easy - 5/6 - Manu’s Menu

BANANA, COCONUT AND PASSION FRUIT SMOOTHIE

Lately I have been experimenting quite a bit with smoothies and shakes. The truth is, I have been left with some ripe fruits that needed to be used and I wanted to make something light and healthy with it. Besides, I always find that smoothies are a great way to get my fussy children to…

BAILEY’S MOUSSE

Happy Paddy’s Day everyone! Raise your hand if you love Bailey’s! I DO!!! I am not a very keen wine drinker (I know I know… very un-Italian…), but cocktails, sweet wines and sweet liquors are a different matter. And Bailey’s is one of my favourite… to drink and to cook with. That is why in…

COFFEE AND KAHLUA GELATO

Today’s recipe is a spin off of my Bailey’s Ice cream. Actually, I wanted to make Bailey’s Ice cream and got all the ingredients for it… until I realised I did not have enough Baileys! Aaargh! That’s when I looked inside my liquor cabinet and saw Kahlua! Mmmmm I love coffee gelato, it is actually…

MIMOSA COCKTAIL

Today I want to share with you a very easy recipe for quite a sophisticated drink: the Mimosa cocktail. This delicious and pretty looking drink is basically made of sparkling wine mixed with fresh orange juice, could it get any easier? As tomorrow we celebrate International Women’s Day, I thought this would be the most…

CARPACCIO WITH GRANA PADANO AND ROCKET

Summer in Italy can be very hot, though since living in Sydney the term “hot” got a much “warmer” meaning… 😉 Anyhow, Italians tend to eat light in summer. We do not like to use the oven or the stove too much when the outside temperature is so hot, especially when you think that the…

SPLIT-SECOND COOKIES

It is time again for the “Secret recipe club” reveal! I am sure you all know what the club is about, but for the few of you who still don’t know about it, here goes a brief explanation. Each month you are assigned a participating food blogger to make a recipe from and in turn…

BEEF SCHIACCIATINA

This is one of my “go to” recipes for a quick, yet delicious mid week meal. Schiacciatina means “something small that has been pressed”, and it is basically a very flat burger made with only ground beef, Parmigiano Reggiano, salt and pepper. My mum used to make this often for me as a child. I…

PENNE WITH SALAMI AND PROVOLONE

Today I want to share with you one of my husband’s favourite pasta recipes. He loves salami and provolone, so when he first tasted these penne, he told me “this is the best pasta I have ever eaten”. Now, that’s a complement! It is very tasty indeed: salami does not require any “introduction”, but what…

CHOCOLATE FUDGE

Who doesn’t like chocolate?? Well… I know a couple of people who are not crazy about it, but really… not many, right? When it comes to home-made Christmas gifts, chocolate never fails and I try to always include something chocolatey in my little hampers. This year I made my favourite fudge! I made it for…

HOME-MADE CHOCOLATE SYRUP

Today I want to share with you a very easy recipe. I love making at home, food that you would usually buy ready made at the stores. It is often so much tastier and definitely healthier! I actually had to make this for another recipe that called for chocolate syrup, which is an item that…

HOME-MADE PUMPKIN PURÉE

Come October-November I start seeing a lot of recipes that call for pumpkin purée… the truth is, the thought of looking for the canned version never even occurred to me. I didn’t even know it existed before I started blogging… So, I looked it up on the internet and discovered that it is plain and…

VANILLA PANNA COTTA WITH PASSION FRUIT COULIS

Today’s recipe is a delicious twist on a classic Italian dessert. The base is a simple and evergreen vanilla panna cotta (a great addition to any home chef skill set), but I think the passion fruit coulis on the top is the best part and it gives it a very exotic touch. I also love…

GREEN TAGLIATELLE WITH TUNA AND RICOTTA

Today I want to share with you a dish that is very dear to my heart. It is a very simple recipe, but if made with home made pasta it can be a little bit more labour intensive (but so much worth it!). The reason why I love it so much is because it reminds…

HOME-MADE YOGURT

A couple of months ago, my friend Sawsan from Chef in Disguise posted a beautiful tutorial on how to make home-made yogurt. Since I saw it, I knew I had to give it a try too! This was my first time at making yogurt, but I remember my mum making it often when I was…

PEACH AND ALMOND TRIFLE

Today’s recipe is another “spur of the moment” kind of recipe. I made it a while ago and forgot all about it, until today when I was organising my archive. I actually made it to finish up some of the crema pasticcera, cream and pan di spagna that I had left over from making my…

FRUIT SALAD EN PAPILLOTE – MACEDONIA AL CARTOCCIO

Our July 2012 Daring Cooks’ host was Sarah from All Our Fingers in the Pie! Sarah challenges us to learn a new cooking technique called “Cooking En Papillote” which is French and translates to “cooking in parchment”. As I already said in my Baked Feta post (the first of the recipes I created this month), I was really…

PASSION FRUIT CURD

I have to decided to set out on a mission: try and find out as many passion fruit based dishes as possible… and then cook them! Hehehehe After posting my Passion fruit and Coconut Crème Brûlée a little while ago, today I am going to share with you the recipe for a delicious Passion fruit…

PASSION FRUIT & COCONUT CRÈME BRULÉE

Crème brulée is one my favourite desserts. I love to break the thick and bittersweet caramel crust to find the silky sweet cream underneath. I love contrasting flavours and textures in food as you find that they all melt together when you savour them giving you ONE distinctive taste. It is a bit like all…

PIZZAIOLA BEEF SCHNITZEL

Today I want to share with you a very easy recipe. It is a dish that my mum would make often when I was a child as it was quick and loved by everyone. It is called “pizzaiola” as it resembles pizza, thanks to the tomato and oregano sauce in which the beef is cooked. …

SPAGHETTI WITH CHERRY TOMATOES AND ANCHOVIES

Yes! Finally I get to share with you a spaghetti recipe! Strangely enough, I seldom do… I think it must be because for an Italian, spaghetti are a staple and I tend to forget how delicious they are. This is a very simple yet delicious recipe for one of the tastiest spaghetti sauces ever. Like…

EASY MERINGUE PIE – MERINGATA VELOCE

Yesterday was my birthday! YAY! Well… usually my husband buys me a chocolate cake from my favourite patisserie in town, but this year he was working in the other side of town and there was no way he could get there in time. So, I made myself a very quick but delicious birthday cake as…

AUTUMN FRUIT SALAD – MACEDONIA AUTUNNALE

This is actually a “non-recipe” as it does not require cooking. I am a big fan of fruit salads and my mom would very often serve it before any dessert when we had guests over. It is a very good palette cleanser and it can be as easy or as fancy as you like. It…