• 2 fresh medium-sized beetroot
• 2 sheets of puff pastry
• 2 1/2 tablespoon of pesto (see previous post for the recipe. Alternatively buy store bought pesto)
• 125 g goats cheese
• Honey or maple syrup to drizzle

• Preheat oven to 190 degrees (375 degrees F). Remove leaves and stalks from beetroot and give them a scrub. Wrap individually in foil with a little water and bake for about 50 minutes or until tender. Allow to cool; peel and cut into thin slices.
• Using a round cutter cut circles from the puff pastry and place on a baking sheet lined with grease proof paper. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly, then using the back of a spoon make a little indent in the pastry for the goats cheese filling. Combine the goats cheese and pesto; add a little more pesto until it is to your liking. Spoon a teaspoon of the filling on to the pastry shell and place a slice of beetroot on top. Bake for another 10 minutes or until the pastry shell is nice and golden. Remove from the oven and drizzle with honey and serve

Makes 18 individual mini tarts
Suitable for toddler 12 months plus because of the honey

• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic; crushed
• 1 onion; finely sliced
• 2 stalks celery; chopped
• 2 carrots; chopped
• 1 big bunch of silverbeet; finely sliced
• 400 g tin whole tomatoes
• 1 litre stock (good quality veggie stock, chicken, beef or whatever you like)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon chilli flakes *or adjust to your liking
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 400 g tin cannellini bean
• 1 loaf of country style white bread; cut into chunks
• parsley for serving

• Add the olive oil to a large saucepan and sauté the onion and garlic. Add the carrot and celery and continue cooking until softened. Add the silverbeet and cook until starting to wilt. Add the tomatoes, stock, bay leaf, chilli and salt. Bring to the boil and then cover and let simmer for about 45 minutes. Add the beans and allow to cook for an additional few minutes.
• Add the crusty bead to an oven tray and bake until golden and crispy
• To serve, ladle the soup bowls, add some bread and then another ladle of soup. Garnish with parsley and serve

Serves 6 as a mainIf also preparing for baby, take a few portions for baby before adding the salt. Puree or mash to suit age and chewing abilities.

Add 2 tins of beans if you like

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 … Continue reading Quince, pumpkin, eggplant and quinoa salad

• 100 g tapioca pearls
• 60 ml coconut cream
• 2 tablespoon pure maple syrup
• 1 lime
• 1 mango , diced
• 1/4 fresh pineapple , peeled, cored and diced

• Fill a saucepan with water and bring to the boil. Add the tapioca pearls, stirring occasionally to make sure they don’t stick. Simmer until they are almost completely transparent with just a small speck of white in the middle (around 10 minutes). Drain and refresh under cold water; set aside
• Combine the coconut cream and maple syrup in a saucepan and heat through until combined; set aside to cool slightly
• Cut the peal from the lime and segment them by cutting as close to the membrane as possible on either side of each natural segment. Work your way around the lime until you have cut all the segments out. Roughly dice the segments
• Combine the lime, mango, pineapple, tapioca and the coconut mixture and stir to combine
• Spoon into individual bowls and serve

Suitable to freeze;Omit the maple syrup for younger babies. If you think it is a little tart, try adding a little mashed banana.

If left in the fridge it will set slightly. I warmed the mixture a little and it separated the mixture again

Adapted from Lotus Asian Flavours by Teage Ezard

• 1 large red capsicum (red bell pepper)
• 3/4 cup grape or cherry tomatoes; quartered or halved if making larger muffins
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt (celtic sea salt is best)
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 teaspoons minced oregano
• 1 teaspoon minced thyme
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3/4 cup crumbled feta – reserving a little to sprinkle on top

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (350 degrees F)
• Rub capsicum with olive oil and roast or grill until the skin has blistered and the flesh is soft. Place in a bag and let cool for about 15 min. Once cooled, peel, core and slice; set aside
• Sift flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, together in a large bowl. In a medium bowl whisk the eggs, milk, olive oil, thyme, oregano and feta. Then add to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined; batter should be a little lumpy. Add a touch more milk if the batter is too thick
• Grease and fill muffin pan three-quarters full with the mixture, sprinkle with reserved feta
• Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let cool in pan for a few minutes and turn out onto a wire rack

Makes 12 standard muffins – I used a 24 mini muffin tinIf you like a cheesier muffin – try adding 1/2 cup of grated tasty cheese with a touch more milk

Suitable to freeze

Adapted from Muffins and Small Cakes by Suzie Smith

Good old fashioned Aussie rissoles. A quick Google search tells me they are actually of French origin, but nevertheless, most Aussie kids grew up eating them and they are often on the menu when I visit mum. My mum’s rissoles are simple to make with minimal ingredients but full of flavour. You can add your…

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My healthyish ricotta pancakes are made using wholemeal spelt flour, eggs, milk, fresh ricotta and baking powder. That’s it! I have added no sugar because if you are going to smother them in maple – like I have, then it really isn’t required. But if you prefer, add your sweetener of choice to the mix….

