1020 views, and Party Food for Girls as a giveaway to celebrate

I got close a few times, the closest was 959 in October, and I often thought that I would never reach 1000 page views in a day, and then yesterday....

Pageviews yesterday

1,020

(copied and pasted from Blogger statistics)

Yuppy!!!! 

Well, it may be an isolated case, some days seems to be better than others, but still, a cause for celebrations, and since it is all your merit, dear readers from around the globe, I am offering another

Party Food for Girls book as a giveaway to one lucky person!

Just leave a comment to this post to enter. Don't need to follow this blog unless you like it, but if you do that would be sweet! :-). Contest open worldwide. You have time until this Saturday! Good Luck!

No fuss eggplant and chickpea tajine

No fuss eggplant and chickpea tajine

Slice 2 eggplants and sweat them with salt for 1 hour. Heat a couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive in the tajine pan, and sizzle 2 cloves of garlic (cut into two lengthwise), a few coriander seeds, a few cumin seeds, chili flakes and rock salt. When the spices start to jump around the pan add a roughly chopped onion and when the onion is translucent (not brown) add the eggplant sliced (rinsed). Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring, and then add the content of a can of chickpeas (with their liquid) and a handful of coriander leaves (or parsley, if you don't have/like coriander). 

Now cover with the Tajine top and simmer on the lowest setting for a hour or so. At the end the eggplant will be a mush, and the chickpeas incredibly tasty. Add some smoked paprika if you like it hotter. Serve on couscous dressed with extra virgin olive oil and freshly squeezed lemon juice. 

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

With this recipe I take part in the contest

Sapori d'Oriente

from the blog La cucina di Esme

Masala Dahl

I have posted this a few years ago, and it is one of my tried and true lentil recipes that I make again and again. Also this post got quite a few views, but I didn't have the comments activated at that stage of blogging (it took me a while to get into that! What was I thinking!), so it would be good to get some comments now.

In my original recipe I used some masala powder that my friend Mahendra Motibhai - Patel from Fiji gave me (yes, it is his own brand). The package is great and the spice mixture smells highly aromatic and fresh. I love Indian food, I tried to make up a few recipes with the Motibhai masala, and I was particularly pleased with this one.

Well, the Motibhai masala is long finished now, so I use any type that I can get (do you have any brand to suggest?), but here is my original recipe.

Please note that Dahl is usually a soup and the lentils are small, but I had some green organic lentils which I wanted to use, and I was looking for a thicker consistency.

I sautéed for 30 seconds half tsp of turmeric and half tsp of cumin seeds with a little rice bran oil. Then I added a finely chopped onion and one tbsp of masala powder. Then the lentils, which had been rinsed, and then soaked for 30 minutes. I covered with water and added a big hot whole chili. After 30 minutes I added a little salt to taste and, just because I felt like it, a tbsp of butter (this is not necessary, of course). It was perfect, warm, fragrant, and mildly hot. 

Serve with basmati rice.

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©



Also, I would like to acknowledge this.

image from http://teebriciole.blogspot.co.nz/

Green side vegetables with champagne, ed una richiesta ai blogger italiani

First the recipe: sauté one finely chopped shallot with a tbsp of extra virgin olive oil. Add the stalks, chopped, of a dozen asparagus, stir for a couple of minutes and then add a glass of leftover bubbly and an organic veggie cube (I only use Rapunzel). Let the wine evaporate then add two cups of frozen peas. Add more bubbly if liquid is needed. When the peas are cooked add the asparagus tips and some mange tout of sugar snap peas. Stir quickly to lightly blanch the asparagus tip and sugar snap peas (you still want them very green and crispy). A feast of different textures and greens, and a perfect side veg.

E adesso vorrei chiedere un favore agli amici blogger italiani 

Volete fare un salto virtuale in NZ?

Qualcuno di voi saprà che sono una degli autori del blog della Dante Alighieri Society di Auckland.

Alla Dante siamo un gruppo di volontari che si occupano di mantenere e diffondere la cultura e lingua italiana a Auckland e in Nuova Zelanda. Abbiamo creato una scuola per adulti e per bambini, e facciamo eventi, film, incontri... un po' di tutto veramente. Ho cominciato il blog io perché sono l'unica "blogger" del gruppo, e gli altri stanno imparando piano piano come si fa, però l'idea sarebbe di invitare blogger italiani a contribuire con post di cucina, viaggio, e cultura, dall'Italia. 

