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.

Pickled veggies may not appear to be the most toddler friendly of dishes but my little one certainly approved.  The pickling liquid isn’t too heavy on the vinegar so give it a try, you can always add a little extra sugar if you think it is still too vinegary.

This is my favourite salad to serve with my teriyaki salmon recipe.  It just works so well with fish and the sweetness of the teriyaki.

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• 1 large carrot;
• 1 large cucumber
• 4 small radishes
• 3 tablespoon of pickled ginger; finely sliced
• handful of mint or coriander; finely chopped.
• 100 ml rice wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoon sugar
• sesame seeds to garnish

• Using a vegetable peeler (preferably one that cut into long matchsticks) slice the carrot and cut into matchstick size pieces. Do the same with the cucumber and discard the middle once you get to the seeds. Thinly slice the radish and also chop into matchsticks. Add all to a bowl along with the ginger and coriander.
• Combine the vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and simmer for a couple of minutes. Cool slightly and add to the veggies. Toss well and refrigerate. Give the veggies another couple of turns when you think of it. Serve cold garnished with sesame seeds.

Pickled ginger is available from most supermarkets or you will find it at an asian supermarket

This recipe is adapted from Movida restaurant in Melbourne and it is so good!  It would make an impressive side dish, light lunch, or even main course.  The rich flavours are balanced beautifully by the sharpness of the quince and although it does take a little time to prepare, I promise it will be worth…

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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 use thickened cream as it often contains a thickener such as gelatine.  Pure cream works beautifully, just make sure it contains a minimum of 35% milk fat. Once you have heated it on the stove, leave it to cool to room temperature before adding it to the cheesecloth, if a little of the mixture strains straight through its ok, it will settle and the whey will slowly strain away over night (a few tablespoons only) and in the morning you will have mascarpone cheese. 

Print Pin

• 2 cups pure cream – minimum 35% milk fat (heavy cream for my US friends)
• 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice

• Add the cream to a saucepan and slowly bring the temperature up to 82 degrees C (180 degrees F). (I used a candy thermometer) Simmer at this temperature for 3 minutes, giving an occasional stir
• Add the lemon juice, stir and simmer for a further 3 minutes at 82 degrees C (180 degrees F).
• Leave to cool for about 45 minutes. Sit a fine strainer over a bowl and cover with 4 layers of cheesecloth. Pour the mixture in and refrigerate over night. It will be ready to use in the morning

A lot of recipes on the web call for heavy cream, which in Australia is most similar to pure cream. Don’t use thickened cream as it often contains a thickener such as gelatine. Pure cream works beautifully.

Who doesn’t love a sausage roll…  my little guy certainly does so I was keen to make a healthier version.  These veggie sausage rolls are made using chickpeas, carrots and feta and are super simple to make.

Simply add most ingredients to a food processor and then combine the remaining with your hands.  Add the mixture to your ready rolled puffed pastry, form into logs and cut in to whatever size you like. I like to keep them small.

Serve with tomato sauce or chutney and enjoy as a snack, at lunch time or even dinner with a simple salad.

They also freeze really well, just pop them back in the oven to defrost and become crispy again.

Serve these veggie sausage rolls with chutney or tomato sauce.  Store bought is fine or try my homemade fresh tomato sauce.

Print Pin Prep Time 10 minutes minutes Cook Time 35 minutes minutes Total Time 45 minutes minutes

• 3 sheets ready rolled puff pastry
• 1 onion
• 400 gram tin chickpeas drained
• 2 carrots roughly sliced
• small handful fresh parsley
• 2 tbsp dried mixed herbs
• 2 eggs
• 3 slices wholemeal bread
• milk
• 100 grams feta (half a block)
• sesame seeds

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (350 degrees F).  Remove pastry from freezer and allow to defrost on bench covered with a damp cloth
• Add onion to the food processor and pulse to chop. Add to a large bowl.  Add chickpeas, carrot and parsley to the processor now and process until finely chopped.  Add to the bowl along with the onion.
• Also add the dried herbs and 1 egg.  In a separate bowl add the bread and pour some milk over and allow to absorb.  Squeeze as much liquid out as possible and also add to the mixture.
• Using your hands, mix until well combined.  Crumble the feta into the mixture and stir to combine.  Small chunks of feta are good. 

• Cut a puff pastry sheet in half.  Add the chickpea mixture along the long edge (you can make them as big or as little as you like).  Add a little water along the edge and roll the pastry over to seal. 
• Cut into 5 rolls and add to a lined baking tray.  Continue with the remaining mixture and pastry. 
• Brush the rolls with the remaining egg (lightly beaten) and sprinkle with sesame seeds.Bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm with tomato sauce or chutney.

If you make my veggie sausage rolls, be sure to take a picture and upload to Instagram with the hashtag #littlebigh so I can check out your creation. xx