Salads come in all forms and not just the leafy version that most associate the word with. It’s usually a mixture of cold foods including vegetables or fruits and topped with a dressing. Experimenting with different textures and flavors by chefs and cooks alike have, over the years, come up with some very interesting savory…

Pasta has been around for centuries and it’s been a romantic myth that Marco Polo brought pasta back from China (it was already there in Polo’s time). Marco Polo returned in 1295 after twenty years of travel away from Italy. It was noted that in 1279 a Genoese soldier listed in the inventory of his…

It doesn’t feel possible that I’ve been sharing recipes on the web for 2 years (304 postings later!). Three times a week I post new recipes that my family tries and they are my best critics. I do have to say a big thank you to my friend, Robert Esser, from Pantry Magic for encouraging…

Simple soups only require the freshest of ingredients to make the difference between an ok soup and one that has flavor. Courgettes (zucchini) is a very good source of vitamin C, A, folate, fiber, riboflavin and potassium. This soup is also delicious served at room temperature and is a perfect light starter! Serves 4-6recipe from…

We use our bbq all year round (even when we lived in Canada) and I’m always looking for recipes that enable us to cook outdoors. Fennel has an anise like flavor but is more aromatic, sweeter and less pungent and goes well with pork. The name comes from the Greek word for marathon because the…

Tuna has always been a fish I liked better in the can and it wasn’t until 8 years ago that I started to experiment with fresh tuna in dishes. I’ve moved on since then and really enjoy cooking with tuna. I also like it rare and this recipe is absolutely delicious! It comes across as…

I just happened to be flipping through the channels one night and saw that Martha Stewart had Valentino on her show. He was just getting ready to show her how he makes his rigatoni Portofino. I’ve never seen pesto made the way he likes it so I was intrigued to watch more of the show.…

A few months ago new neighbors moved in down the hallway and they’re from India. I love Indian food and the aroma’s coming from that apartment was a subtle reminder that I haven’t made any Indian food in a while. I wasn’t in the mood for cooking in the kitchen for longer than an hour…

This is a bit of a twist on the traditional Pavlova and the raspberries balance the sweetness from the caramel flavored meringue. Pavlova is a meringue dessert named after the Russian ballet dancer, Ánna Pávlova. The dessert is believed to have been created to honour the dancer during or after one of her tours to…

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while you know of my fondness for meals that are easy to prepare with less to clean up afterwards! This dish tops the charts and the flavours here are amazing. My husband who usually doesn’t usually care for couscous said this was very good. Cumin is native…

Move over lemonade and make room for this Italian semi-frozen dessert! Granita is a traditional Sicilian dish and in some areas of Sicily it is served as a slush like drink rather than a dessert. Serves 4recipe from Desserts 1/2 cup (115g) granulated sugargrated rind of 1 lemon, scrubbed before cleaningjuice of 2 large lemons…

This fish pie was created in the late 1800’s in Russia. Russia has a rich culinary history and offers a wide variety of soups, dishes made from fish, cereal based products and drinks. Fish was important in pre-revolutionary cuisine, especially on Russian Orthodox fast days when meat was forbidden. This dish has the added health…