I was trying to figure out what makes spaghetti and meatballs so special and why when flavoured mince is turned into a ball and dropped into a sauce it is somehow appealing in a different way to spaghetti Bolognese. I didn’t come up with any final conclusion other than the nostalgia the dish conjures up and the way that a meatball eats. It’s got more texture when it’s cooked this way. You can flavour meatballs in different directions and each represents a pocket of completeness. The sauce and spaghetti are simply carriers for these heavenly orbs.
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I love the Instant Pot and was thrilled when they launched the new Instant Pot® Duo Plus with a Sous Vide function. I have wanted to…
With this recipe for mac & cheese, the cauliflower is poached in milk with aromatics which all gets blended into the sauce. As an alternative…
One of the recipes I developed for Raisins of SA recently was this easy pineapple and raisin chutney. Its a little spicy and sweet but…
Chicken Marbella is the iconic eighties dinner party dish with prunes, capers and green olives made famous by The Silver Palate cookbook, by Julee Rosso…
This sticky toffee, fig & walnut pudding with toffee sauce is decadent and utterly delicious. I daresay it might even be the best ever. Queue…
Buttery shortbread and brandy drenched dried fruit marry together to make this delicious fruitcake shortbread. It’s slightly chewy and will remind you of Christmas. Add…
I am lucky to count Ina Paarman as one of my regular clients and have loved working with this brand over the last few years.…
This Moroccan carrot and fennel salad with sultanas and pistachios has so many flavour elements going on its utterly delicious. The sultanas add sweetness which…
I’ve discovered the absolute living best way to eat tender stem broccoli and beans. I love both these vegetables and am happy to eat them…
I’ve made up for the decade of not having many soup recipes with publishing so many in the last while. Maybe it’s the pandemic and…
I recently sent out a request on Instagram and Twitter for peoples favourite recipe using chicken breasts and I got so many suggestions. I prefer…
I’m here to tell you that drizzling black pepper and thyme-infused honey over crispy fried feta is a delicious thing. Seriously! I spotted the recipe…
A adore a seriously pimped up avo toast on the weekend when breakfast merges with lunch and you have more time to potter around the…
This Moroccan carrot and fennel salad with sultanas and pistachios has so many flavour elements going on its utterly delicious. The sultanas add sweetness which…
I’ve discovered the absolute living best way to eat tender stem broccoli and beans. I love both these vegetables and am happy to eat them…
This is an easy roasted cauliflower hummus recipe with delicious sultanas and cashew nuts as a topping that adds sweetness and crunch. Perfect to serve…
In June last year, Kobus van der Merwe from Wolfgat in Paternoster and Willem Hiele from Willem Hiele Restaurant in Koksijde Belgium came together for…
Before my trip to Italy, I had the pleasure of enjoying lunch at to Gåte at Quoin Rock Estate to experience Head Chef Nicole Loubser…
I recently attended the launch of the spring menu at Greenhouse Restaurant at the Cellars Hotel in Constantia. It was a perfect day with the…
I was trying to figure out what makes spaghetti and meatballs so special and why when flavoured mince is turned into a ball and dropped into a sauce it is somehow appealing in a different way to spaghetti Bolognese. I didn’t come up with any final conclusion other than the nostalgia the dish conjures up and the way that a meatball eats. It’s got more texture when it’s cooked this way. You can flavour meatballs in different directions and each represents a pocket of completeness. The sauce and spaghetti are simply carriers for these heavenly orbs.
I love the Instant Pot and was thrilled when they launched the new Instant Pot® Duo Plus with a Sous Vide function. I have wanted to be able to Sous Vide for so long and an affordable domestic appliance has not been available in South Africa up until now. The first thing I wanted to try in it was a steak, and specifically, an ostrich steak as it’s lean and healthy and I thought would work well in a tagliata recipe. Say hello to my new favourite healthy low carb meal.
With this recipe for mac & cheese, the cauliflower is poached in milk with aromatics which all gets blended into the sauce. As an alternative to a bechamel, it is somehow lighter even though there is a lot of cheese. Choose a strong aged Cheddar or other hard cheese of your choice such as Dalewood Fromage Huguenot. This is probably my go-to cheese for cooking with. They sell it grated in bags which you stash in the freezer (this is post is not sponsored). A good mature Gouda works too. Cauliflower mac and cheese with bacon is a great mid-week supper dish and leave the bacon to keep it vegetarian obviously. The crumb topping makes this dish so don’t leave it off.
One of the recipes I developed for Raisins of SA recently was this easy pineapple and raisin chutney. Its a little spicy and sweet but not hot. It is as much relish as a chutney and goes brilliantly with any curries or dolloped onto a burger or hot dog. I love to have it on a cheese board to temper a sharp Cheddar or sweeten goats cheese.
Chicken Marbella is the iconic eighties dinner party dish with prunes, capers and green olives made famous by The Silver Palate cookbook, by Julee Rosso and Sheila Lukins. Briny green olives and capers come together with sweet prunes (or dates) to make the most delicious combination of flavours. Marinating the chicken overnight is essential to lock in the soft aromatics, but you could probably go to two nights here. Don’t skip this process. The texture of the chicken can alter when marinaded as I did with my recent chicken kebabs with yoghurt, paprika & lemon. The flavours penetrate the chicken flesh adding so much to the overall dish and a jerk chicken is not the same without this stage.
This sticky toffee, fig & walnut pudding with toffee sauce is decadent and utterly delicious. I daresay it might even be the best ever. Queue this up to be the next dessert you make when you gather a small crowd. It’s a slight riff on a classic sticky toffee pudding made with dates so you could easily swap out the dried figs if you can’t get hold of them, but I really loved how they added a soft flavour element as well as a little texture. The recipe was supplied by Le Creuset to celebrate the launch of their beautiful new fig colourway range of homeware. It’s really quite gorgeous.