(Serves 4-6) Chilli, turmeric and ginger add extra goodness to this fragrant soup. The base freezes well, like a frozen first add kit for menacing lurgies that coincide with the cooler climate. Bring 3 litres of good quality chicken stock to a boil in a large pan then place in a chicken (about 1.5kg) and…
Category: Main Course
Roasted Aubergine, Basil and Caramelised Onion Pasta
They call aubergine the poor mans meat, or is it the vegetarians gold? I love this recipe, it’s velvety, creamy, economical and beautifully simple. Heat oven to 180C. Slice 2 aubergines lengthways and use a knife to score through the flesh in a criss-cross pattern close to the skin. Drizzle with oil and bake for…
Imam Bayildi
(Makes 4 stuffed halves) Legend has it that this dish acquired its name because it caused the Turkish Imam to faint through pure pleasure. Great served warm but some say best enjoyed at room temperature the next day, which makes it a perfect BBQ side dish, easily prepared in advance. Make a meal out of…
Pizza Bianca
(Makes 2 large or 4 small pizzas) This no-knead pizza dough recipe is one of my absolute favourites. It’s a good late summer dish, as the warmth of the sun aids the rise of the dough. Personally, I leave for a minimum of 24 hrs and for anything up to 48, depending on the warmth…
Lamb Kofte
Lamb Kofte (Makes about 12 sausage sized kofte) Kofte go well with so many other ingredients so designing a menu plan is easy for a social gathering. You could marinate some feta in advance in jars, make an array of dips (humous, tzatziki, baba ganoush), serve it alongside Greek salads, tabouleh, olives, pestos and finally,…
Crab Linguine
It’s a great shame that 95% of our crab is exported to Europe. It seems we are depriving ourselves of exceptional national produce (possibly seeing it as special occasion/holiday fodder), rather than relishing it as island dwellers with all sorts of seafood on our doorstep. Now is the perfect season for eating crab, this recipe…
The Ultimate Spring Chicken Salad with Jersey Royals and Basil Mayonnaise
This salad makes the most of the fantastic seasonal produce we have around this time of year. Don’t be scared of mayonnaise, especially if you have a blender – as long as you add the oil in a slow steady stream, you will triumph. There is ample, so be sure to finish it up in…
Pork Larb in Lettuce Cups
I love this quick and simple recipe. It’s great as a canapé, main with sticky rice and green papaya salad or as part of a South-east Asian inspired banquet. I last made these with asian fish cakes and prawn toasts which all go well with sweet and sour dip and satay so everyone could mix…
Smoky Sardines with Sweet Tomato Chutney
In Australia, sardines became a staple in our household as we used the BBQ more often than the oven. Really easy to gut yourself or just ask your fishmonger. Use a griddle pan if too cold or wet for a BBQ and leave to char to promote the smoky flavour. Sardines are relatively cheap and…
Summer Broad Bean Mint and Pancetta Pasta
(Serves 2) This recipe is a picnic to make, it’s worth taking the time to remove the beans from their skins (unless you can get them super-fresh). Refreshingly seasonal and nutritional and having made it once, I’m sure you’ll make it again. Choose crisp-looking un-withered pods at your local farmers market this month, or better still, pick…
Sticky Pork Loin
I think pork loin is underrated, it’s tender, easy to prepare and penny-wise. This marinade is comprised of pantry staples (with the addition of fresh ginger) and tastes incredibly good! I serve this with steamed rice or noodles tossed in sesame oil and sprouting broccoli or inside bahn mi with pickled veg and coriander. *Tip…
Pici with a Rich and Unctuous Tomato Sauce
I discovered the wonders of pici in Tucany, where it is served commonly with wild boar (the poor old stuffed heads are everywhere, usually sporting spectacles funnily enough). The best I had was in a tiny village high up in Montepescali, in Osteria Sotto Le Logge and one of the best food experiences in my…
Baked Tandoori Chicken with Mint and Coriander Relish, Easy Flatbreads and Charred Cos
Our Sunday lunch is normally ‘the last hurrah’ of the weekend and so much thought goes into planning something thats not going to let us down. This chicken recipe is by Neil Perry, absolutely so delicious I already can’t wait to make it again. Next time I’ll double the chicken quantity and so we can…
Satay Roast Chicken with Blazing Chilli Dip and Honeyed Salad
I was glad to finally cross this particular recipe off my list and even gladder to have this fierce dip under my belt (luckily not literally) as it blows your head off but I’ll definitely be making this again. I have decided to add the link as I followed the recipe exactly, the only tips…
Romanian Sarmale
