Spaghetti with Crushed Peas, Bacon and Ricotta

375g dried spaghetti
1 and 1/2 cups frozen peas
1/4 cup mint leaves
1 tsp finely grated lemon rind
1 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
4 rashers middle bacon, rinds removed, chopped
1/2 cup lemon juice
15g ricotta cheese, crumbled

1. Cook pasta in salted water according to packet directions, until tender.  Reserve 2 Tbs of the cooking liquid.  Drain.
2. Cook peas in a saucepan of boiling water for 2 minutes or until tender.  Drain. 
3. Transfer peas to a processor.  Add 2 Tbs mint, lemon rind and reserved cooking liquid.  Process until roughly chopped.
4. Heat 2 Tbs oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat.  Cook bacon for 4-5 minutes or until browned and crisp.  Add pasta, pea mixture, lemon juice and ricotta.  Cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes or until heated through.  Season with salt and pepper.  Drizzle with remaining oil.  Top with mint.

Serves 4

Fish with Oven-Baked Chips

300g sweet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1cm chips
300g sebago potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1cm chips
olive oil spray
vegetable oil, for shallow frying
8 flathead fillets (or I've been using Basa fillets cut into smaller pieces)
1 egg, lightly beated
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup aioli or tartare sauce
green salad to serve

1. Preheat oven to 220 degrees celcius or 200 degrees fan-forced. 
2. Cook potatoes in a medium saucepan of boiling salted water for 8 - 10 minutes or until tender.  Drain well.  Place on paper towel and set aside to cool.
3. Place chips, in a single layer, on a large greased baking tray and spray with oil.  Bake for 45 minutes or until golden and crisp.  Season with salt.
4. Once chips are close to being ready, heat oil in a large, deep frying pan over high heat.  Dip fish into egg, then coat in breadcrumbs.  Shallow fry fish for 3 minutes or until crisp and golden.  Drain on paper towel.  Serve with chips and salad.

Serves 4

Satay Chicken Quesadillas

1 and 1/2 Tbs oil
60g chicken thigh fillets, trimmed and chopped
1 small red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 cup satay sauce
50g baby spinach, chopped
8 flour tortillas

1. Heat 1 Tbs of the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat.  Cook chicken, stirring, for 5 minutes, or until browned.  Add onion.  Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or until softened.  Add satay sauce.  Cook for 3 minutes or until heated through.  Remove from heat.  Stir in spinach.
2. Heat tortillas following packet directions.  Place 1 tortilla on a board.  Spoon 1/8 of the chicken mixture along one side.  Fold to form a semi-circle.  Repeat with remaining tortillas and chicken mixture.
3. Clean and dry the frying pan.  Heat remaining oil over medium-high heat.  Cook quesadillas, in batches, for 1-2 minutes on each side or until golden and crisp.

Serves 4

Peppermint Bubble Slice

200g block peppermint chocolate, broken into pieces
180g block dark chocolate, brocken into pieces
50g copha
5 cups rice bubbles
3 x 35g Peppermint Crisp choclate bars, roughly chopped

1. Place peppermint chocolate, dark chocolate and copha in a saucepan over medium heat.  Cook, stirring until melted and smooth.
2. Place rice bubbles and Peppermint Crisp into a large heatproof bowl.  Add the choclate mixture.  Stir to combine.
3. Divide mixture into two silicon slice forms.  (If you don't have once of these, see below for instructions on how to prepare a metal slice form.)  Be sure to press the mixture down firmly with the back of a spoon.  Cover.  Refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.
4. Cut into squares and serve.

When it comes to the slice form/tin.  I swear by Tupperware's slice forms and have two that get used constantly for this type of treat.  The beauty of a silicon form with a firm slice like this is that it doesn't get stuck and comes out easily in one neat piece.  If you are using a metal slice form, it's important to give it a quick grease and then line it with baking paper so that the paper hangs over two edges. This will make it easier to pull the slice out once you're ready to serve it.

