Recipes

This is a delicate tasting puree and a great introduction to fish for your baby.  Any delicate tasting white fish will be fine in the recipe and combined with the witlof (Belgian endive) it is a lovely combination.

Amaranth porridge with peach, passion and pomegranate is a new favourite breakfast.  It’s nutritious, has a lovely nutty taste, it’s a good protein source and it’s naturally gluten-free – a perfect way to start the day. Amaranth take 25 minutes to cook on the stove, so for busy morning soak the raw amaranth in water…

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Parfait’s are a favourite breakfast of mine.  They really are so easy to make and you can fill them with just about anything you have on hand.  This mango and puffed amaranth parfait is a new favourite combination.  Summery, light and so delicious.  It would also make a great healthy dessert.  Puffed amaranth is available…

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H playing with his jelly!  As much as I would love to say he gobbled it all up and absolutely loved it – I can’t.  He was very suspicions and mostly just poked it to watch it wobble!  It really is very delicious, which is why I’m posting it.  So for all those jelly loving…

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 You may have seen this recipe a million times on the internet, but I couldn’t resist putting it on the blog for anyone who hasn’t.  It is perfect for babies from 6 months old – and its delicious.   My favourite topping is mango and passionfruit but use whatever fruit is in season. It takes…

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Making custard at home is a really great option.  You can be guaranteed that it is sugar-free and free of all other nasties – something I am very particular about when feeding my son. This is an easy custard recipe and baby will love it.  Stir though a little pureed fruit for a natural sweeter…

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Summer Fruit Puree with mango, banana, passionfruit and peach.  Simply added to a blender and pulsed til smooth.  No cooking required.  Baby will love it and so will you.   The Stone Fruit Puree with Cinnamon and Star Anise is simmered on the stove top until tender so the spices can infuse the mixture.  It is a…

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Make your own gut healing bone broth at home. So why bone broth? It’s great for your gut, your skin, your hair, your bones, your immune system, plus much more… Simply warm and drink as is or use anytime a recipe calls for stock.  If you suffer from any gut issues it really is a…

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G’day everyone, how are you all?  I’m sorry for the lack of recipes lately but I have been concentrating on my little family and haven’t had the motivation.  My beautiful little boy lost his daddy a few months ago and it came as a huge shock to all.  H is still so little and has…

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Labneh or yoghurt cheese is so easy to make and it is delicious.  It has a smooth and creamy consistency and a slight tangy taste.  It’s great spread on crackers with a sprinkle of sumac – I also love a sprinkle of good quality sweet paprika and so does H.  I can see this being a staple in my…

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Mascarpone cheese is incredibly easy to make and its a lot of fun.  It only requires two ingredient and about 10 minutes of effort for thick, creamy and delicious mascarpone cheese the next morning.   A lot of recipes on the web call for heavy cream, which in Australia is most similar to pure cream.  Don’t…

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 H and I recently visited Canoelands Orchard and picked our own nectarines and plums.  It was a great day out and only a 50 minute drive from Sydney.  H picked most of the fruit – about 4 kgs, and had so much fun doing it.  They are truly the freshest, most delicious tasting nectarines and plums I have ever eaten…  

CANOELANDS ORCHARD, CANOELANDS, SYDNEY 

If you don’t feel like picking your own fruit, there is a little store where you can purchase fruit along with homemade jams and honey.  The lovely lady in the store also showed us their pet geese, pigs, chickens, goats and horses, so as you can imagine H had a blast.  It was a fantastic day with plenty of grass areas, perfect for a picnic.

Did I mention that H and I are now living in Sydney?  We moved almost a months ago – which explains my lack of posts!  We are all settled in now so I’m excited to get back into blogging and to show you what this great city has to offer.

Print Pin

• 6 Nectarines
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 -3 cup water
• 5 whole black peppercorns

• Add water, honey and peppercorn to a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Then add the nectarines and simmer until tender. About 10 minutes or so. The liquid should almost cover the nectarines. If it doesn’t you may have to turn them a couple of time so they cook evenly. (check with a pointy knife or skewer).
• Once tender remove nectarines with a slotted spoon and bring remaining liquid to the boil – reduce by about half. Place nectarines in a bowl and pour the syrup over the top. Serve with natural yoghurt or ice cream

Canoelands Orchard

27-29 Canoelands Road, Canoelands, 2157 NSW

Fruit picking: November, December, January (but confirm on their website that fruit is available for picking) 

Other tours throughout the year, see website for details

Open: 9am daily

I often serve gougères (aka delicious french cheese pastries) as an appetiser at dinner parties – everyone loves them, H included – they are really good!

