Category — Recipes

At this time of the year in many parts of Australia, cumquat trees are bursting with ripe fruit. Many suburban homes have cumquat trees in their gardens as an ornamental, but sadly the fruit is left to rot as it is too tart for most people to eat.  However, cumquats make fantastic marmalade – the perfect way to use that cumquat crop that you didn’t know what to do with.

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An oldy but a goodie, chocolate mousse never goes out of style. It is a perfect dessert for a dinner party as it can be made fully in advance. This adult version has the addition of  liqueur, which of course could be left out but why would you? Any liqueur can be used - use your favourite or experiment for different results. My favourite – Cointreau.

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It’s winter in Oz, and even though I am lucky enough to live on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, we still have chilly evenings. Slow-cooked lambs shanks hit the spot perfectly for a winter-warming meal. [Read more →]

With the temperatures dropping, the time is right for warming winter dishes. At this time of the year I am cooking Beef Bourguignon, Osso Bucco, slow-cooked lamb shanks, Coq au Vin and similar comfort foods.  Many winter dishes involve braising liquids, so it’s nice to serve an accompaniment that can soak up all those lovely juices. Mashed potato is a popular choice, but for something a little different try polenta. [Read more →]

Crème Brûlée originated in England and was known as “Burnt Cream” before it was given the more exotic-sounding French name most people know it by. For some reason, many people hold the belief that this is a really complicated dessert to prepare, but it is actually really simple.  [Read more →]

These moreish little biscuits are wonderful served as a welcome nibble with pre-dinner drinks. Be warned: you won’t be able to stop at one!

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Limes are not only currently in season but are in abundance where I live on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. As I’m a big fan of seasonal cooking, I couldn’t go past sharing my recipe for Key Lime Pie.  [Read more →]

Although Easter has just passed us by and we are all chocolated out, I reckon you can never have too much chocolate in your diet. This decadent dessert cake is flavoured with hazelnut meal and Frangelico, a hazelnut liqueur. It’s gluten-free, which is welcome news for coeliacs and those who avoid gluten in their diet. This is a great dessert when entertaining, as it can be made way in advance and only needs slicing at serving time.  Serve it with fresh strawberries and cream and a glass of liqueur muscat.
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This stylish yet simple dessert is made in less than 15 minutes in total and tastes as good as it looks. Cannoli are Sicilian pastry desserts, and ready-made cannoli shells are a terrific time-saver. The ricotta filling can be made ahead of time and stored covered in the refrigerator. The cannoli just need assembling at serving time, which takes less than 5 minutes. Your guests will love these!

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I made this divine salad at our Easy Asian Dinner Party cooking class last week and it was a winner. My students wondered how such a quick and easy salad could taste so good? The answer is the combination of the classic Thai flavours of the dressing, sweet prawns and fresh Asian herbs. [Read more →]