Potato and pea salad with hazelnut dressing

This salad is not much like the mayonnaise flooded, stodgy version of potato salad familiar to many. It has a nutty hazelnut and mustard dressing that has a great bite and contrasts with tender potatoes and crunchy peas. It’s perfect for when sugar snap and snow peas are in season. It can be served warm,…

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Sweet potato soup – winter joy

Pumpkin soup is ubiquitous as a winter time meal in my part of the world so I thought I’d mix it up a bit and try a sweet potato soup instead. Lots of spices and a bit of heat make this soup a little different and it would be a good introduction for the uninitiated…

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Feta and oregano dip

I know it’s easier to just head to the supermarket and buy dips, but for flavour, value and culinary satisfaction, I often choose to make my own. This dip comes together really quickly and is creamy and salty and herby and a bit spicy all at the same time. We ate it with crispy pita…

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Baked rhubarb with vanilla meringues

Rhubarb is the flavour of the month, it seems. Our family are rhubarb lovers, and I often poach it with raspberries for us to put on our morning meusli or yoghurt. It tends to turn schmooshy, which doesn’t matter for breakfast, but I wanted to try roasting it in the oven to see if I…

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Roasted capsicum soup with spiced oil

It is time for soup in our part of the world and this roasted capsicum soup with spiced oil is a wonderful change from the usual pumpkin or potato and leek soup that are favourites in our family. The capsicums are roasted and then gently simmered with some tomatoes, garlic and vegetable stock. Roasting capsicums…

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Honey glazed carrots

This recipe exemplifies what I mean when I talk about simple food. Only the lightest touch of cooking is given to these sweet little Dutch carrots, but that is all that is needed. Naturally delicate, Dutch carrots are just beautiful when steamed until tender and then glazed with butter and a drizzle of honey. It’s…

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Sesame snaps – a snappy snack

This treat is very easy to make and although not something to eat every day, it satisfies the occasional (or frequent) cravings we all have for sweet things. It’s quite nutty in flavour because of all the sesame seeds. It’s also gluten free, so great to take to a party if you or someone in…

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Roasted pumpkin with feta, tomato and pine nuts

Pumpkin is a staple vegetable in my part of the world, used much more for savoury dishes than sweet. There are a number of varieties that I use in my cooking but my favourite is Jap or Kent pumpkin which has a yellow-orange flesh that is soft and dry and a nutty flavour with natural…

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Instant raspberry gelato

Truly, this gelato takes less than five minutes to make and tastes absolutely amazing. Raspberries, along with peas are, in the words of Jennifer Paterson of Two Fat Ladies fame, the true successes of the frozen food world. When combined with just a little icing sugar, the juice of a lime and a touch of…

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Rocket, apple and parmesan salad

Summer is perfect for salads and many meals I make in this season revolve around a salad. It is easy, though, to slip into boring salad mode and turn out a perfectly nice, but ho-hum garden salad, just because it’s what first comes to mind. It’s no more effort to do something with a bit…

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