Sarah from Keep Left recently contacted me to ask if I might be interested in supporting Ski Yoghurt for Breast Cancer Awareness month this October. Ski Yoghurt has pledged to donate $350,000 to fund a McGrath Breast Care Nurse and have turned a selection of their 1kg tubs of yoghurt the colour pink for a limited[read more…]
I’ve wanted to make these for ages! I love chickpeas and I also love snacky things like chips and nuts to have with cocktails and thought these would be a healthier option. These little morsels were nutty, spicy and crispy not too long out of the oven and I really enjoyed them. So give them a go! [read more…]
I see a lot of recipes for sweet potato vegie burgers around so thought I’d give them a go. I roasted/sautéed the sweet potato and onion first as it gives a lovely caramelised flavour however apart from that, these are so easy to put together, they’re well worth it. I loved the sweet and spicy taste[read more…]
I love these tasty little pastries – if you make them for a group of people, as I have, watch them disappear. There’s just something about sweet and spicy minced meat, melted cheese and flaky pastry which appeals to party people and adding some mango chutney was a perfect combination. The great thing is that you can[read more…]
I whipped up this Tuscan inspired, tasty little dish on a rainy, cold day and it was lovely. I don’t use a lot of cured meat in cooking but I do have a thing for occasional chorizo in dishes because it just adds a little spicy something. It might seem simple but the flavours of[read more…]
I realise a lot, if not most people, wouldn’t have nut roll tins in their cupboards. I also realise that this traditional Australian recipe is really old fashioned, in fact my grandmother used to make these when I was a kid. Despite that, I love this cake precisely because of it’s lack of foodie coolness, and[read more…]
I’m currently growing lavender which isn’t flowering at the moment, but still has sweet smelling leaves. So, I thought I’d give some homemade, relaxing bath salts a try since it’s become cold and frosty here. I just threw them together with stuff I either had in the cupboard or purchased from the supermarket – a handful in your hot[read more…]
I love using maple syrup for savoury things and it goes particularly well with spicy, chilli based dishes. Instead of using traditional kidney beans for this spicy, Mexican dish, I thought I’d use black beans and some maple chilli roast sweet potato to add another flavour. I love the crispy sweet, caramelised potato with creamy avocado[read more…]
I’ve made no secret in the past of my liking for Mexican food so I thought I’d throw some Mexican inspired ingredients on top of a pizza base and it was delicious – easy, yet spicy, crunchy and full of flavours and textures. This rustic pizza has it all; spicy beans, corn, creamy avocado, zesty sour[read more…]
I didn’t realise that chocolate oats were a thing until I searched recently and found quite a few recipes. I think it’s inspired! This cacao flavoured, nutty, creamy breakfast dish is also very timely considering Easter’s just about upon us. I love hearty, healthy oats and will always try something a bit different with them. Inspired by this[read more…]
Erin from Keep Left very kindly contacted me recently to ask if I might like to participate in Bakers Delight’s current campaign to develop a lunch recipe using my choice of their lovely, freshly made bread. My immediate thought was the ciabatta because I love it, however I also really wanted to make something healthy and fresh, using some late summer produce, so[read more…]
I love fig season! It’s so short but they’re such a luxurious treat at a time when most fruit and vegies are available year round. It’s worth hunting them down and I always use them as an opportunity to whip up some lovely treats. And while figs are pretty special raw, caramelised down slowly, they become soft[read more…]
Earlier this week, I posted the first of 3 reviews for Tassal salmon. Today’s recipe uses Tassal’s lovely, rich, thinly sliced smoked salmon inspired by a breakfast trend I spotted recently, the F.A.T. (aka feta, avocado and tomato), the latest breakfast offering in cafes, which is so cool right now, it’s ridiculous. I kid. It’s a really delicious breakfast and[read more…]
Recently I was contacted by Natalie from Keep Left on behalf of Tassal, who very kindly asked if I would review some of their beautiful Tasmanian salmon products. Naturally I was super pleased to do this, as I love salmon and Tassal is a brand I buy regularly. Atlantic salmon is an extremely healthy variety of fish (all[read more…]
A few years back I decided to try my hand at poaching eggs. So my boyfriend at the time and I found a site which said to bring a frypan of water to a simmer, add some vinegar, swirl with a knife to form a whirlpool effect for one minute then slowly crack the eggs into the[read more…]