When I met Nancy I had just moved to Melbourne, she worked in my local cafe (The Barber Shop). I miss the coffee, bagels and Nancy now too! Nancy liked to forage (something id never heard of) but learning about all these secret spots to pick-up free herbs and other eatable things was convenient, money-saving…
Chicken and Bacon Ragu with Fennel and Ricotta Dumplings
I found this recipe on thekitchn.com and have changed a few small things which I believe add a greater depth of flavour. The ricotta dumplings I have left alone (apart from adding a touch of grated nutmeg) as the recipe is so fantastic, so ridiculously simple and quite fun too. I love to slow cook…
Simple Roast Chicken with Garlic, Lemon, Thyme and Honey
There is something so satisfying about a roast chicken, it is a great example of simple yet sophisticated cooking, it can feel old-fashioned (the process of preparing, carving and gobbling) there is something medieval, almost gluttonous about it. Sometimes I like to make a herb or tomato butter and carefully stuff this under the chickens…
Roasted Cauliflower Olive and Sundried Tomato Cavatelli
If you’ve not yet hopped on the roasted cauliflower bandwagon, please do soon for you will not be disappointed. Charring and caramelising the edges brings out a nutty, buttery flavour and when lightly oiled, salted and roasted for 20-30 minutes in a high temp oven it is tempting to pop it in like popcorn. I…
Sandra’s Prawn and Pancetta Spaghetti
Another recipe taken from Sandra’s kitchen (La Cucina di sandra). Ben found it on her new blog, subtly emailed it to me and since then we’ve already made it 3 or 4 times. In the blog she shares travel adventures and recipes that would normally be kept for the pleasure of her guests in her…
Simple Spring Celebration Pasta
Having left Australia mid summer, travelled and returned to the UK at the beginning of spring, we have sneakily missed out on a winter. Even though in my opinion there can never be ‘too much summer’ I am really appreciating the UK spring and how the season effects earth and nature. We ventured to our…
Lamb Flatbreads with Alison
Recipes from my travels will be coming soon but before all that I thought I’d catch up with recipes I intended to feature before leaving Australia… I met Alison from http://www.alisonmcwhirter.com.au and we decided to create some kind of fusion between her photography and my cooking and styling. I only have Alisons images as cover photos…
Prawn Noodle Salad with Sesame-Ginger Dressing
This is a special post as it marks the 1000th subscriber to The Travelling Pantry – so thanks to everyone that has made it happen! It also represents the end of one journey and beginning of a new one (leaving Melbourne and moving back to the UK). I began the blog in order to document…
Simple and Delicious Marinated Fish Kebabs!
I made first made these this Christmas and have since made them twice already. The idea was to have a BBQ on Christmas day, so we made these, BBQ chicken skewers, satay chicken skewers, marinated prawns, calamari, Thai chicken balls and salads galore (all cooked on BBQ throughout the day to keep us going and…
Sausage, Mustard and Basil Seashells
After all the extravagances of Christmas, this dish is a welcome relief to all the hearty, farty, complicated foods – perfect to whip up weeknights and still momentous enough to reward yourself or special people for a hard day’s work. Recipe is thanks to but slightly adapted from Nigel Slater. True to his fashion, a…
Sweet and Spicy Malaysian Chicken Curry
This one’s a real treat, great in winter or summer, for 2 or for a crowd……the flavour is soft, with a hint of sweetness from the palm sugar and subtle warmth from the chilli and spices. Really very simple, once you have your curry paste it’s merely a case of frying it with onion, adding…
Turmeric & Coconut Fish Curry
This is such a simple and tasty recipe, really worth a try – we normally eat this on a Monday with fish bought from the Saturday morning market – something to make Mondays a bit more bearable! If you can get your hands on fresh turmeric and curry leaves, it is worth it for this…
Breakfast Pizza & Topping Ideas
This post is really just for me to keep track of the pizza toppings that we have enjoyed the most. Since trying out Jim Lahey’s recipe – it’s fair to say that we’ve all become a bit infatuated with the simplicity of the no-knead dough recipe and enjoyed experimenting with a myriad of toppings. I…
Spicy Noodle Salad with Tuna Toasties & Tobasco Tomatoes
Living so close to Victoria Street has given me a taste for Vietnamese, lots of mighty flavours and infinite ingredients to experiment with…… if you are nearby, check out ‘Weasels Garden Café’ it’s on Murray St, tucked away, always very quiet, the foods pretty good and the garden is like a slice from a tropical…
Spelt Spaghetti, Red Onion, Basil Oil and Roasted Vine Tomatoes – with Chilli!