Makes at least 24 pieces, it depends on how large you cut them.

Pumpkin, Spinach and Ricotta Frittatas

500g pumpkin, peeled, seeded and cut into small cubes
4 eggs
2 egg whites
125g ricotta (you could use low fat if you prefer)
4 spring onions, trimmed and thinly sliced
20g baby spinach leaves, torn
oil spray

1. Preheat the oven to a hot 200 degrees celcius.  Spray a 6-hole texas muffin pan with oil.  Also line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Place the pumpkin onto the prepared tray.  Spray with oil and season to taste.  (I just salted mine.) Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and tender.  Reduce ove nto a moderate 180 degrees celcius.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg whites, ricotta and spring onions.  Season with salt and pepper, but be mindful of the seasoning that you've put onto the pumpkin already.
4. Divide the pumpkin and spinach between the muffin holes.  Fill with the egg mixture.
5. Bake frittatas for 15-20 minutes or until golden and puffed.  Set aside in pan to cool slightly.  Serve warm or cold.

Makes 6

Cauliflower, Cheese & Chive Soup

30g butter
1 large leek, chopped
1 medium cauliflower, in florets
2 & 1/2 cups milk
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
2T chives, chopped

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan.  Add the leek and stir over a medium heat for about 3 minutes, or until soft. 
2. Add the cauliflower, milk and stock to the leeks.  Bring to the boil and then reduce he heat.  Cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until the cauliflower is tender.  Set aside to cool slightly.
3. Use a hand blender to blend the soup until smooth. 
4. Stir the cheese through the soup.  If it has cooled down too much, return to the heat but do not allow to boil.
5. Add the chives and salt and pepper if you feel it needs it and serve immediately.

Serves 4

Beef Fillet with Creamy Mustard Sauce

2Tbs oil
4 rib eye steaks
2 rashers bacon
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
2 shallots, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
3/4 cup cream
1Tbs mustard (use any you like)
2Tbs cornflour
Vegetables to accompany.  I like steamed new potatoes and something green, like asparagus or broccoli, with this dish.

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a frying pan and cook as desired.  Once cooked, put aside and keep warm. 
2. Add the second tablespoon of oil to the pan along with the bacon, mushrooms, shallots and garlic.  Cook for about 2 minutes.
3. Combine the cream, mustard and cornfour before adding to the pan.  Brin to the boil, stirring as it heats.
4. Serve the sauce over the steaks with the vegetables.

Serves 4


We use one of those health grills for most of our meat cooking so we don't do step one.  Instead we put the meat on at around the same time as starting the sauce prep and find that it's meduim rare by the time we're finished.

Quick & Easy Family Lasagne using Philadelphia Cream Cheese

500g beef mince
500g jar of prepared spaghetti sauce
250g block Philadelphia cream cheese, softened
250g packet of frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed
1 cup shredded parmesan plus an extra 1/4 cup for sprinkling on the top
1/2 cup milk
12 sheets lasagne (instant or fresh)

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.
2. Brown the beef in a pan and add the spaghetti sauce.  Simmer for 15 minutes.
3. Beat the cream cheese, spinach, milk and cup of parmesan together wiht an electric mixer until combined.
4. Pour 1/3 of the meat mixture into the base of a rectangular ovenproof dish that has been greased.  Top with lasagne sheets and 1/3 of the spinach mixture.
5. Continue layering until all meat and spinach mixture have been used.  Sprinkle the top with the extra parmesan.
6. Cover dish with foil and bake for 45 minutes if using instant pasta or 20 minutes if using fresh pasta.
7. Remove foil and bake for a further 15 minutes or until the top of golden.

Will feed 4-6 people.

The best accompaniment to this dish is a crisp, fresh salad to balance out the rich flavour of the hot lasagne.

