Today’s recipe is perfect for potlucks and picnics. It is one of my favourite savoury pies and I make it often. What I love the most about quiches and savoury pies is that you can prepare them in advance and eat them at room temperature, so you don’t have to spend too much time in…
Crespelle Cake with Asparagus
The April Daring Cooks Challenge was brought to us by Joanna from What’s On The List. She taught us all about Pathiri and challenged us to create our own version of this inspirational Indian dish! Mmmm I know what you are thinking… “crespelle cake with asparagus” doesn’t sound very Indian. And it isn’t. Actually, Joanna…
Fattoush with Sumac Dressing
For March’s Daring Cooks’ Challenge, Ruth, Shelley and Sawsan asked us to totally veg out! We made salads and dressings, letting the sky be the limit as we created new flavors and combinations that reflect our own unique tastes. Ohhhh yesss! That’s exactly what went through my mind when I read about the challenge! It…
Linguine with Potatoes
Today’s recipe is not my own. It’s actually my mother’s. It is one of her favourite pasta sauces and she made it for all of us when visiting from Italy. Usually, as a rule of thumb, Italians do not eat other carbs together with pasta, but this is a delicious exception. I often say that…
Spanakopita
The February Daring Cooks‘ Challenge was hosted by Audax of Audax Artifex. The challenge brought us to Greece with a delicious, flaky spanakopita – a spinach pie in a phyllo pastry shell. Oh Greek food, how I love thee! I think the fact that Italians and Greeks share a sea and lots of history, has…
Green Bean, Tomato and Potato Salad
Today I want to share with you the recipe for a delicious and healthy side dish. This Green Bean Tomato and Potato Salad is very special to me and eating it always takes me back in time. My mum would often make it in summer when we were holidaying in Sicily. It is a very…
CABBAGE ROLLS
November’s Daring Cooks’ Challenge had us on a roll! Olga from Effortless Lessly challenged us to make stuffed cabbage rolls using her Ukrainian heritage to inspire us. Filled with meat, fish or vegetables, flexibility and creativity were the name of the game to get us rolling! This was the first Daring Cooks challenge I took…
BRAISED FENNEL WITH RED WINE VINEGAR
Going through my Recipe Archive, I have realised that I don’t have as many side dish recipes as I should! So today I will share with you a very quick and delicious side dish, perfect to accompany both meat (especially pork) and fish: Braised Fennel with Red Wine Vinegar. It is a dish my mum…
SPINACH AND FETA GOZLEME
I have only recently discovered Gozleme. Sydney is full of little Turkish shops that sell amazing food, but I had always ordered a kebab or a pide. At least until a few months ago, when I had a spinach and feta Gozleme and I loved it so much, I have never ordered anything else. I…
CABBAGE AND TALEGGIO CRESPELLE
The weather is getting warmer in Sydney, though I always find it hard to think of September/October as “spring”. To me it’s still autumn, back to school season and the time during which to enjoy mushrooms, cabbage and pumpkin! I am hopeless, I know! So… before it gets even warmer down here, let me share…
GRILLED RADICCHIO WITH GORGONZOLA SAUCE
Today’s recipe is very simple and quick to make, and it makes for a very tasty and elegant appetiser, or even main dish if you increase the quantities. I love it and make it often for a quick and satisfying lunch. I had it for the first time at a restaurant in Milan and it…
SPINACH, ROCKET AND STRAWBERRY SALAD WITH STRAWBERRY VINAIGRETTE
I have seen quite a few recipes of salads that include strawberries lately and I was very curious to try one myself. I usually enjoy having fruits in savoury dishes and I think strawberries (and berries in general) make for fantastic savoury ingredients as they are slightly tart and not overly sweet. I have even…
TROFIE WITH TALEGGIO AND ZUCCHINI
It’s getting cold down here and when it gets chilly, I find myself craving for cheese… better if it is melted! I also like to spend some time in the kitchen making pasta with my youngest daughter (she is quite talented I must say) and the pasta we have the most fun making together is…
