Posted by kathryn in Eggs, Recipes, Fruit and Desserts

I grew up in the UK in the 70s and 80s, a time way before Jamie, Nigella, Gary, Ainslie, Rick, Gordon et al started redefining British food. This was the time of roast dinners, semolina pudding, Victoria sponges, steak and kidney pie, toad in the hole, gammon and pineapple. A time when kedgeree was exotic, pasta was a weird “foreign” meal and Angel Delight was considered sophisticated. In talking to my mum about the spices she used when I …

Read more 16 October, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Dinners, Desserts and Salads

Great summer recipes from Bill Granger in yesterday’s Good Living. I particularly like the vietnamese style salad, which could be turned into a light meal by adding some cooked tofu, chicken or fish. The pork burgers are quick and easy, plus the watermelon granita is a summer dessert that’s lower in kilojoules than ice-cream.

Read more 22 November, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Recipes, Fruit and Desserts

Coming from the UK most of my family Christmas traditions revolve around turkey, roast potatoes, gravy, Christmas pudding, fruit cake, mince pies – heavy, heavy foods that we only eat once per year. A more recent tradition for me though, is panettone.Since moving out of home I’ve always lived in the inner west of Sydney, surrounded by a large proportion of Sydney’s Italian community, as well as Italian delis, cafes, foods, restaurants and so on. At this time of …

Read more 30 November, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Recipes, Desserts and Summer

I’ve got a few unfinished blogging strands at the moment, including the dessert from this dinner party. I rarely make desserts, so far there are only three posts in my pudding category and at home we generally stick to the trusty fruit and yoghurt combination. For a dinner party though, I like to do something special, a little bit decadent even, but without tripling everyone’s saturated fat intake. This berry and mango pavlova fits the bill. It’s adapted from …

Read more 12 January, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Desserts

Don’t let the word “vegan” in the title put you off. I’ve been making this cake for years, it’s the first recipe I ever had published and I’ve been serving it to carnivores, omnivores, vegetarians and lactose-intolerants and it’s never failed to impress. There’s something about the words “beetroot” and “chocolate” that makes people do a double-take. The cake is rich and dense, while the addition of the glorious red-coloured spiced beetroot glaze just sets it off a treat. …

Read more 13 September, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Desserts

• Wow – chocolate mousse: I’m seriously not pushing chocolate on you, but Lobstersquad’s version of chocolate mousse seemed like a good idea. It contains two ingredients – chocolate and eggs. There’s no cream or sugar to bump up the calorie and saturated fat content, so while it’s not necessarily something you should eat every day, it’s a perfect occasional dessert. * Ways with broad beans: Haalo has been cooking with broad beans over at Cook (almost) anything once making …

Read more 14 September, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Dinners and Desserts

This is a Christmas menu I developed for Life etc magazine last year. It’s an easy-summer Christmas menu. Each dish is designed to take no more than ten minutes of preparation and to keep the cook out of the kitchen. This also makes a light and healthy meal, with a few Christmas treats to follow. I’ll also post a preparation guide, showing what you can do the day before – to make Christmas day even easier! h3. The Menu …

Read more 19 December, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Dinners and Desserts

Yesterday I posted recipes for an easy Christmas menu. Each dish takes no longer than ten minutes of prep – so you can get out of the kitchen and enjoy the day. I’ve put together the following preparation guide – to make the day even easier: h3. The night before * Baked cod with lime & summer vegetables: prepare the whole dish up to the cooking point, cover with clingfilm and leave in the fridge overnight * *Roast potato, …

Read more 20 December, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Miscellanea, Dinners and Desserts

The latest issue of Life etc magazine is out, complete with my Ten Minute Kitchen recipe column. This month the three recipes all feature ricotta: * Lemon chicken with pea & ricotta puree * Lentil, ricotta & rocket tarts * Toasted brioche with warm fruit salad The magazine is available from newsagents and ABC shops. You can also download the recipes from the Life etc website – simply click on the link about half way down the right hand sidebar. …

Read more 01 July, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Dinners and Desserts

• On becoming an omnivore: This has nothing to do with health, nutrition or even being sensible really. But I just love Jeffrey Steingarten’s writing. Here he talks about becoming an omnivore. * Mediterranean-style quinoa: Each week I say to myself I’m not going to link to 101 Cookbooks again. And then Heidi posts another superlative recipe and I just have to let you know. This one is culturally confused quinoa dish – with "pesto, roasted cherry tomatoes, pine …

Read more 03 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Blogging, Dinners, Desserts and Salads

Bananas, custard and asparagus are not the most obvious elements on which to base a meal. And when I started thinking about Sarah Cucina Bella’s $7 dinner challenge they were far from my mind. Originally I was planning a red lentil dal with yoghurt and rice. Good bargain fodder. Until I saw asparagus for a dollar and realised bananas were the cheapest fruit in the supermarket. Which is when my plan changed. Instead my meal is a barley, fetta …

Read more 13 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Desserts and Salads

• The middle bit of losing weight: Interesting post from Geek Into Shape. About being in the middle of your weight loss and the difficulties faced. * More on stock: After Wendy’s guest post on making stock I was interested to read on The Guardian site about nail soup. * Miso tahini dressing: Lovely, lovely recipe from Veggie Meal Plans for a pumpkin and chickpea salad. But it’s the dressing I particularly like – a combination of tahini, mustard, …

Read more 07 November, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Vegetables, Dinners and Desserts

Not quite back into my blogging routine – which means I didn’t get the chance to post the normal Quicklinks yesterday – so here they are on Saturday. Because of the delay I’ve made it a bumper edition. * Salad Bar: Sue from Noodlebowl comes up with such simple and useful suggestions. The salad equation (in the comments); her ideas on keeping portions under control. And then late last year I spotted her genius suggestion to organise a "home …

Read more 17 January, 2009