Terrific made on the day, keeps for ages, and it’s just as delicious made with or without alcohol. Go wild with the decorations – or keep it simple! Christmas Cake I’m fussy about Christmas Cake because (speaking frankly) there are too many not-so-great-ones out there. Here’s how I like / don’t like my Christmas Cake: With or without alcohol – cake has to be just as good with or without booze (I mostly make it without – so it can be widely shared!...
*** This recipe is part of a Christmas Special where I show you how to make 3 mains and 4 side dishes that take 1.5 hrs to prepare and can be largely made ahead. So this Christmas, you can spend less time in the kitchen and more time with your family! 🙂 *** Duck is not something I cook with on an everyday basis. But every time I make it, I wonder why I don’t....
I’m the only one in my family who likes mushrooms, but that doesn’t stop me making this creamy mushroom sauce when I cook steak at home. Chris lets me have his mushrooms and just has extra creamy sauce, so it’s win-win if you ask me. The sauce is creamy, velvety and so delicious, I love to use Chestnut Mushrooms, but you can use any of your favourite mushrooms. This creamy mushroom sauce is so good over steak, but it goes just as well over pasta with a little parmesan cheese....
The creamy sauce is made with heavy cream, garlic, and parmesan. It’s delicious. Your only task as a chef is to avoid overcooking the dish! I have quite a few fish and seafood recipes on this site, but I am always on the lookout for more interesting recipes. This one is a keeper - it’s so easy to make and it’s delicious. If you happen to have a bag or two of frozen seafood mix in your freezer (mine came from Trader Joe’s), this recipe is a great way to turn them into an easy, delicious meal....
Ready in about fifteen minutes, it takes advantage of beautiful ripe summer tomatoes and firm, seedless English cucumbers. Ingredients You’ll only need a few simple ingredients to make this cucumber tomato salad. The exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below. Here’s an overview of what you’ll need: English cucumber: These are the elongated cucumbers that are tightly wrapped in plastic. Cherry tomatoes: Try to pick tomatoes that are red and ripe yet firm....
A classic, retro sauce for steak - this Diane Sauce takes me back to my childhood, not that I ever had it then, but it was always something my mum and dad would order at a restaurant after the prawn cocktail and marie rose sauce starter of course, followed by black forest gateaux!And now it’s totally something I would order at a restaurant - but it’s also great being able to make at home for steak night....
A terrific quick bread recipe – emphasis on the word quick! Super easy Cinnamon Bread recipe! I bet it’s quicker for you to get this in the oven than to pop up to the shops for a loaf of cinnamon bread. Truly. Dear readers, this is a quick bread. Emphasis on the word quick. I promise there is nothing tricky about this recipe, and it’s actually quite forgiving. Once I only used 2 cups of flour instead of 2 1/2 cups (sometimes I over estimate my multi tasking capabilities!...
How do you eat guac? As a dip with a supersize bag of Doritos? On the side of homemade chilli carne (my personal favourite choice)? Or as a way to level up slices of avocado to go with that breakfast egg? This recipe will show you how to make guacamole easily in under 10 minutes. It has just the right balance of creamy avocados with finely chopped mild, sweet onions, with chillies and garlic adding a dash of flavour....
Tuna patties are easy, affordable, and delicious. And they’re ready in just 30 minutes! Feel free to double the recipe - the leftovers are excellent too. Sometimes the simplest meals are the best. I love cooking (after all, I’m a food blogger). But sometimes you tire of complex recipes and heavy meals and you want something light and easy. Ingredients You’ll only need a few simple ingredients to make these tasty patties....
This recipe is a handy way to use up leftover egg whites if you’ve made a recipe using just the egg yolks. A really great fluffy Egg White Omelette More often than not, an egg white omelette is a miserable, bland and rubbery excuse for a breakfast. Usually it’s an afterthought to avoid wasting egg whites leftover from using the yolks for a specific recipe. Other times, it’s a self-imposed torture....
🎉🎉🎉HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!🎉🎉🎉 And…. SURPRISE!! A late Christmas present / Happy New Year gift for my readers – my Asian Takeout eCookbook! A couple of months ago, I put up a vote for the theme for the next free eCookbook. Oh bugger, wait a sec. I just checked….and it was waaaay more than a couple of months ago, it was back in August when I put the vote up. Let me start again....
A delight to look at and even better to eat, if you love South-East Asian food, this one’s got your name written all over it! Golden Turmeric Fish Everybody has heard these days that turmeric is good for you. This golden-coloured spice is reputed to help prevent heart disease, Alzheimer’s, cancer, plus has potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, to name a few of its benefits. Well, I’d love to tell you that I’m including turmeric into this recipe for health reasons....
Making homemade chips were one of the first things I tested when I finally got around to buying my air fryer.I tried a number of different methods: Soaking the potatoes in water, then patting dry before air frying. Verdict: The outcome didn’t warrant the effort and time of washing and drying the potatoes. Yes, the idea is to remove excess starch so the potatoes don’t burn before they’re cooked. But I found I could cook them without soaking, and they were ALWAYs cooked in the middle before the outside got too brown....
Teriyaki sauce is used for most commonly for chicken, beef and fish, but also for pork and even for offal as well. The most popular of is Teriyaki Chicken. The thick, sweet, salty marinade matches perfectly with poultry, and creates a wonderful caramelisation when seared over high heat. My Japanese mother would rather eat plain chicken than marinated using a bottled Teriyaki Sauce, just the thought of buying Teriyaki Sauce offends her!...
Made with chickpeas, tahini, lemon, olive oil and garlic, it’s a great standby pantry dip for unexpected guests or midnight munchies! Creamy and smooth, it’s completely incomparable to the thick, sour store bought hummus. Hummus recipe Whenever I’m planning gatherings, I like to keep the stress levels down by using a combination of some store bought things and some homemade things for pre dinner nibble platters. I buy cured meats, olives and crackers (though these homemade gourmet crackers are in high demand in my circles)....
The secret to juicy skewers? Season the chicken with a tasty olive oil rub and avoid drying it out on the grill. Chicken breast is so EASY. It’s always there in the fridge, affordable, available, and versatile. I’m grateful for this simple ingredient! These grilled chicken skewers make the most of this ingredient. They are juicy, succulent, well-seasoned, and grilled to perfection. They are very easy to make and everyone enjoys them....
It’s also much less work than filling, rolling, and baking enchiladas. And leftovers are really good - just as good as the freshly made dish. I’m so in love with this delicious casserole! It’s so flavorful, so filling, and so easy to make. My entire family loves it and requests it often. And leftovers are great too. The secret is in the seasonings. They make the dish truly taste like enchiladas, even without the tortillas....
With a prep time of just 15 minutes, it’s also very easy to make, and the leftovers are really good! I’m not sure why fruitcakes are so controversial. Admittedly some of them are quite bad! Dense, heavy, and filled with fake red-and-green-hued dried fruit. But when made right, I think they are absolutely delightful. In fact, I like this cake so much, that I don’t reserve it for the holidays....
They’re wonderful when freshly baked, but the leftovers are great too and can be frozen for later use. I love having muffins for breakfast. I make a big batch of them on the weekend, freeze them, and thaw them in the microwave each morning. They’re perfect with my morning coffee! ☕ These muffins are especially good. They are incredibly fluffy and they have this wonderful lemony flavor. They’re perfect for breakfast, of course, but they also make a great afternoon snack....
