Prawn Salad with Chickpeas and Pinenuts
Saturday, November 30, 2024This warm salad of spicy prawns, chickpeas and pine nuts comes together in just 15 minutes and requires very little effort. I used a small chilli pepper for a little heat, leave it out if you don't like. Swap the arugula for baby spinach or mâche and pinenuts for cashews or hazelnuts. Enjoy it with some homemade bread or cooked wholegrains.
Snow Peas with Bacon and Red Onion
Friday, November 29, 2024Ready in 15 minutes, this easy stirfry with snow peas, red onion, and bacon makes for great midweek dinner. Be careful to never overcook the snow peas to maintain their delicious crunch. You can add some baby corns, carrots, shelled peas, and shiitake or muer mushrooms to the stirfry to make it even more interesting and colourful.
Sweet Potato Curry with Green Beans
Thursday, November 28, 2024Curry is something special and so versatile that cooking and eating it never gets boring. They are a little reminiscent of stews and taste particularly good when served warm with rice or flatbread. You can add some chickpeas or chicken to your curry so that you don't miss out the proteins. It's a super-easy recipe to make and perfect for weeknight dinners.
Lamb Neck Roast with Rough-cut Chermoula
Wednesday, November 27, 2024Gelatin rich lamb neck is a relatively economical cut, but no less delicious. Similar to oxtail, the connective and fatty tissues marbling the meat make the lamb neck a rich cut perfect for low and slow cooking with proper seasoning. With a little patience and love, you can transform this inexpensive cut of meat into the most flavourful, buttery, and fork-tender treat.
Chermoula is a tangy herb condiment used in North African cooking. It is traditionally used to flavour fish or seafood, but it can be used on other meats or vegetables. It is somewhat similar to the Latin American chimichurri.
Chicken Rogan Josh
Tuesday, November 26, 2024Rogan josh is a type of Indian curry distinguished by its thick, flavorful red sauce and tender meat, usually mutton or lamb. Rogan Josh has its roots in Persia. "Rogan" in Persian means clarified butter, while "Josh" stands for cooking meat at high heat. I am using boneless, skinned chicken thighs so the dinner will be on the table in half an hour. Serve with rice or naan--perfect for weeknights!
Tegole Valdostane
Monday, November 25, 2024‘Tegole’ is the Italian word for tiles and when you look at the flat biscuits, this name is very appropriate. ‘Valdostane’ is a shortened form of Valle d'Aostal. These wafer-thin crispy nutty biscuits are tiles from the Valle d'Aosta, according to the name. They are made with a batter rather than a dough, and be sure to keep them in an airtight container to retain their delightfully light crunch. A perfect accompaniment to an espresso!
Marzipanstollen
Sunday, November 24, 2024You should bake this moist Christmas stollen just in time for Advent (Sun, Dec 1, 2024 – Tue, Dec 24, 2024) to sweeten the festive season for you and your family. Marzipan, raisins, roasted almonds and candied orange peel make it a delicious and festive treat. If you are not a fan of raisins, you can either leave them out or you can replace them with other dried fruit such as cranberries, chopped dates, apricots or sour cherries. To soak the raisins you can also use water or apple juice instead of rum, so the children and pregnant women will also be able to enjoy it. Both candied orange peel and bitter almond extract are classics in a traditional stollen, but they are not so popular with some people. You can omit both and your marzipanstollen will still be great. Enjoy it with a glass of mulled wine or a cup of coffee.
Jack Daniels Braised Chicken and Onions
Saturday, November 23, 2024This smothered chicken thighs recipe uses skin on and bone-in chicken thighs with a rich sauce made from lots of onions, whiskey, garlic, and chicken stock. The chicken is tender, juicy, and full of flavour, making it the perfect comforting dinner. I only used 250 ml chicken stock, as I prefer the onion sauce thicker and chunckier, but you can customize it and use more stock to suit your preferences. Use thyme if you can't find fresh tarragon.
Pumpkin, Mince and Spinach Gratin
Friday, November 22, 2024Bring pumpkin to your dinner table with this moreish pumpkin and mince gratin that can easily be doubled to feed a crowd. There are plenty of herbs and coarsely chopped spinach in the mince mixture. The pumpkin in this dish keeps the meat really tender and juicy. Serve this as a standalone meal or with a side salad, pasta or bread.
Himmelsboten Heavenly Messengers
Thursday, November 21, 2024These Himmelsboten are not only popular with the little ones. My husband is also completely addicted to these cookies. I used a simple and very basic 3-ingredient shortcrust pastry, but you can add some orange peels or vanilla extract. Cut it out and then decorate with sugar icing and chocolate lentils or almonds if you want a healthier alternative. They are a delicious creation for the Christmas season. There are only two other things to note. The prongs of the stars should be at least three centimetres long so that you can wrap the Smartie or almond well. And you need a star or snowflake cookie cutter with five prongs so that the celestial messengers look like a humab figure.
Roasted Fennel Agrodolce
Wednesday, November 20, 2024This Roasted Fennel makes a great side dish because it’s incredibly easy to make, and so delicious. Raw fennel is sharp and tastes like aniseed, but it transforms when roasted, losing all of its anise flavour and crunchy texture to become buttery and caramelized.
Agrodolce is an Italian sweet and sour sauce with a sticky consistency. Its name is Italian for “sour” (agro) and “sweet” (dolce). A classic agrodolce recipe contains reduced honey (or sugar), vinegar, pine nuts, red onion/shallot and a mixture of dried fruits, such as raisins, cranberries or dried apricots. The sauce is fantastic with Brussel's sprouts, cauliflowers or broccoli too.
Minced Beef Curry
Tuesday, November 19, 2024The great thing about curry is the wide variety of flavours: this recipe with minced beef and garden peas goes well with a mild curry. Spicy, warming, nutritious and simply delicious--a must for cold days. Serve it with steamed rice, naan, noodles or potatoes. Besides garden peas, you can also use Brussel sprouts, spinach or winter squashes.
Santa Cookies
Monday, November 18, 2024Nothing announces the arrival of the holiday season like the smell of freshly baked cookies and there’s no better way to celebrate the festive season than by decorating Christmas cookies. These Santa cookies are easy to bake and are an eye-catcher on any cookie tray. They are fun, delicious and make heartwarming homemade gifts for friends and neighbours.
When the smell of freshly baked cookies wafts through the house and we decorate the cute little Santas, the Christmas spirit comes alive. These cookies are not only a treat for the palate, but also for the soul, as giving cookies a cute and festive makeover brings the joy and warmth of the season into our homes.