Magari avete scritto un post sulla vostra città e vi farebbe piacere dividerlo con gli italiani in Nuova Zelanda, ma sopratutto con i neozelandesi che amano l'Italia (consigli su dove viaggiare sono sempre benvenuti). O avete una ricetta tradizionale? O avete fatto la recensione di un libro italiano? 

Non bisogna scrivere un post apposta per noi, basta riciclarne uno vecchio dei vostri! Chiara, Loredana e Alligatore ci hanno già donato dei post, praticamente li ricopio e incollo, faccio una piccola introduzione per presentarvi, e metto tutti i link e credit e copyright ecc. ecc. 

In italiano va benissimo, e se avete il blog in due lingue... ancora meglio, ma assolutamente non necessario.

Fate un giro pe vedere, se volete, il blog è qui e fatemi sapere.

Grazie!!!

Infine vorrei ringraziare Belinda per avermi passato non uno ma due premi: Your blog is great! e Red Carpet.

Adesso dovrei rispondere a delle domande e girare i premi, ma penso che tutti i blog che frequento sono 'great' e meritano pure il red carpet, quindi farò la pigra e li metto in palio a chi li vuole :-).

Per le domande.... le ho lette e mi ci è voluto un momento per ricordarmi cosa fossero blush e terra. Non penso che la terra esista qui in NZ!! E non mi so truccare!

1) Qual'è l'ultimo acquisto che hai fatto?
Oggi ho comprato delle cannucce di cartone carissime, ma mi servono per un servizio, poi dei pirottini per cupcake carinissimi che non mi servirebbero ma li volevo, e una spatola (francese!!!) perché la mia fida spatola sta cadendo a pezzi!
2) Unghie corte o lunghe?
Un po' lunghe, ma rigorosamente senza smalto, tipo una French manicure al naturale.
3) Rossetto o gloss?
Burro e cacao.
4) Stivali o sandali?
Dipende dalla stagione no? Comunque ho una passione per i sandali!
5) Abbronzatura si o no?
Magari, qui in Nuova Zelanda c'è il buco nell'ozono e non ci si può abbronzare. Se vado all'estero ci provo, ma sono un tipo pallido!
6) Profumo o acqua profumata?
Ho un mucchio di profumi che mi regalano per lavoro, ma non li uso spesso. Il mio preferito è Allure di Chanel.
7) Hai già fatto programmi per le vacanze estive?
Luglio, ma qui è inverno. Comunque Australia, Sydney, Alice Spring ed la roccia Uluru nel deserto (quella che si vede in tutti i documentari sull'Australia!).
8) Occhi o labbra in primo piano?
Dipende da quanto ho dormito.
9) Terra o blush?
Blush, o almeno, è nel cassetto! Però a volte uso quelle creme autoabbronzanti per sembrare meno vampiresca!
10) Palestra o dolce far niente?
Purtroppo non ho tempo né per una né per l'altro.
11) Shorts o mini?
Alla mia età meglio arrivare al ginocchio per non sembrare una sciattona!
12) Capelli lisci o ricci?
Quello che vogliono loro, maledetti!
13) Il tuo colore per l'estate?
Bianco, arancione, verde.
14) Giornata al mare o in montagna?
Montagna, anche se è più facile che la passi al mare visto che ci abito.
15) Fondotinta in estate si o no?
Mai. Farei solo dei pastrocchi!

Apple Spiral with a "Deco-Pin" from Visual Food

Photo by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Today I received a present from Italy, from the talented Rita at Visual Food, the Blog

(aka A Mouse on the Table):

this little gadget!

So super cute!!! I tried it straight away on an apple, and I am already thinking about all the lovely things I could make! Maybe some raw food fusilli, decorations for cocktails e desserts, funky lunch boxes and side vegetables... do you have any other ideas for me? To give you an example Rita made this for Carnival! 

Thank you Rita, what a lovely present! 

Pasta with Field Mushrooms

Only one thing beats finding field mushrooms: to be presented with some...

Dan gave me a bag of field mushrooms. 

"What will you do with them?"

"I will cook them with a little butter, garlic and flat leaf parsley..." 

"Too much! Just butter, the traditional way! When I was a boy I used to pick field mushrooms on the way home from school and then cook them with butter..." 

"Did you eat garlic and flat leaf parsley when you were a child?" 

"No..." 

"Maybe it is traditional for me then..."

I know, I can be very stubborn.

I cleaned the mushrooms and let them stand with a little rock salt. This way the worms (if any) will run away...towards the sink! 

