Rosie
SNAPPER WITH MANGO AND AVOCADO SALSA

After a dash to the fish co-op one afternoon we produced this delicious dinner of a Barbecued Snapper served with Spicy Mango and Avocado Salsa and accompanied it with the best friend of white fleshed fish - potatoes - simply steamed and tossed in butter. It was spectacularly simple and delicious ….

SNAPPER WITH MANGO AND AVOCADO SALSA
Caren
MUSSELS IN CIDER AND CREAM

Inspired by my favourite, old, French cookbook, I prepared this mussel dish. It is very simple to make, the quality of the result relying upon the use of the very best produce you can lay your hands on. And aren’t we fortunate in Australia to have such ingredients to indulge our appetites and fantasies? ….

MUSSELS IN CIDER AND CREAM
Caren
XO SAUCE

This is a recipe for XO Sauce with a difference. It is gluten-free, of course, which is the first difference. The next is that XO sauces usually include dried scallops and seafood but we use readily available bacon and mushroom to create the savoury complexity expected in an XO sauce ….

XO SAUCE
Jan
MUSHROOM AND LENTIL MOUSSAKA

Versions of moussaka have been made in the Levant and the Balkans, in Egypt and Turkey and Greece for who knows how long. Proof of its popularity. But do we need another one? Well, this Mushroom and Lentil Moussaka has no gluten. It has no meat. It has no potato. The eggplant is grilled not fried ….

MUSHROOM AND LENTIL MOUSSAKA
Entrée, Main, Vegetables
Rosie
TUBULAR TASTES

Deliciously succulent pasta tubes filled with aubergine, ricotta, spinach, parmesan and smoked Fior di Latte, topped and bottomed with home made tomato sauce ….. salivating yet? This week’s recipe is a home-cook’s dream as it can be prepared well ahead of time and gently reheated to serve topped with fresh basil leaves. It can be made in very large quantities for parties and freezes well ....

TUBULAR TASTES

BABY POTATOES WITH CAVIAR

BABY POTATOES WITH CAVIAR

These naturally gluten-free Baby Potatoes with Caviar are perfect at party-time. Baking the potatoes and scooping out the centres produces the ideal edible package, which is then filled with creamy feta, chives and pickled lemon and topped with a burst of caviar ….

SPICY MEATBALLS WITH MINT YOGHURT SAUCE

SPICY MEATBALLS WITH MINT YOGHURT SAUCE

We always need something to graze on at parties, but particularly if it’s a drinks-only event, the nibbles need to be substantial enough to stave off hunger and make good company for drinks. With that in mind we’ve adapted a classic recipe on our blog for Cevapcici, Skinless Sausages, to make these spicy little Meatballs with Mint Yoghurt Sauce ….

CLAMS, ARTICHOKES AND RED PEPPER AIOLI

CLAMS, ARTICHOKES AND RED PEPPER AIOLI

I’ve sometimes found clams problematic to serve due to the pesky and persistent grains of sand that no one likes to crunch upon, but now that I can buy them already de-sanded they’re regularly on my shopping list. This recipe of Braised Clams and Artichokes with Red Pepper Aioli is Iberian in origin and delicious as a light meal. As good quality, preserved or marinated artichokes and red peppers are now also available in good delis, it’s a quick and easy dish to make ….

GLUTEN-FREE SCONES

GLUTEN-FREE SCONES

We were asked for a gluten-free scone recipe by a friend and were embarrassed to confess that we didn’t have one. In fact it hadn’t entered our heads to try a gluten-free version of what would have to be one of the western world’s most popular afternoon tea treats. How remiss! ….

SUGAR-FREE AND SEEDY

SUGAR-FREE AND SEEDY

Full of seeds and dried berries, cacao nibs and honey, tahini and coconut, our Sweet and Seedy Slice is a healthy way to hit your sweet tooth. It’s the perfect balance – no sugar; no dairy; no gluten; no egg; no skill required; no standing for hours in the kitchen and no guilt after eating …

SILKEN TOFU AND CAULIFLOWER SOUP

SILKEN TOFU AND CAULIFLOWER SOUP

Silken tofu is the star of today’s recipe, and what an intriguing ingredient it is, particularly given that it’s almost flavourless! Its appeal, apart from as an excellent vegetable-based form of protein, lies in its capacity to pick up and enhance the ingredients that accompany it and, of course, in its unusual texture ….

SANTIAGO CAKE

SANTIAGO CAKE

The original Torta de Santiago, or Cake of Saint James, hails from Santiago Di Compostela in northwestern Spain. This delicious, dense almond cake has a rich history and pages of photographs, recipes and facts about it can be found on the web ….

LEMON POSSET

LEMON POSSET

Light and silky, this Lemon Posset is so easy to make that it’s almost like some sleight of hand is at work. Here’s how it works: boil cream and sugar, add lemon juice, pour into some attractive glasses or small bowls and place in the refrigerator for a few hours. Done. Now that’s my definition of magic ….

TANDOORI-SPICED GRILLED CHICKEN

TANDOORI-SPICED GRILLED CHICKEN

This recipe for Tandoori-Spiced Grilled Chicken was given to me years ago by friends who knew I liked to cook. It came in a tiny book, and when I say tiny… I mean miniscule. It was about 50mm square. The book itself has disappeared (that’s how small it was) but a version of this quick, easy recipe lives on. The trick is to make the spice paste in advance. Double the batch and you’ll have a good supply to keep in the fridge at the ready ….

LEMON CURD

LEMON CURD

We’re yet to meet anyone who doesn’t like Lemon Curd – and what’s not to like about the buttery richness and the sweet ’n’ sour kick it delivers? Even children seem to like the tangy sourness. Most people have a recipe handed down from a Grandmother or favourite cook. There are many methods and slightly varying ingredients so we’re now adding our recipe into the mix ….

POT AU FEU

POT AU FEU

We’re calling this a Pot Au Feu but, really, it’s a simple riff on the French classic, in which beef and beef bones full of marrow are poached, along with vegetables, in stock. We have retained the vegetables and delicious home-made stock but have replaced the beef with tasty gluten-free pork sausages and tender duck breasts and have thrown some sake into the stock for good measure …

SCHOOL PRAWN AND BELUGA LENTIL SALAD

SCHOOL PRAWN AND BELUGA LENTIL SALAD

These beautiful little Beluga lentils are my new best friends, particularly when they’re part of this School Prawn and Beluga Lentil Salad. Named for their apparent resemblance to caviar (hmm, really?) Beluga lentils have all the advantages of other lentils, in that they’re packed with protein, iron, potassium, polyphenols, folate and fibre, and they’re also low in kilojoules. That’s not bad for a start ….

LATTICED APPLE TART

LATTICED APPLE TART

I was chatting with our 17-year-old granddaughter recently who decided to give me a list of the food she doesn’t like. As she is a very good eater I expected it to be short, but it did go on a bit. Surprisingly one of the items on her list was apple pie. “Can’t stand it,” she said …

GLUTEN-FREE PARMESAN CIGARS

GLUTEN-FREE PARMESAN CIGARS

What is it? A stick? A baton? A long biscuit? Yes, it’s all of those things but we describe it as a cigar shaped, parmesan-flavoured, tasty snack. Eaten without adornment or wrapped in mortadella or dipped in tapenade, our Gluten-free Parmesan Cigars are lovely bites to serve with drinks or as part of an antipasti selection. There’s something very satisfying about nibbling one from end to end! ….