​This tastes so good. And how good does it look. 

I do love gin, it is one of my favourite things to drink on a hot summers day and this flavour combination is just divine.

For an alcohol-free version, replace the gin with 1 cup (250ml) lemonade, sparkling water or pomegranate juice.

This is something I will definitely be serving guests this summer and it is the perfect drink to serve around Christmas, so festive, so nice.

​Recipe adapted from a Coles magazine

4 limes, cut into wedges
⅓ cup (75g) caster sugar
4 mint sprigs
½ cup (120g) fresh or frozen pomegranate seeds
240ml chilled gin
1 lime, extra, thinly sliced
1 litre berry-flavoured sparkling mineral water
Crushed ice, to serve
​

Place lime wedges, sugar, mint and half the pomegranate seeds in a medium bowl. Use the end of a rolling pin to crush until lime and pomegranate seeds release their juice. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Transfer to a large jug.

Add gin and remaining pomegranate seeds to the lime mixture in the jug and stir to combine.

​Divide the pomegranate mixture among serving glasses or pour into a large jug. Add the lime slices. Top with mineral water and ice.

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​What is Bibimbap, it is a Korean Rice Bowl. You plate up this beautiful rice bowl with rice on the bottom, then the gorgeous colourful vegetables placed around the rice, you add on the marinated beef and top it with a perfectly fried egg. But there's more, don't forget to drizzle over the delicious bibimbap sauce and finish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds. Now that you have one beautiful rice bowl, you then mix it up into one delicious big mess and you enjoy every single bite.

Now you can use other vegetables you love, like broccoli for instance, and feel free to change the meat to chicken. The recipe can be changed and it will still be delicious. Also with the vegetables you can use a bunch of English spinach, I prefer baby spinach. The original recipe uses dried shitake mushrooms, I use fresh. If using dried, soak the dried mushrooms in a large bowl of boiling water for 30 minutes, or until rehydrated. Drain, squeeze out excess water, then slice. Also the quantities, I tend to add a little more meat for my family, everything is easily adjusted in this recipe.

Now this is not something you cook when you are busy, this is something you cook on the weekend as it does take a little time to make. There are a lot of components, but all are really easy. The vegetables are supposed to be served at room temperature, so you can take your time with each component, as you don't have to serve it hot. The only thing I like to serve hot is the rice, the egg and the beef. The rice I cook in a rice cooker and the beef and egg I cook just before serving.

Gochujang can be bought in most woolworths stores or Asian grocery stores.

​This is so easy to make, it does take some time, but it so worth it. Give this a try soon.

​Recipe adapted from www.recipetineats.com/ 

Serves 4

For the Beef:
250g rump steak, thinly sliced
1/4 green apple , grated
3 garlic cloves , minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons sesame oil

BIBIMBAP SAUCE:
4 tablespoons gochujang paste
2 tablespoons mirin
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
3 teaspoons white sugar
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil 

For the carrots:
2 large carrots, cut into 5 x 0.5cm batons
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil

For the zucchini:
​2 large zucchini, cut into 5 x 0.5cm batons
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil

For the spinach:
1 bunch of English spinach, cut into 5cm lengths or use the equivalent amount of baby spinach
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
Splash of sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
salt, to taste

For the Shiitake Mushrooms:
8 large shiitake mushrooms, sliced
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

For the Bean Sprouts:
​4 cups bean sprouts
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
1/4 teaspoon fish sauce

To serve:
4 cups cooked white rice
4 eggs
2 teaspoons sesame seeds
​Extra drizzle of sesame oil, optional


Marinate the beef: Mix the marinade in a bowl, then add the beef. Marinate for 30 minutes to overnight.
​
Make the bibimbap sauce: Mix ingredients together in a bowl until the sugar has dissolved.
​
Salting of carrots and zucchini: Place carrot and zucchini in two separate bowls, sprinkle each with 1/4 tsp salt, toss, leave for 20 minutes then drain excess liquid.
​
Cook the carrots: In a large frying pan, add 2 teaspoons of oil, cook carrot until just tender (5 to 8 minutes). Remove from pan and place on your serving plate.
​
Cook the zucchini: In the same frying pan, add 2 teaspoons oil, cook zucchini until just tender, about 4 minutes. Remove from pan and place on your serving plate.
​
Cook the Shiitake Mushrooms: Heat 2 teaspoons oil in the same frying pan over medium high heat. Cook mushrooms for 2 minutes. Add 1.5 teaspoons soy sauce, 1/4 teaspoon sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of garlic. Stir for 1 minute, then remove and place on your serving plate.
​
Cook the Spinach: Heat 2 teaspoons vegetable oil with a splash of sesame oil. Saute until starting to wilt. Add 1/2 teaspoon garlic, and salt to taste, stir, then remove, place in a colander. When cool, squeeze to drain out excess liquid. Place on your serving plate.

