The tomatoes and quinces are being put to good use. Here pictured awairing labeling and transport to the cellar are green tomato Kasoundi, mixed tomato relish, quince and pepperberry chutney and quince jelly. There's also some slices of quince and apple shortcake. I sent a plateful of those to the Wednesday Custard Club's morning tea … Continue reading Quince and tomato on the go!

Quince picking at Bushy Park this morning - wonderful yield from a friend's tree. A bucket of mixed variety tomatoes were a gift as well. Preserving all these should should keep me out of mischief for a while.

I know I've said it before but this is why I preserve (well, the main reason) - it fuels my passion for baking. With visitors coming for lunch a couple of days ago, it was a simple thing to make one of their favourites, gooseberry tarts. These were served with elderflower ice-cream, the flavouring for … Continue reading Gooseberry tarts and apricot desserts

With a festive few days coming up and the cost of living rising at an alarming rate, it's good to have on hand a few cost effective recipes to cater to family, friends and neighbours who are coming to visit. After all, these few days provide a wonderful opportunity to spend time together Here are … Continue reading Economical Dishes for the holidays to share with family and friends

So here it is, my final dog-eared and bedraggled copy of my gluten free book "From My Kitchen to Yours - easy gluten free recipes the whole family will love". I have had innumerable requests over the past couple of years for copies of this book. I'd thought it was out of print and was … Continue reading My Gluten Free Book is available once more!!

A lovely young friend joined me here last week for a morning of gluten free cooking, and as it turns out, recipe exploration and development. She suggested we might make something with custard. We matched this with the recipe for gluten free sweet pastry and before we knew it, we had developed a whole new … Continue reading Gluten free baking – Custard Tarts + Recipe!

The topic discussion with Indira Naidoo on ABC Sydney last evening was sweets such as would be suitable after fasting, for instance, of Ramadan. This past week I've really enjoyed making a selection of Middle Eastern style sweets. Three were particular favourites with the Lebanese Nights Dessert the overall winner according to all test tasters. … Continue reading Middle Eastern Sweet Dishes

For those who were listening to the discussion between Georgia Stynes and I this afternoon regarding various fruit drinks from cordial syrups to sparkling, here are some of the recipes we talked about - all absolutely delicious. Lemon Cordial Syrup 6 large lemons 1.5 kg sugar 1 tablespoon tartaric or citric acid 4 cups boiling … Continue reading Cordials – recipes!

A recipe for these, so simple to make and beyond delicious. The shortbread crosses on top add a lovely buttery crunch. These were discussed last evening on ABC Sydney with Indira Naidoo. Hot Cross Buns Makes 12 For the dough 90g butter Finely grated rind one lemon 2 cups warm milk, approximately 4 cups plain … Continue reading Hot Cross Buns

For those who asked for the recipe for the sponge cake base for this slice, here it is. You can fill it with whatever you like - I used 600ml sweetened whipped cream, with drained preserved plums folded through but, as the saying goes, you are only limited by your imagination. Basic Sponge Cake (rectangular … Continue reading Sponge cake recipe