This pasta is so simple, it’s not even really a recipe and I didn’t intend to blog it – but it tasted so good, I thought I’d whip out the camera and write the mix so not to forget it. The tomatoes will take a good hour or 2 to slow roast, but speed this…
Herby Roast Vegetable Salad with Tahini Dressing
Back again to Daylesford for Ben’s birthday and a sneaky surprise stay in an old butcher’s… Back in Daylesford and our little country escape, I thought a nice warm vegetable salad would warm the cockles and also spare us more time for the finer things in life (monopoly and Prosecco in this case). This is…
Nduja with Silky Tomato Butter Pasta
Nduja is something I’ve been hunting down for years and I finally got to cook with it this week. It is Calabria’s clever variation on salami, which is spreadable and melts into an unctuous delight when heated, making this buttery sauce perfectly rich and wicked (even though the ingredients are so humble). Nduja is composed…
No Knead Pizza Dough & 2 Very Simple Toppings
About a month ago we ordered takeout pizza from ‘Baby Pizza’, Church St, Richmond in Melbourne. Maybe because it was the night before our holiday or maybe it was the pizza but it sparked off a bit of a pizza phase for us and when I came across Jim Lahey’s no knead dough recipe, I…
Roasted Pumpkin Cappellacci with Crispy Sage Butter and Pancetta
Considering we eat pasta so often, it seems strange that we have never made it but I think part of the reason why is due to fear. Fear that it may be too hard or that I’ll just be plain rubbish at it. The other reason is because I think dried pasta can be so…
Decadent Pork Ragu
I’ve made this ragu so many times since I first tried it, about 2 years ago. Its simplicity always deems it a pleasure to make and it’s perfect for a dinner party, as it can feed 6-8. If you have fiddly starters or desserts, this can just be left either in the oven or on…
Sweet Pepper, Cherry Tomato and Basil Oil Orecchiette
I am really happy to be posting this, as it’s really delicious and I feel safe having the recipe here as I will never lose it or forget about it. It’s one of the simplest pasta dishes there could possibly be and meat lovers – add pancetta or some other meaty morsel, it will also…
Broad Bean, Pea, Pancetta and Herby Spring Salad
Just as I’d found the perfect finger less gloves, spring arrives and it’s already too warm to wear them. On the positive side, spring brings with it some exciting, colourful foods that I felt like I’d forgotten, in the midst of all the kale and sprouts. Smack bang in the middle of a pretty intense…
Sweet Roasted Pepper, Leek, Thyme and Pancetta Rigatoni
I came across this recipe on the blog ‘Fig and Quince’, a great blog about Persian food and culture. http://figandquince.com/2014/07/21/italy-pasta-no-basta/ Since I found it, I have been making it weekly, so it’s been about 4 weeks, 4 times I’ve made it and only on the last could I bring myself to photograph it as it’s…
Harissa Fish with Zucchini, Mint and Lemon Potatoes
Described commonly as Tunisia’s main condiment, harissa is used in all kinds of stews, a rub for meat, a flavouring for couscous and in a chickpea soup which is usually served for breakfast. No harissa I have ever bought has tasted the same as the next and as always it’s far better to make your…
Slow Roast Chicken with Sun burnt Broccoli and Maple Sprouts
There’s not much I love more than getting up on a Sunday to put something in the oven, then out for breakfast, pub in the afternoon and returning to a house smelling delicious and as if someone else has made it for you – something perfectly slow roasted, ready to take out the oven and…
Pasta with Roast Pumpkin, Rosemary, Smoky Bacon and Spinach