Cook the Beansprouts: Bring a saucepan of water to the boil, add beansprouts, simmer for 5 minutes. Drain allow to cool. Place beansprouts in a bowl. Mix with 2 teaspoons sesame oil, 1 teaspoon garlic and 1/4 teaspoon fish sauce. Place on your serving plate.

Vegetables can cool, they are meant to be at room temp or slightly warm.​

Cook the beef: Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Let excess marinade drip off, then add beef. Cook for 2-3 minutes until cooked to your liking and there's some caramelised bits, then remove from the pan. Keep warm until required, try to serve hot.
​
To Assemble: Fry eggs in a frying pan to your taste, I like mine with runny yolks.

Place warm rice in bowls.
Top with vegetables and beef, placing alternating colours just to make it look good, then lastly, the egg.
Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Serve with Bibimbap Sauce. 

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​Recipe adapted from Laura Cassai's cookbook "My Italian Kitchen'

​Makes about 250ml

100g basil leaves, from about 2 bunches
40g pine nuts
25g grated Parmigiano Reggiano
125ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for storing
​1 garlic clove, chopped
​500g spaghetti or linguine


Place the pine nuts in a cold frying pan. Place pan over medium heat and lightly toast the pine nuts. Place in a bowl to cool, while you pick the basil leaves from the stems.

Place the basil leaves, cooled pine nuts, parmigiano reggiano, and garlic in a food processor. With the processor running, drizzle in the oil in a steady stream until it is all smooth. You may need to scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure it is all incorporated. Season with salt, to taste.

If not using the pesto right away, spoon the pesto into a jar, cover with extra virgin olive oil and seal with a lid. Refrigerate and use as required, it should last up to a week, if covered in oil.

If you are having it right away. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water following packet instructions, until al dente. Strain the pasta, discard cooking water. Place the pasta back in the saucepan you cooked the pasta in, add the pesto, mix it all together to combine.

Place the pasta in a serving bowl, drizzle with a little more extra virgin olive oil and grate over a little more parmigiano reggiano. Serve immediately.

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​Our Eating Around the World Adventure has taken us to Italy.

My dad loves fritule, they are probably his favourite sweet treat. My daughter has also inherited a love for fritule, or doughnuts or fritters, or any fried dough really. Now we have a Croatian background, not Italian, but fritule are eaten where my dad was born. So although I found this recipe in an Italian cookbook, I will one day make the traditional recipe from a Croatian cookbook.

So when I was flicking through a cookbook I found this recipe and instantly knew I had to try it. Now what I loved the most, is that it was a really quick recipe, I can make these in under 15 minutes. Normally fritule are made with yeast which needs time to prove, but these are not traditionally made as the recipe uses baking powder instead of yeast. And another thing I loved, it is made with ingredients I always have in my house.

We loved these fritule, they were absolutely delicious, they were soft and fluffy and everything a fritula should be. Now I will provide the recipe with the addition of sultanas, which I would add for my dad, but for my family, I omit the sultanas, as we don't like them.

Now I hate using the word scant in a recipe, but this recipe does use it when incorporating the baking powder. In cooking, scant refers to an amount that's just barely reaching; in other words, not packed. When a recipe calls for a scant cup or scant teaspoon of something, don't fill the measuring cup or spoon to the top. Instead, use slightly less than the required amount.

I don't actually core my apple, I just peel the apple, then grate the apple around the core into the bowl, then just discard the core. 

So here is a recipe I know I will be making again and again.

​Recipe adapted from Paola Bacchia's cookbook Italian Street Food

Makes about 15

1 egg
1/4 cup (60ml) full cream milk
125g plain flour
1 scant teaspoon baking powder
50g caster sugar
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons sultana, soaked in 60ml brandy for 15 minutes (optional)
1 granny smith apple, peeled and cored
Zest of 1/2 large orange
zest of 1/2 large lemon
Sunflower oil, for frying
​Icing sugar, for dusting
​

Place the egg and milk in a small bowl and whisk with a fork. 