Serve them as is or cut in half and fill with what ever takes your fancy.

I have always found they work out best mixing by hand but you could give a stick blender a go.  It does take a little effort to get the eggs combined but its well worth it, just keep whisking and it will come together…

Enjoy xx

Print Pin

• 250 ml water
• 150 g butter , cut into cubes
• pinch of nutmeg
• pinch of salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 200 g plain flour
• 5 eggs; at room temperature
• 120 g gruyere cheese , diced into 1/2cm (1/4 in) cubes
• Extra egg , beaten, for egg wash

• Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees (400 degrees F)
• In a large saucepan put water, butter, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Bring to the boil while stirring constantly – very important or it will split
• Once boiling, turn off the heat and add the flour. Combine and keep stirring for one minute until well combined and a dough forms
• Immediately incorporate one egg at a time into the dough – I use a whisk. Tap the whisk on the sides of saucepan to loosen the mixture if it gets stuck in the whisk – its hard work but worth it. Once all the eggs are combined, stir through the cheese
• Using a tablespoon, spoon onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. With a pasty brush, egg wash just the tops – not letting it run down the sides
• Bake for 25 minutes; serve

Makes about 16 large gougeresThe recipe insists on using greyere cheese but I have used all sorts (manchego, gouda, etc.). Not very authentic I know, but they still taste great

You can also freeze raw gougers. Put them straight into the oven frozen and allow an extra few minutes cooking time

Adapted from Jacques Reymond – Cuisine du Temps

Click on pictures for larger images and descriptions – click below for links to some of the recipes Pics via Instagram account

Click on pictures for larger images and descriptions – click below for links to some recipes

Ciao from Isolation 🥴… words I never thought I’d be writing — but more on that later. First, the food.

Today I’m sharing a classic French quiche recipe. Quiche is one of those wonderfully versatile dishes that’s surprisingly easy to make. For this version, I’ve used caramelised onions, perfectly ripe tomatoes, and for a little Italian twist, some dollops of fresh ricotta and a generous drizzle of the most delicious balsamic vinegar from Compagnia del Montale (not sponsored — it’s just genuinely the best!).

The pastry is flaky, buttery, and foolproof — I promise. My tiny Florence kitchen is missing all my beloved gadgets, so I made this one completely by feel… and you can too.

Quiche is also the perfect make-ahead dish. Serve it hot or cold — it’s great for work lunches, school lunch boxes, or your next picnic.

For time savings tip:

Use store bought shortcrust pastry or buy a pre-made tart shell. You can also buy pre-made caramelised onions.

If you have any quiche left you can freeze in single portions. Heat in the oven to defrost. It will keep in the freezer for several months.

So enough about the food. How is life in Firenze I hear you ask!

Life in quarantine with an active 7 year old has had its challenges but for the most part life is good. I still feel so lucky to be in this beautiful country but I am so sad for the thousand of families who have lots loved ones here. I can’t even begin to imagine what they would be feeling right now. The tragic numbers certainly put things in perspective, so I am grateful that we are happy and healthy.

We are now on week 6 – but it feels like week 2. We have been keeping busy with home schooling (the least fun part), cooking, painting, drawing, online Italian language lesson, and H’s iPad has had more use than normal. It’s the only time there is silence. I’m sure you can all relate.

Print Pin quiche cooking time 50 minutes minutes

• 2 cups plain flour (300grams)
• 1 tsp salt
• 150 grams cold butter chopped into pieces
• 1 egg beaten
• 1 tbsp milk

• 2 brown onions thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup single cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 100 grams fresh ricotta
• 2 bunches tomatoes on the vine (loose small tomatoes would also work)
• good quality thick balsamic vinegar to serve

• Preheat oven to 200C/400F. If you have a food processor, add flour, salt and butter and process until you have a fine crumb. Alternatively add to a large bowl and rub the mixture between your fingers to break up the butter into small pieces. You should still have small pieces of butter throughout the mixture.
• Add eggs, milk. Process until a ball forms. If using your hands, miss with a wooden spoon then knead with your hands until incorporated. Roll out dough between sheets of baking paper. Place in the fridge until firm. About 15 minutes.
• Grease tart tin with softened butter and line with pastry. I used a 30cm tart tin with a depth of 4cm. Line with baking paper and fill with weights. Bake for 15 minutes, remove weights and cook for a further 10 minutes or until lightly golden. Set aside. Lower heat to 180C/350F.

• While your pastry is resting and cooking, add onions, butter and oil to a large frying pan and cook over medium-low heat until golden and caramelised. Stir often for about 40 minutes. Add balsamic vinegar to deglaze pan and cook for a further minute. Add to the base of the pastry shell.

