creamy mushrooms with sherry, garlic & thyme on soft polenta

Hi all, the countdown continues:) It has been so lovely having Henry and Josh in Auckland – they are still both sound asleep after a great night out to dinner last night – such a treat to have Nick, Rich and Lil there too, a rare occasion to get all six of us around a […]

chicken leek, & pancetta risotto

Well here we go – counting down to multiple ‘take-offs’! Rich finished his final night playing Clyde in Bonnie and Clyde last night, and he was bloody fabulous along side a whole cast of incredible talent – I was exploding with pride – woo hoooo! (Last school play ever – sniff – end of an […]

stormy night carrot, cumin & coriander soup with red lentils & dukkah

Could it rain any more – I hope someone is busy getting the ark sorted…?! Crikey I was going to post this later in the week, but I feel that this is a soup emergency. On the way home from work grab some carrots and some dukkah and delicious bread (also check the ingredients list […]

retro night beef wellington & potato gratin

I have mentioned once before on this blog that I am a limited fan of ‘classics with a twist’ – sometimes classics are just that, and their perfection is not to be overly meddled with! (OK – yes I do agree that sometimes a little addition or change can take something you are used to […]

smoked chicken pasta salad with romesco sauce

Whoop here it is 🙂 I love a bit of serendipity, and I reckon it happens all the time, especially if you’re on the look out! This week I had the chance to have a lovely coffee catch-up with an old client and friend of mine from the personal training days (for those who don’t […]

novice yogi’s kitchari – basmati & split peas with Indian spices, vegetables & fresh herbs

OK now don’t worry, I’m not veering off completely into total vegan territory (with apologies to any vegans who would like me to…), but as I have been yoga-ing my ass off lately I have been interested to find out more about what those glowing, lithe yoga-instructors eat – et voila! And as you can […]

pizza with braised lentils, hot smoked salmon & pea puree

Hi all – this bloody delicious creation was inspired by the very clever and talented people at La Cigale in Auckland who do a puff pastry tart using lentils, salmon and pea puree – and this is kind of my tribute to it in a pizza form. Seeing as Rich has been in Shanghai with […]

hear me raw vege salad

Hi there, and welcome back from Easter – I hope you had a good one! It has been such a wonderful treat to have Henry and Josh up from Wellington, and while they’ve been here I have lavished them  (and of course Rich and Nick) with love in my usual fashion – with food. So far […]

meatballs on brown rice with peanut sauce & Asian slaw

Just when you thought there was no other way to serve meatballs, here is my final recipe! (Actually, I could probably think of quite a few more ways, but I’m thinking we should probably leave it here…) This recipe combines the earthy meatballs with a zingy Asian slaw, spicy peanut sauce and some lovely nubbly […]

meatballs with Indian spiced eggplant & minty yoghurt

Feeling like a bit of a frantic old (grr) mad woman at the moment (nothing new) trying to get recipe testing done for Dish and Fairfax before Easter, as well as get a few over-due recipes on the blog…like this one! Number four in the meatball line-up uses the same base meatball recipe again, this […]

lamb cutlets with lentil, fig & beetroot salad & herb dressing

I love my job – especially on days when I get to photograph (and eat) things like this! This is a recipe I developed for Fairfax and it is exactly the kind of thing I love to cook at home – the combination of earthy lentils, sweet onions, figs and beetroot with salty feta, cumin-spiced […]

carrot, zucchini & corn fritters with avocado, yoghurt & dukkah

OK so I have been going to hot yoga lately, and really enjoying it – sweating like a pig and generally feeling full of peace, tranquility and the milk of human kindness. (It’s been almost 4 years since I sold my personal training business, and let me tell you cooking and photographing food all day […]