I came across this recipe in my diary, it’s slightly embarrassingly called ‘The Foodies Diary’ maybe you have one too? The thing is, it’s great for listing seasonal produce, festivals and farmers markets and me being from the UK – everything’s back to front over here and good to know what’s in season – even…
8 Hour Lamb with Herby Dressing and Crumbled Feta
I came across this particular recipe in the first cook book I bought since being in Australia ‘What Katie Ate’ and this is what inspired me to create my own food blog. Katie Quinn Davies only really got into cooking in her early thirties, spending most of her twenties as a graphic designer where she…
Sun-dried Tomato and Green Olive Garganelli
A quick one here, great for weeknights and again – a pantry pasta. Garganelli is one of my favourite egg pasta shapes and I believe the names derives from the dialectal word garganel, chicken’s gullet (which the ridged garganello resembles). This was inspired by a well-known brand, the only pasta sauce I have ever really…
Croxetti with Walnuts and Lemon
For those who aren’t familiar with this odd looking pasta shape, it’s name is Croxetti and it is circular and stamped usually with an intricate pattern. It’s something I’ve only become familiar with recently and can’t resist an unexplored pasta variety! This is really very simple and absolutely delicious, I would recommend using a thick…
Pantry Harissa Wholegrain Linguine
I love to find a new pasta dish that is created (I wanted to say spawned but it sounds a bit alien) from pantry staples. This is it! It has flavour, it’s healthy and it really works! Substitute ingredients for others you have, such as swapping kale for spinach or changing the type of pasta…
Best Ever Pantry Sticky Barbecue Chicken
I have eaten this particular recipe my whole life, which has been passed on from Mary Berry to my mum then to me. It never ceases to delight me and whoever I cook it for, it’s one of those recipes that kids love, fuss pots love – everyone loves and it’s fun to make, being…
Getting Exotic with Corn on the Cob
Every season brings with it great foods and corn has that oomph factor in the spring/summer (Sept-March in Australia). We usually eat this as a starter but have recently become more experimental with the sunny kernels. Some ideas to jazz up your cobs……. Spiced butter – I have a recipe in my post as follows,…
Farro Spaghetti with Asparagus, Cherry Tomatoes, Pine Nuts, Lemon, Chives and Parmesan
The oldest cultivated grain in the world……. Even though this title sounds long, the actual dish is really simple, fresh and delightful – quite frankly. Farro had intrigued me for some time but I didn’t hold out too much hope as even though I like spelt pasta, I haven’t yet tried a wholemeal pasta that…
Mezza – Spiced Prawns, Coriander Chicken Wings and Fresh Oregano Salad
Who doesn’t love a leisurely banquet? Mezza is a tradition celebrated in Lebanon and neighbouring countries throughout the Middle East and Mediterranean. It is usually comprised of small dishes to be enjoyed as a main meal, or lead up to the main meal. I’ve always favoured a long laid-back lunch and a light dinner and…
Spiced Cauliflower Torchietti with Chilli, Tomato and Bacon
Mark Twain described the cauliflower as ‘cabbage with a college education’. Now I am starting to educate myself about this mysterious white vegetable. I started to sauté cauliflower about a year ago, which went down very well with my partner who normally detests the stuff. I llike to fry the florets in a little oil…
Zucchini Flowers with Peas, Tomato, Basil and Saffron Parpadelle
A Ridiculously simple pasta dish, celebrating the zucchini flowers with the invigorating sharpness of saffron, the sweet tomato flesh and earthy fresh peas…. I found the flowers at my local market and was inspired by the enthusiasm of the stall holder, whose love for his produce shone clear through his recipe concoctions. I have stuffed…
The Travelling Pantry 