EASY EGGPLANT PARMIGIANA
Today I want to share with you my family’s recipe for Eggplant Parmigiana. It is a simplified and lighter version of the classic Parmigiana that has mozzarella inside and needs baking. This is a much faster recipe and I love to make it in summer, when I do not feel like turning on the oven…
PUMPKIN RISOTTO
Today’s recipe is from Lombardia, the region of Italy I grew up in and it is a very simple risotto made with pumpkin cream. As you know, it is autumn down here in the southern hemisphere… so what’s better than some pumpkin risotto to warm us up? Don’t you just love that orange colour? I…
HONEY AND GINGER PORK STIR FRY
Maybe not everyone knows this, but my eldest daughter has started her first year of “big school” in January. It is all very thrilling and exciting for all of us, though this has also brought a huge change in our routines. Let’s put it this way… I am now spending more time on the trains…
RAITA
The first time I ate raita, I was in Mumbai. I was still quite new to Indian food (we are talking about over 10 years ago!) and everything seemed too spicy for me! That’s when I was served some raita… I loved it immediately as it was refreshing and cooling (the weather was also very…
CHICKEN STIR FRY WITH CASHEW NUTS
I have a thing for Thai food. I confess. And of all Thai food, chicken with cashew nuts is my absolute favourite. I still remember the first time I ate it: I was on holiday in Port Douglas with my husband and that’s where I had my first meal in a “real” Thai restaurant. For…
SAUSAGE AND FENNEL RISOTTO
I don’t think I have said this before, but when I was expecting my eldest daughter, I used to have very strong savoury cravings and risotto was always on the top of my list! The great thing about risotto is that it is like a white canvas that you can paint with any flavour you…
PUMPKIN AND FONTINA CROQUETTES
I found this recipe while browsing the Internet and it was love at first sight! I must admit I had only ever made croquettes out of potatoes, so the idea of being able to use pumpkin instead opened up a whole new world of possibilities! It is a delicious recipe that can be served either…
PUMPKIN DOUGHNUTS
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…
ROAST BRINED CHICKEN
Audax of Audax Artifex was our November 2012 Daring Cooks’ host. Audax has brought us into the world of brining and roasting, where we brined meat and vegetables and roasted them afterwards for a delicious meal! Wow! I had never brined anything before! I thought it would be hard and time consuming, but it was neither…
GRILLED FUJI FRUIT, SPINACH AND ROCKET SALAD
I have noticed that l don’t have enough recipes for side dishes on the blog, so I thought of remedying that and today I am going to share with you the recipe for a delicious salad. This is perfect for autumn, when fuji fruits are in season. In fact I have had this recipe in…
PAPPARDELLE WITH RADICCHIO AND SPECK
Radicchio (pronounced rah-DEE-kee-oh) is a chicory very specific to certain areas of Northern Italy, especially Veneto. There are a few varieties, but Chioggia (the round kind) and Treviso (the elongated kind) are the most common. I have only ever seen Treviso in Sydney, so that’s what I have used for this recipe, but the round variety…
PASTA WITH SICILIAN STUFFED ARTICHOKES
Today I am sharing a pasta recipe – Pasta with Sicilian Stuffed Artichokes – in a guest post at Chef Dennis’ blog, A Culinary Journey. I think pretty much all food bloggers know Chef Dennis. He is a very talented chef, but above all he is a very kind person and someone who is always ready…
PAELLA MIXTA
Our Daring Cooks’ September 2012 hostess was Inma of la Galletika. Inma brought us a taste of Spain and challenged us to make our very own delicious Paella! Paella!!!!!!!!!! When I saw this month’s challenge I couldn’t have been happier. When I lived in Europe, Spain was my favourite place to travel to. I have been there…
STUFFED CAPSICUMS – PEPERONI RIPIENI
I love capsicums (or bell peppers!), I always have. I like them in any shape or form and made in any sorts of ways, but this is by far my favourite recipe. My mum would make these often, and the house would be filled with the aromas of baked capsicums… yum! So hearthy! The filling…