Place the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a medium sized bowl and whisk to combine. Mix the egg and milk into the flour and stir until homogenous.
​

If adding sultanas, drain and squeeze the sultanas and grate the apple. Add these to the dough along with the orange and lemon zest and stir well to combine-the mixture should be thick but pourable.
​

Heat 4-5cm oil in a heavy based saucepan (or use a deep fryer) to 170C or until a cube of bread dropped into the oil sizzles in 5 seconds. (I like to fry these over low-medium heat, to ensure the outsides don't burn before the insides cook).

Using two metal tablespoons dipped in hot oil, pick up a ball of mixture with one spoon, and push it into the hot oil with the other spoon. The balls should be as big as a large cherry, I like smaller fritule rather than larger, and they do puff up while frying to apricot size. Don't worry if you get little trails of dough and your balls aren't perfect. Cook 3-4 at a time, depending on the size of your pan, for about 4 minutes, or until golden brown all over and cooked through. Drain on paper towels and break open one fritula to check if it is cooked through. If it isn't reduce the temperature of your oil slightly and wait a minute or two and continue frying the remainder.

Once the fritule have cooled slightly, dust with icing sugar and serve warm. They are best eaten the day they are made.

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​And now my husband has me eating weeds. They are grown in the garden, not just picked off my lawn, but still they're weeds. 

Then on our Eating Around the World Adventure we headed to Switzerland and in this tiny little cookbook I found there was this Easter Salad recipe and it was made with dandelion leaves. So I thought, why not try it, it is growing in our garden. Well I'm glad I did as it is one of my favourite salads of all time, I love it.

Why is it called Easter salad, because in Switzerland at Easter, when the winter snows mostly have disappeared, the tiny dandelion shoots spring up and these are harvested eagerly for spring salad. Why I call it Easter salad, every year I colour eggs for Easter and this salad is the perfect way to use up those eggs. But as I live in Australia and I have dandelions growing all year round, I make this when ever I feel like it.

This can be served as a side dish, but I love it as a meal, the bacon and egg make it a complete meal for me.

Try and use young dandelion leaves, as the older they are, the more bitter they are, but I don't even mind the bitter ones.

Croutons would also be a lovely addition to this salad, will definitely add them next time.

So next time you see a dandelion, don't just think weed or wish, now think, weed, wish or salad.

​Recipe adapted from Jacqueline Martinet's cookbook A Little Swiss Cookbook

Serves 4

200g young dandelion leaves
1 small onion or 2 shallots, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
4 hard boiled eggs, peeled, halved or quartered
2 bacon rashers, diced
1 teaspoon sunflower oil
2 tablespoons light olive oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon French Mustard
Salt and Pepper, to taste


Wash the dandelion leaves very carefully in several waters. Drain in a sieve or salad spinner.

Add sunflower oil to a frying pan, add bacon and cook stirring until the bacon is crisp. Place in a paper towel lined plate to remove excess oil. Allow to cool.​

In a large salad bowl, mix the vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper, and blend in the oil to make a vinaigrette dressing.

​Add the onion or spring onions and the garlic. Roughly chop the dandelion leaves and put into the bowl, but toss them in the dressing at the last minute before serving or they will become soggy.

Once the dandelion has been tossed​ in the dressing arrange the eggs and bacon on top of the dandelion leaves.

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​It's recipe like this that excites my family about our Eating Around the World Adventure. This baked mash potato bake we discovered on our eating adventure through Switzerland. This is delicious. Every bite is just the perfect bite, delicious mash with butter, eggs, cream, onion and bacon.

Now you can serve this as a side dish to a barbecue, and it would be great, but it can also be a meal in itself if you are wanting a simple meal, just make a simple green salad and dinner is done.

For perfect mash I love to use a ricer, it makes sure your mash is lump free.

Either finely chop the onion or grate it.

You can also prepare this earlier, keep it refrigerated and just place it in the oven when needed, then bake it until it is heated through, the potatoes have browned and the bacon is crisp.

Here is a great side dish that your family and friends will love.