Due to our drinking water being, ahem, less than desirable regarding certain additives, impurities and such, I’ve been on the lookout for a water filter for some time. I drink a lot of water as I believe it’s important to health and wellbeing but I’m not terribly keen knowing I’m also taking in some additional[read more…]
This simple French dish is one of my favourite things to make. I’ve learned not to skimp on the oil and also, that the vegetables need to be cooked down really well on a slowish but longer heat, to encourage intensity of flavour, sweetness and also for a soft, silky texture. And this dish is even better the next day as[read more…]
Greek yoghurt is so much a part of my daily diet, I don’t know what I’d do without it. I tend to buy unsweetened Greek yoghurt rather than the flavoured kind as it’s far healthier and you can add whatever you like to it. It’s also a wonderfully versatile ingredient for cooking and baking. I loved this version[read more…]
As of September, a Splash of Vanilla is officially a year old! I thought I’d host a giveaway in honour and also to celebrate our Southern Hemisphere Spring. I have two cute pieces of kitchenware from Peters of Kensington I think you’ll love – a Rodriquez Jam Tales Crockery tea towel and a Royal Doulton – Donna Hay[read more…]
I realise poor little cauliflower isn’t the most popular vegetable in the bunch (compared to say, the sexy avocado and frilly, trendy kale it must feel quite lonely), but we should all be eating more of it according to doctors and experts in these things. And less of the fun stuff. Also cauliflower allegedly has negative calories! Can this[read more…]
I love the creamy texture and coconut flavour of this soup combined with sweet pumpkin and carrots and only a handful of other ingredients. It’s gorgeous sprinkled with chopped pistachios and a toasted cheese sandwich on the side .. a perfect Saturday lunch on a cold day. A swirl of Greek yoghurt wouldn’t go astray either[read more…]
I based this on your basic chickpea hummus but added baked sweet potato and a teeny bit of chilli. It seems I’ve always eaten hummus and tzatziki, I sometimes make these dips from scratch and sometimes buy them ready made, either way they’ve made up a large part of my lunches over the past 15 years or so. Seeing as[read more…]
I don’t know about anyone else, but I can’t get on with my day until I have my morning cuppa and going to bed without a cup of tea just doesn’t seem right. Tea is calming, comforting, it brings people together, has many health benefits, there are so many different flavours, and for these reasons, I’m[read more…]
A spontaneous dish I made initially to use up the rest of the broccoli in the crisper and have made quite a few times since. This rustic dish was lovely with simple ingredients; the freshness of broccoli, a subtle hit of chilli, some crunchy nuts and salty Parmesan, all piled up in a bowl invitingly. I served ours with avocado because[read more…]
It’s not so much a Bastille Day we had on the weekend, as a Bastille week because this is the second French dish I’ve posted. And why not after all? French food is amazing; classy and unashamedly seductive. And speaking of classy and seductive; I remember travelling by train to Paris years ago and sitting across a perfectly understated, stylish, sweet French girl[read more…]
I don’t eat enough of this healthy vegie. The other day I roasted some cauliflower florets with lemon, chilli and pine nuts and it was delicious; slightly sweet and spicy with a nutty crunch, and not at all like the cauliflower mornay some of us might remember from being kids.
I make massive pots of this amazing soup every autumn/winter without fail; in fact I decided to buy a huge pot to accommodate it because the first time I made it, I didn’t have a saucepan big enough and had to make it in two. Over the years, I’ve made it my own by adding different[read more…]
I love a classic chicken salad so was really keen to try this when I spotted it online recently. And it is a particularly lovely salad but … the problem with chefy type recipes is, not that they’re difficult but that there’s a lot of steps to things, not to mention the washing up afterwards. So I didn’t[read more…]
This is one of those refrigerator pasta dishes (stuff left over in your crisper) I made a while back when cherry toms were still nice, which turned out so tasty, it’ll now be a regular dish in warmer weather. The lemony, garlicky mushrooms, sweet cherry tomatoes and peppery rocket were a lovely combination and so full of natural, healthy,[read more…]
I really enjoyed this cosy, spicy-sweet curry with classic spices, creamy sweet potato, nutty chick peas and fresh kale. Confession: I cheated and used a bit of curry powder. I realise it’s a bit 1980s, how-your-nanna-used-to-make-curry, using curry powder, but I find it adds a rounded, warm sweetness and works really well with the other spices, a couple of which are in[read more…]