Risotto with Bacon and Mushrooms

2Tbs olive oil
30g butter
1 large onion, chopped
4 rashers bacon, sliced
2 cups arborio rice
4 cups chicken stock, simmering on the stovetop
1/2 cup white wine
2 cups button mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
chopped parsley
ground black pepper

1. Heat the oil and butter in a heavy based large saucepan or deep frying pan.
2. Add the onion and bacon and cook for about 3 minutes so that onions are transluscent.
3. Stir in the arborio rice and make sure that all grains are coated in the oil/butter.  Continue stirring over a medium heat for about 5 minutes.
4. Add the wine and simmer until all liquid is absorbed.
5. Add one cup of stock and allow it to be absorbed into the rice before adding anymore.  Be sure to keep stirring throughout this process.
6. After adding the first cup of stock, add the mushrooms.
7. Continue adding one cup of stock at a time, waiting for each cup to be absorbed into the rice before continuing.
8. Once all stock has been added, adjust consistency by adding a little more stock or some water if needed.
9. Once all liquid has been absorbed, remove the pan from the heat and add the cheese, parsley and pepper.  Stir through and serve.

Serves 4-6

Lemon Cake

This is my mum's recipe and everytime I make it, I think of her.


250g butter
250g castor sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
4 eggs
zest of one lemon
1 & 1/2 Tbs lemon juice plus extra for icing
250g SR flour
2Tbs cornflour
pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.
2. Cream the butter and sugar together until light in colour and looking creamy.
3. Gradually add all other ingredients, except icing sugar, and beat until well aerated.  (I usually do one egg followed by some flour, another egg etc.  Then I put the other ingredients in.)
4. Grease a rectangular cake tin and line the bottom with greaseproof paper. 
5. Pour mixture into cake tin and cook for one hour or until golden brown on top  and cooked through.
6. Let the cake sit in the tin until cooled and then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
7. Combine the extra lemon juice and the icing sugar to a thick consistency.
8. Ice cake while still a little warm to allow the icing to melt in slightly.

Shepherd's Pie

Traditional, yet easy and yum!  Will feed four people, more if you accompany it with vegetables or a salad.


4 medium potatoes
2Tbs butter
1/2 cup cream
1Tbs oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2Tbs mild mustard
500g beef mince
1 carrot, grated
1 swede, grated
1 stick celery, finely chopped
1Tbs parsley, chopped
1 cup water
1Tbs cornflour
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2tsp beef stock powder
1/2 cup grated cheese (either mozarella or tasty)

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees celcius.
2. Peel and quarter the potatoes and cook until soft.  Drain, mash and add the butter and cream. 
3. Heat oil in a pan and cook the onion ovea medium heat for a couple of minutes before adding the mustard and mince.
4. Fully brown the mince before adding the vegetables and parsley.  Cook for a further couple of minutes.
5. Combine the water, cornflour, tomato sauce and stock powder before adding to the meat and vegetable mixture.
6. Bring to the boil while stirring.  Reduce the heat and allow to simmer for a couple of minutes.
7. Place the meat mixture into the bottom of a large casserole dish or any deep ovenproof dish.  Spoon the potato over the top and smooth out so that the top is even.
8. Sprinkle the top of the potato with cheese and bake for about 20 minutes or until golden.

Serves 4 - 6

Getting Started

I recently found myself looking at all of the recipes I've randomly collected over the past fifteen years.  Although I had the intention of trying them all out, many have never made it from the page to the plate and flicking through them made my mouth water.  So I've made a pact with myself to start cooking these recipes to see which ones my family like and which will never again be cooked in my kitchen.  The result has been lots of fun and has meant that each night I have a new dish to look forward to cooking. 

With each new recipe that I either loved or disliked came my need to discuss the meal I'd prepared and eaten.  Enter this blog.  My opportunity to cook, then review and discuss the foods I'm cooking so that I can share my experiences with anyone who is interested.  So, if you're interested, join me as we start cooking!