​Recipe adapted from Nika Standen Hazelton's cookbook The Swiss Cookbook

Serves 4-5

900g potatoes
55g butter, softened
2 eggs
1/3 cup cream
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons minced onion
225g bacon, cut into 1cm strips


Place whole potatoes in cold water. Bring to the boil and cook for 20-30 minutes or until cooked through. I test them by piercing them with a skewer. Peel, and while still hot, push them through a ricer into a large bowl.

Mix in the butter. Whisk together the eggs and cream and mix it into the potatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the onion and mix thoroughly.

Place in a buttered 8 cup baking dish. Smooth the top with a knife or spatula.

Preheat oven to 190C/170C fan forced.

Stick the bacon strips into the potatoes to resemble the quills of a porcupine. 

Bake in a preheated until the potatoes are browned and bacon crisp, about 30 minutes.

​Serve with a mixed green salad.

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Here I give you one absolutely delicious dinner idea. These short ribs are so tender they just fall apart, and the sauce, it is so flavourful, each bite is just amazing. This is one luscious dinner.

And can I tell you this is one of the easiest meals you will ever make. After about 15-20 minutes of prepping and cooking, you just put it in the oven for 2 hours and you just get on with your day. While dinner is cooking, you can take your kids to sports, you could read a book, you can have a bath, you could do whatever you like, you have two hours. I was cooking this and my husband called me on the phone and asked what I'm doing, I said I'm making dinner, well I was, but at that moment, I was actually watching TV with my kids

When I first started cooking this, my husband questioned the ingredients, saying it didn't seem there was enough ingredients to make this a delicious meal, but can I tell you, the depth of flavour achieved from these few ingredients in the slow cooking process is unbelieveable. 

Short Ribs are one of my favourite cuts of meat, I cook with them all the time. They need slow cooking to become fall apart tender and recipes like this make an 'affordable' cut of meat, taste like something you would buy in a restaurant.

Now in the original recipe, the short ribs were cut into serving portions before cooking, (you cut the ribs between the bones to achieve this) and each short rib was serve whole over a bed of mashed potato. I chose to shred the meat (it falls apart when you shred it with two forks), as I prefer to serve it this way. Sometimes I don't feel like a whole piece of meat, this way you can take as much as you like, rather than have a whole piece of meat. But if you were having a dinner party, this is an easy dish to plate up when the pieces are serve whole and you know how many portions you will have.

Also I served it over a bed of mash as I had potatoes I needed to use up, and it was delicious, but this would also be delicious served over soft polenta or some fresh homemade pasta, like tagliatelle.

The wine I use, is always the wine I drink. It doesn't need to be expensive, but you do have to like the flavour of it.

The original recipe said to cook the short ribs for 3 hours at 160C/140 fan forced, I chose to speed this up a bit by following my Short Rib Ragu recipe and bake it at 180/160C fan forced for 2 hours, I didn't have 3 hours to wait, and it turned out perfect.

Now after you bake it for two hours, you may need to reduce the sauce. I just place it over a low heat, while I shred the meat, it takes about 20-30 minutes, this is up to you how you like the sauce, I like it a little thinner, just thick enough to coat pasta for instance, but you cook it how you like it. If you aren't shredding the meat, you can remove the meat, reduce the sauce, then just return the meat to the sauce to heat up again, just before serving.

The original recipe also said to strain the sauce after it is baked, I didn't see the point in that, I quite liked having the carrot on the plate, so you do it how you like it.

So if you want to make something delicious, that is easy and restaurant quality, you need to try this. ​

​Recipe adapted from www.recipetineats.com 

5 - 6 beef short ribs , around 1.8kg
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 large onion, chopped 
2 celery ribs, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups (500ml) dry red wine 
2 cups (500ml) beef stock, low sodium
2 sprigs thyme
2 bay leaves
​

Preheat oven to 180C/160C fan forced.

Season beef all over with salt and pepper.

Heat oil in a large ovenproof pot over high heat. Add half the ribs and brown aggressively all over (5 - 7 min in total). Remove and repeat with remaining ribs, then remove.

Turn the heat down to low-medium. Add the onion and garlic into the same pot and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the carrot and celery, cook for 5 minutes, until carrot has softened.

Add tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.

Add wine, stock, thyme and bay leaves. Stir to combine.

Return the beef into the liquid, arranging them so they are submerged. 

Cover with lid, bring to the boil and transfer to oven for 2 hours, or until the meat can easily be pried apart with forks. 