• In a large bowl add eggs, cream, milk, parsley, parmesan, salt and pepper and combine. Add egg mixture over the onion mixture until almost the top of the pastry shell. Nestle the tomatoes into the mixture and add dollops of fresh ricotta.
• Bake for 50 minutes or until just set and golden on top. Rest for 10 minutes and serve with a good drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

The once busy streets of Firenze above are now eerily quiet. Our trips to the supermarket about every 5 days is a much needed escape from our apartment.

Arrivederci for now. I hope you are all keeping safe and staying home.

If you make my caramelised onion and tomato quiche, be sure to take a picture and upload to Instagram with the hashtag #littlebigh.  I’d love to see your creation. xx

BRIGHTON BEACH, MELBOURNE

Little Big H is wearing:

Boys Seahorse Rash Vest and Swim Shorts by SUNUVA 

Swim Hat by OshKosh

Lion Towel by Pumpkin Patch

White t-shirt: Indie Kids

Sunglasses: Babiators

Dinner ready in 10 minutes? Pasta al limone is for you….

But first… yes I finally did it.  I moved us both to Florence Italy.  My son H and I are both on this amazing Italian adventure.  It has been just over two months and it still feels like a dream.

Food is my passion but I have an even greater love.  Art. 

It is the reason I’m here.  I have dreamt of studying art in Florence Italy for so long but have never had the courage to do it – why didn’t I do it sooner!

The Italian people have welcomed us, we have both made friends in only a few short weeks, H is learning new Italian words at school everyday and I haven’t stopped smiling. 

Life is good 🙂

So it’s only right to be sharing a simple Italian pasta dish for my first recipe here in Firenze.  Pasta Al Limone.  

All you really need is spaghetti, lemons and parmesan cheese. Everything else you will have on hand.  You simply cook your spaghetti and toss it with the other ingredients and you are done.  Simple, quick and delicious.  

Print Pin Prep Time 2 minutes minutes Cook Time 8 minutes minutes

• 400 grams spaghetti (or approx 100g per person)
• 2 small lemons ,zest + juice
• 80 grams butter ,softened at room temperature
• 80 grams parmesan cheese ,grated
• To granish: parsley, extra parmesan cheese, olive oil, salt and fresh black pepper

• Add spaghetti to a large pot of salted boiling water. Cook until it is just under done.
• Meanwhile, juice and zest your lemon, grate parmesean cheese, and roughtly chop parsley.
• Warm a second pot on the stove and once the pasta is ready. Using tongs place it in the warmed pan allowing some of the pasta water to drip in as well. Add the lemon and butter and stir for a minute or so until it becomes somewhat creamy, adding a little more pasta water if needed. Stir through parmesean until melted.
• Plate and top with parsley, more parmesan, a spash of olive oil and salt and pepper.

Make sure you have plenty of salt in your pasta water 🙂 Its also really good with a finely chopped red chilli 

Be sure to check back in a few weeks for an Italy update and for more delicious Italian meals. I hope to post a little more regularly now that we are settled.

If you make my pasta al limone, be sure to take a picture and upload to Instagram with the hashtag #littlebigh.  I’d love to see your creation. xx

H and I went to the Northside Produce Market last weekend and bought these gorgeous fresh figs.  It was our first time there but we will definitely be going back.  We also bought a huge box of cherries, rhubarb, golden beets, zucchini flowers and H’s favourite, tomatoes…

NORTHSIDE PRODUCE MARKET , NORTH SYDNEY

Print Pin

• 4 figs; halved
• 200 ml container of creme fraise (about a cup)
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon food grade lavender
• Handful of hazelnuts (optional)

• Place the creme fraise, 2 tablespoon of the honey and the lavender in a small saucepan and stir over medium heat until almost boiling. Turn the heat right down and let the lavender infused for about 20 minutes or so. Let cool slightly and refrigerate until ready to use. Once ready put the mixture through a sieve to remove the lavender. To roast the hazelnuts put them in a frying pan over medium heat (moving them around often) until the skins are blackened and starting to come away from the nut. Put the nuts into a clean tea towel and rub the skins off. Then roughly chop
• For the figs, heat remaining honey in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Cook figs, cut sides down, until caramelized, about 5 minutes. Serve with the creme fraise and garnish with hazelnuts and an extra drizzle of honey – if you like

Serves two – two figs per person. The figs I bought however were huge so one each did us quite nicely
I had nut on my serve but I left them off for H

 Northside Produce Market

Civic Park, 200 Miller St, North Sydney NSW

3rd Saturday each month.  8am to 12 noon.