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Ciao from isolation…. never thought I would ever write that sentence – but more about that later. First the food. I have a classic French Quiche recipe for you today. Quiche is wonderfully versatile and super easy to make. I have used caramelised onions, beautifully ripe tomatoes and for a slight Italian twist, dollops of…

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It may be getting cold here is Firenze but the city is more beautiful than ever. The Christmas light are up all over the city, there are idyllic Christmas markets with mulled wine and delicious treats, and Harry said to me yesterday that he loves Florence. This made me so happy! Harry and I have…

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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…

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Chocolate mousse is my current addiction…  and there will be none of that healthy avocado cocoa business here…  this is a traditional French chocolate mousse – dark chocolate, eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla. It’s velvety, thick and super rich but also somewhat light and fluffy! I could eat the entire bowl on my own! It’s easy to…

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I’m sharing another H favourite with you today. Pappardelle bolognese with lot of hidden veggies. The rich bolognese sauce will feed about 6 people or freeze what you don’t use for another time. I always have some in my freezer ready to go. An important step when making this dish is to get a nice…

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I’m sharing a simple recipe with you today – perfect stove top popcorn. Who doesn’t love salty buttery popcorn! It’s a H favourite so I make it often, minus the butter. I use coconut oil instead and it works a treat. I of course have nothing against butter, so feel free to melt a little…

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It has been so long since I have cooked lamb shanks – I’m not sure why! There is something so satisfying about cooking a tough piece of meat and turning it into something super tender and melt-in-your-mouth. This dish is just that… the tomatoes and spices produce a rich chunky sauce, and the chickpeas add…

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These pretty little roasted rhubarb chia pots make a wonderful breakfast or healthy dessert. The rhubarb is roasted with strawberries, orange juice, zest and a good drizzle of honey – the only sweetener in this recipe. The chia pudding has 3 ingredients only and will thicken in the fridge after an hour or so. I…

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• 1/2 cup (50g) quinoa flakes
• 2 cups (60g) puffed amaranth
• 1/3 cup (50g) rice flour
• 1/2 desiccated coconut
• 1/2 cup sultanas
• 1 1/2 cups dried apple (or any dried fruit you like)
• 1/4 cup pepitas
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup maple syrup

• Pre-heat oven to 160 degrees C (325 degrees F). Line a 20cm x 30cm slice tin with non-stick paper. Place the quinoa flakes, puffed amaranth, rice flour, coconut, sultanas, apple and pepitas in a large bowl and mix to combine. Whisk together the coconut oil, eggs and maple; add to the puffed amaranth mixture and stir until well combined
• Spoon mixture into the prepared tin and use the back of the spoon to smooth the surface. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown and set. Cool in tin for 15 minutes, transfer to the fridge and chill until firm. Slice into squares and serve

Will keep in the fridge for a week. Or they freeze really well. Puffed amaranth is available from health food stores Adapted from Donna Hay Magazine – Kids issue 11, 2014

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 garlic clove , crushed
• 150 g French green lentils
• A sprinkle of cinnamon powder
• zest of 1/2 orange
• 250 ml (1 cup) chicken stock
• salt & pepper to taste

• In a saucepan, heat oil and sweat the garlic and cinnamon until fragrant.
• Add lentils, orange zest and chicken stock. Season and cook at a gentle simmer until lentils are soft, approximately 15 minutes

Serve hot or cold, suitable to freeze
For vegetarians, substitute vege stock or water for chicken stock

• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup thickened cream (whipping cream for my US friends. It should have a minimum fat content of 35 percent)
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 heaped teaspoon cornflour
• 1/2 vanilla bean (or use vanilla paste)

• Add milk & cream to a saucepan. Split the vanilla bean in half lengthways and scrape out the seeds. Add to saucepan along with the vanilla bean pod.
• Bring milk mixture to ALMOST boiling (don’t let it boil).  Remove vanilla bean pod. 
• In a separate bowl, whisk eggs and cornflour to combine
• While whisking, slowly add milk mixture to the eggs
• Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook on low heat while continuously stirring until the custard thickens. Once ready it should coat the back of the spoon

For Coconut Custard with Caramelised Pineapple

• Substitute coconut cream for the cream in above recipe and omit the vanilla bean
• Slice and chop fresh pineapple. Add a little oil to frying pan and cook pineapple pieces over medium heat until you active a nice golden colour. I chopped the pineapple into smaller pieces after cooking but you could also puree for a smoother consistency
• Add pineapple to cooked custard and serve

For Lavender Custard

• Add 1 teaspoon of lavender (available from specialist food stores) to the milk mixture in the above recipe and omit the vanilla bean. Once custard has cooked, strain and discard lavender

For Rhubarb Custard

• Chop rhubarb and add to a saucepan along with enough water to come approximately half way up the rhubarb. Cook until tender.
• Stir through cooked vanilla custard and serve

For Mango & Passionfruit Custard

• Dice Mango and add a blender along with the passionfruit pulp. Blend to your desired consistency. Stir through cooked vanilla custard and serve

Will keep in the fridge for two days

• 1 egg
• 2 tsp maple syrup
• 2 tsp poppyseed
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1/2 cup wholemeal spelt flour
• Coconut oil , for cooking

For the toppings

• Natural yoghurt
• Fresh berries or whatever fruit is in season
• Maple syrup to serve

• Combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine.
• Heat a little oil in frying pan over medium heat. Add a 1/4 cup of the mixture and swirl around the pan to coat. Cook or a couple of minutes, flip and cook for another minutes and turn out onto a plate.
• Cover with a tea towel until you have used up all of the mixture. Fill crepes with natural yoghurt and fresh berries, drizzle with maple and serve.