If serving the meat whole, remove beef carefully, keeping the meat on the bone. Cover to keep warm. Bring the sauce to a simmer and stir to reduce/thicken the sauce, add water to thin, if needed, season with salt and pepper, if needed. Return the meat to the sauce to reheat. Place beef over a bed of mash or polenta, spoon over sauce. Serve.

If serving the meat shredded, after the 2 hours, bring the casserole dish back to the stove top and simmer over low heat for 20-30 minutes, do this while you are shredding or chopping up the meat, discard the bones, then return the meat to the sauce. Taste for seasoning, serve the sauce over a bed of mash, polenta or pasta.

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Christmas Sandwich Cookies: These are the perfect biscuit. They taste great, look amazing and are easy to make. Make them in any shape you like, fill them with any jam you love or fill them with nutella, lemon curd or dulce de leche. These will be made in my house for many, many years to come.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies: These are by far the best cookies I have ever had. They are so chocolatey, any chocolate lover will not stop at one. The salt added balances the sweetness, and when you eat them the saltiness comes through and you get this cross between salty and sweet. These are loved by everyone who has had one. ​

Peruvian Alfajores: While visiting Peru in my families food journey I came across these Peruvian Alfajores. These biscuits are buttery and flaky and absolutely delicious with their dulce de leche filling. They aren't too sweet, which for me makes them the perfect sandwich cookies. I love these biscuits.

Gingerbread Men: Who doesn't love Gingerbread. My daughter certainly loves Gingerbread, if I bake gingerbread, it is because she has requested it and we don't wait for Christmas.
This is my favourite gingerbread recipe. Gingerbread is both fun and easy to make. Now I say men, but we do any shape we like. And as for the icing, just have fun.

Choc Chip and M&M Cookies: If you like chocolate in your chocolate chip cookies, then these are the cookies for you. These are absolutely full of choc chips and m&m's.
They are soft to bite into, which I love, but the ends have a crunch also, which I love. These are a perfect sweet treat.

Monte Carlos: One of my all time favourite biscuits. I absolutely love these. Very easy to make and the perfect sweet treat.

Polka Dot Cookies: I loved making these biscuits with my kids. This is a very simple, cute biscuit recipe to make. Whenever the kids want to bake, these come out. These truly bring a smile to my kids faces.

Almond Bread: The most addictive biscuit on the planet, just try stopping at one. These are delicious and great to have in the house when unexpected guests arrive. I don't know anyone that doesn't love these biscuits.

Chocolate Strawberries: Here is the simplest treat you can ever make for your family and friends. They look amazing. Both adults and kids love these, and they are not that bad for you, I think, anyway.
They are great at parties. They are great after dinner, as a light dessert. They are great as an after school snack. They are great as a cake decoration. They are simply put just great.

Chocolate Rum Truffles: When I make a mud cake, I usually cut off the top of the cake to make it level before icing it. These truffles are my favourite thing to make with that left over chocolate cake. This is simple and delicious.

Crunchy Chocolate Truffles: These crunchy chocolate truffles are so quick and easy to make, and my kids love them. 

Rocky Road: This is probably the easiest sweet treat you could make. And the flavour combinations can be anything you like.
You want a crunch element, a chewy element, but you can add whatever you like, you can add a salty nut, a different nut, jelly lollies, truly whatever you like. Rocky Road is like creating your own chocolate bar.

Apple, Berry and Rhubarb Crumble: One of my families absolute favourite desserts is a crumble and this one is delicious. 

Plum Crumbles: When plums are in season, these individual plum crumbles are delicious and so easy to make. They are fast to prepare and just perfect. My family love these.

Banana Crumb Muffins: This muffin is light and fluffy, with a surprise crunch from the crumble topping. You get a lovely cinnamon flavour from it, and it also has a 'caramelly' flavour from the brown sugar. What is great also is how easy they are to make, you need one bowl and a fork. So easy.

Chocolate Cupcakes: Two of my three kids are born in winter. Trying to soften butter in winter is a nightmare. So I searched for a recipe where butter could be melted to make cupcakes, and I found this recipe.
This is the only chocolate cupcake recipe I make. I have made it for years and am happy with them every time, I no longer even think to try another recipe. They are very quick and easy to make.

