. It’s delicious…
Curried Roast Cauliflower
Cauliflower is such a flavour carrier when you roast it and you can mix it up with so many flavour combinations. This is my curried combo but you can make it with garlic, herbs and Parmesan or even sumac spice for a bit of a citrus zestiness. To be honest, you could just roast cauliflower…
Aubergine antipasti
This is one of my most requested recipes. I think the aubergine with tomato, garlic and lots of extra virgin olive oil is a perfect flavour combo. So delicious with a bit of fresh bread or toasted ciabatta. It takes a while but it’s worth it! Ingredients: 2 large aubergines, sliced into fingers (skin on)…
Italian Baked White Fish
This is such an easy midweek supper and is virtually just an assembly job. The most effort you’re going to put into this dish will be in frying the onions and the garlic. You can use just about any piece of white fish for this recipe and should just pay attention to the cooking time…
My take on Chicken Giouvetsi
This is my version of a baked Orzo pasta dish traditionally cooked with lamb but I’m using chicken legs. Ingredients: 1 large chopped onion 1 clove of crushed garlic 4 chicken legs 2 chopped tomatoes 1 1/2 cups of orzo pasta 750ml of chicken stock 10 – 12 green pitted olives 200g sliced mushrooms Half…
Pork and apple with cider and new potatoes
My husband loves the left over sauce with a pasta the following day, potatoes and all. It’s very Italian to have a “pasta con patate” (pasta with potatoes). It’s not the most attractive dish, it’s very “beige” but it is delicious! Ingredients: 500g pork fillet, cut into bite sized chunks 500g new potatoes 1 chopped…
Curried Beef Mince
This is such an easy and healthy mince to make. I make it in a larger portion so that I can freeze portions for another day. I have also loaded this version with extra veg to bulk it out and make it better for you 🙂 To make my life easier I have used frozen…
Pork and fennel mince with cabbage
Pork and fennel are perfect flavour pairs. In this recipe I’ve used fennel seeds as well as chopped fennel bulbs. You can serve this as a one bowl wonder with a slice of crusty bread or as a ragu for pasta with some Parmesan cheese grated on top. It might take a few minutes to…
Asian Beef Casserole
This is a traditional beef casserole but uses Asian flavours to make an almost “slow cooked stir fry”. It’s delicious served with rice or noodles and can even be used as a pie filling with a shortcrust pastry “top” if you fancy something different. The last time I made this I used cauliflower rice to…
Baked chilli con carne and rice
This is not something that I make often but it is tasty and really easy because I use a spice sachet for the chilli and pre-cooked rice. Couldn’t be easier! Ingredients: 500g lean beef mince 1 chopped onion 3 chopped peppers 1 tablespoon of tomato purée 1 clove of chopped garlic 1 teaspoon of sugar…
Low and Slow Courgette Soup
I like to make a soup over the weekend so that we have something ready for dinner one evening during the week. Inevitably they are veg soups, they’re easy, tasty and healthy. This one is similar to most of the other soups that I make but the only difference is that I cook the courgettes…
Giant couscous and chickpea salad with feta and mint
At the moment I’m slightly addicted to this salad. As it’s summer I find myself making one of these every weekend alongside a braai with other bits and pieces. SO, SO GOOD! I think it’s the herbs that make it, especially the mint, and the giant couscous which is so nice and “carby”. Ingredients: 1…
Lentils with mushrooms and spinach
This is a really earthy and filling side dish. It goes well with roasted or pan fried white meat such as chicken or pork, a nice piece of pan fried cod or served with griddled halumi cheese. Ingredients: 250g puy lentils (I bought ready cooked ones) 1 small onion, finely chopped 1 garlic clove, crushed…
“Italian” Green Beans
The reason why I call these “Italian” green beans is because the Italians tend to cook their veg far longer than we do in South Africa (or England for that matter). When I first saw these green beans I had assumed that they were completely over-cooked but this is exactly how they were intended. They…
Involtini di maiale (stuffed pork olives)
These are so delicious and can be stuffed with all sorts of vegetables. It’s a bit of a faff to make but well worth it. You can use beef fillet although that’s a bit pricey and pork is just as good, as long as it’s fillet so that it’s tender. I’ve used breadcrumbs in my…
Oven roasted mixed squash soup
This year in the garden we planted courgette and a yellow squash which we’ve never had before and to be honest I didn’t quite know what to do with it until I made this soup. If you’re South African, it’s similar to a gem squash inside but about 3 times the size with a much…
Garlic infused olive oil croutons
Making croutons is an easy way to use up stale bread, they are tasty, crunchy and so good in soups and salads. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Slice up some stale bread into chunky cubes and drizzle with garlic infused olive oil (or extra virgin olive oil). Sprinkle on some seasoning. I used a mixed…
Cherry tomato pasta sauce
This summer we had a bumper crop of tomatoes in the garden. We had tomato salad almost every night, sun dried tomatoes and of course I made tons of tomato pasta sauce to store for rainy days. Another super easy, super tasty sauce. To store the sauce for longer, top the sterilised jar you’ve put…
Insalata di riso (rice salad)
You don’t find rice salad often enough. It’s a great way to use up left over cooked rice too. Once again this is not much of a recipe and more like another chop and assemble job. Very simple. Very delicious. It’s great for a barbecue or served with grilled chicken or fish. Try it with…
Oven roasted “sun blush” tomatoes
This is a cheat way to “sun dry” tomatoes. The flavours are intensified by the slow cooking and they can be kept longer as long as they are stored well. You can make this recipe with fewer tomatoes if you’re trying to use them up for example. Ingredients: 500g sweet vine ripened tomatoes (I use…
Broccoli salad
This is a really tasty, fresh and healthy salad. There are many ingredients but they are all important and add to the overall flavour. For the salad: 1 head of broccoli cut into small pieces and blanched in boiling water 70g smoked bacon bits or pancetta, fried until most of the fat has rendered down…
Store cupboard chicken marinade
This is another one of those non-recipe recipes. Too easy. Just a mix, save and cool job. I’ve used ingredients that I tend to always have to hand, in the cupboard or the fridge. 6 – 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs 1 tsp Dijon mustard 1 tsp wholegrain mustard 1 tbsp tomato ketchup 1 tsp…
Melenzane alla parmigiana (Aubergine parmigiana)
This is one of those dishes I’ve enjoyed many times in Italy when we visit. Almost every household has their own variation on the recipe, I’ve seen it done so many different ways, all slightly different to each other. I’ve used half parmesan and half cheddar which is not very Italian but this is my…
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