Appelbeignets: My family call these Apple Doughnuts. These are delicious, especially when hot, and the batter is crisp. So simple to make, so quick to make. While the oil is heating up, you prepare the apples and batter, cook for three minutes and you're done.

Churros: My daughter is a doughnut fanatic, she truly loves doughnuts. All doughnuts, all shapes and sizes. She had been asking for me to make churros for some time, I kept avoiding it as I thought it will be difficult. Well I was wrong, these are so easy to make, and I mean really easy, I'm talking, in 10-15 minutes you have a batter ready for frying, in 30 minutes, you are already eating churros.

Cinnamon Doughnut Puffs: As I mentioned my daughter loves doughnuts, so while relaxing in front of the TV one day, these came up on one of the food channels, so I knew I had to make these for her. You could not find an easier recipe to make, a few simple ingredients, mixed together in minutes, baked in 12 minutes and you have doughnuts.

Lemon and Coconut Brownies: I love lemon based desserts, I find them very refreshing. So when I saw this recipe, and I had all the ingredients at home, I simply had to make it.
I loved them, they were nice and moist, perfectly lemony and the coconut made them slightly chewy. This is a very nice brownie I will make again and again.

Berry and Apple Slice: This slice is delicious, it is jam packed full of fresh fruit. This is an absolute family favourite in our house.

Madarica: This to me is by far the greatest slice ever to be made. No slice comes close, for me, to perfection as the madarica does. The layering of biscuit and chocolate custard, topped with chocolate, simply amazing. This is a very traditional Croatian slice. This is a must at any festive Croatian occasion. Not an easy slice to make, but if you follow the recipe it will work.

Passionfruit Cheesecake Slice: ​When I was growing up, I don't know a party I went to that my mother was not asked to bring this cheesecake to, and it is still requested today after 30 years of making it. Nowadays when I make it, it is still loved by anyone that tries it. This cheesecake is creamy, yet light and has a lovely flavour.

Chocolate Brownies: My favourite chocolate brownie recipe. Easy to make and something I make quite often when I'm asked to bring a dessert to a party.

Berry Custard Slice: Not many desserts surprise me, but this one did. Why, because I didn't expect the custard to taste like custard the way that it did. I guess with baking I was expecting it to be firmer, but it wasn't, it remained creamy and luscious as custard is, yet it sliced so beautifully and kept its shape, I was truly amazed. This is definitely a recipe anyone who loves berries and custard should try. The custard here is just beautiful with the berries.

Cookies and Cream Cheesecake: After trying many, many recipes I have found my favourite cookies and cream cheesecake recipe. This one is creamy, it is light, it is tasty. I'm pretty sure I won't be looking to find anymore cookies and cream cheesecake recipes, this is it, this one I am happy with.

Salted Chocolate Caramel Slice: This recipe is the easiest caramel slice I've ever made and it is the perfect little sweet treat. 

Wagon Wheel Slice: This is one very popular slice. My family and friends love this and it's ridiculously easy to make.

Choc Vanilla Slice: If I think of a dessert that was my mum's and that everyone loved, this is it. She was asked to make this at every party we went to. It is still one of the best slices I have ever made.

Lemon Meringue Slice: I love lemons in desserts. I love the burst of flavour you get from lemons. 
This slice is lovely, it is fresh, it is full of flavour. This is a dessert I can make with ingredients I have in my pantry. 

​Pho Ga (Vietnamese) simply translates as Chicken Soup.

Before I made this soup we had a few days of eating rich, comforting meals, so I was on the search for something lighter for dinner and I came across this soup. It seemed easy, all the flavours going into it I liked, so I thought I'd try it.

Now originally it is a slow cooker recipe, but I just made it on the stove top. But if you wanted to make it in the slow cooker, use a 5 litre (20 cup) slow cooker and add the ingredients from the first step and cook, covered, on low, for 8 hours.

We love this. The broth was delicious and when you add all the sides to it, absolutely delicious.

Now I don't add the Thai basil leaves, as I don't like the flavour they add, but you add it if you like it. I also don't seed the long red chilli, as I like a little heat in the soup, but you do what you like.

So if you are looking for something simple to make for dinner, that is light, but full of flavour, you need to try this.

Recipe adapted from The Australian Women's Weekly Cookbook 'The Slow Cooking Collection'

Serves 4

1.2kg whole chicken
1 large onion, chopped coarsely
5cm piece fresh ginger, sliced thinly
2 litres (8 cups) water
2 whole star anise
3 green onions, cut into 5cm lengths
2 cinnamon sticks
10cm stalk fresh lemon grass, bruised
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1/4 cup (60ml) fish sauce
1/4 cup (60ml) lime juice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
200g rice stick noodles
2 cups (160g) bean sprouts
1/2 cup small fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup small fresh coriander leaves
1/2 cup fresh thai basil leaves
1 fresh long red chilli, seeded, sliced thinly lengthways
​1 green onion, extra, sliced thinly
​1 lime extra, for serving
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Place chicken, onion, ginger, the water, star anise, green onion, cinnamon, lemongrass and coriander seeds in a large saucepan. Bring to the boil, reduce heat to low, bring to a slow simmer and simmer, covered, for 2 hours.
 
Carefully remove the chicken from the saucepan, then shred meat coarsely using two forks; discard skin and bones.
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Add fish sauce, lime juice and sugar to the stock mixture in the saucepan; stir to combine. Strain the stock through a fine sieve into a another saucepan; discard solids.
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Place noodles in a medium heatproof bowl, cover with boiling water and stand for 15 minutes or until tender; drain.
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Divide noodles and shredded chicken among soup bowls. Ladle hot soup over noodles. Serve topped with sprouts, herbs, chilli and extra green onion. Serve with an lime cheek.

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​Our Eating Around the World Adventure took us to Switzerland. Now on this adventure where we try different foods from different countries, I have learnt that food crosses borders. Swiss food like most other countries is influenced by it's neighbours Germany, France and Italy. This recipe is obviously Italian influenced.

This pizza is delicious. This pizza is easy to make. 

The dough is so good. It is a no knead dough, which is fabulous. All you have to do is cook a potato, then mix the dough ingredients together, spread it into a baking dish, let it rise for 1 hour, spread on the topping and bake. And you're done. And the flavour is amazing. The dough is the fluffiest, softest dough/bread you will ever eat. It is amazing.

Make sure your milk and water a warm, not hot, as hot water can kill the yeast.

The sauce is delicious to, and very easy to make. And as you spread the sauce on the unbaked dough, as it bakes, it seeps into the dough to create this soft pizza.

This was one of my greatest recipe finds and I know this recipe will be made again and again for my family.

Recipe adapted from Manuela Darling Ganseer's cookbook Winter in the Alps

Serves 4-5

Dough:
250g potatoes
1 teaspoon dried yeast
200ml warm milk
200ml warm water
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
400g plain flour

Tomato Sauce:
15g unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1 small spanish onion, finely chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 fresh sage leaves
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 fresh bay leaf
75g tomato paste
300g tin Italian peeled tomatoes
Salt and pepper, to taste

50g grated Gruyere cheese
50g grated Emmental cheese
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For the dough: Boil the potatoes in their skins until just done. Pierce it with a skewer to test if cooked. When cooked, cut the potatoes in half. Place the potato cut side down in a ricer, place the ricer over a large mixing bowl and push the potato through the ricer. The flesh goes through the ricer into the bowl and the peel remains in the ricer, just remove the peel and discard.

Add the remaining dough ingredients to the bowl and mix well with a spoon to combine. The dough will be quite wet, with a consistency similar to thick yoghurt.
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Lightly oil a 30cm x 20cm oven tray with a tall side (at least 2-3cm high sides) with extra virgin olive oil. Make sure you rub the oil all over the tray, to ensure the dough doesn't stick to the tray once baked.

Pour the dough into the tray and, with oiled hands, spread the dough to the edges of the pan. Let the dough stand in a warm place for 1 hour, or until it begins to rise.
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Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan forced.
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In the meantime, make the sauce. Heat the butter and oil in a medium sized saucepan and saute the onion until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and herbs and cook for a further 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for a few minutes more, until it darkens in colour, but be careful not to burn it. Add the tomatoes, salt and pepper. Cover with a lid, reduce the heat to low and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring from time to time, breaking up the tomatoes as they soften with cooking. Remove from heat, discard the rosemary stalk and bay leaf.
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Spread the tomato sauce over the pizza base and top with cheeses. Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil on top and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until the dough is cooked. The base will rise with baking and the sauce will seep into it to create a soft pizza.

​​Serve immediately with a green salad.

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​If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #whatscookingella