Yes, I used garlic, 3 cloves, sautéed in butter, and then I added the mushrooms, chopped. I decided to make a pasta sauce. When the mushrooms stopped trowing out water I added 200 ml of cream, and salt and pepper to taste. I am pretty sure that a Vegan version is possible with some vegetable margarine and vegetable cream, if you try do let me know!


I simmered the sauce a little longer and then I turned the element off and added finely chopped parsley. The get the most out of the garlic I removed the three cloves and squeezed them with a garlic press. The garlic was lovely and soft and with a delicate flavour. I cooked some pasta (500 g, penne) and mixed the lot. Good, very good!

Thank you Dan!

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Slow Food, Fair Trade, and Oxfam, for the ethical Mum on Mother Day

On Sunday Slow Food Waitakere hosted Oxfam Biggest Coffee Break in West Auckland. It was also Mother's Day, and my kids learned to make coffee for me :-). Then I spent the morning cooking for the event, I made a banana flowers and potato salad with the two banana flowers I had in the garden (recipe here) and some mini vanilla cupcakes decorated with chocolate and chocolate and coffee ganache. Arantxa make chocolate daisies and chocolate coffee beans to decorate the cupcakes, and I cannot believe I didn't take photos!!! The Chocolate coffee beans looked real!!

Mother's Day card from my kids, an owl with apron and wooden spoon? Yes!!!

Cleaning the banana flowers to make a salad 

Fair Trade ingredients to make cupcakes for the Slow Food event

The event was great, and we were honored to have Julia Collins for All Good coming over to talk about Fair Trade. We learned a lot about what it means to choose Fair Trade for the farmers in producing countries, and also several interesting facts about New Zealand too: did you know that we eat 400,000,000 bananas each here in this country? Julia also gave us all a bunch of bananas, so thank you All Good Bananas. If you like to see photos of the event (and food) please click here.

A special thanks to Slow Food Waitakere members Penny and Yvonne for hosting the event, and to all who came along, and to the sponsors who offered Trade Aid goods for Oxfam's Biggest Coffee Break and Chocolate Break parties around New Zealand: Caffe L'affare, All Good, Whittaker's, Kokako, and Scarborough Fair. On the afternoon we raised NZ$385 for Oxfam New Zealand. 

See you at the next Slow Food Waitakere event!

Banana flower and potato salad: for the recipe click here

Photos by Alessandra Zecchini and Arantxa Zecchini Dowling ©

So hard to peel kumara!

Photo by Alessandra Zecchini ©

This image is for Black and White Wednesday, a weekly blogging event created by Susan of The Well-Seasoned Cook and for the coming week hosted by Simona of Briciole. The title of the photo is: So hard to peel kumara!

Fig Cupcakes

Yes I know, I keep publishing cupcakes, but hey, I love them!! And this idea works so well I really wanted to share it! The fact is that the figs of the old tree up our driveway are always too small to make an "impression". They are nice, but never big and juicy and even if they get that way (the ones on the top branches that get all the sun) the birds get to them, not me! So I usually cook them in a cake, but this idea is prettier! Make you favourite vanilla cupcake batter (I use this one - but without the pine nuts), and then fill the cupcake cases only half way up. Insert a whole (small and firm) washed fig in each one and the bake. At the end you can just sprinkle with icing sugar. I can assure you that you will be pleased!

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Mandarin Crème

Oh yes, yummy yummy. At home we love crèmes, especially Arantxa and me (Max prefers chocolate puddings, but this one he approved of!). 3 eggs (medium-small) + 2 heaps tbsp sugar + 250ml cream + 1 tbsp of dried mandarin segments (put these in only at the end when the crème is thick and velvety). Remember to mix well while simmering so that the eggs don't curdle, some people find it easier to make the crème at bain Marie (double boiling) but I just use a low flame and good whisk. Pour into 4 glasses. Before serving add whipped cream, shaven dark (really dark) chocolate and some more segments of dried mandarines, which are crunchy and will create a nice contrast with the creamy texture underneath. To me, heavenly!!

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Wholemeal spaghetti with ricotta and pine nut sauce

I am trying to eat more wholemeal pasta, something that I am not really used to. But for some reason I like wholemeal spaghetti, as long as they have a rich creamy sauce, like this one!

Toast a handful of pine nuts in a frying pan until they start to get brown and oily. Using a mortar and pestle mush half of them with a clove of garlic (peeled), a few leaves of basil (not too many, this is not a Genovese pesto) and then thin everything down with extra virgin olive oil. Add a few tbsp of ricotta and adjust with salt and pepper to taste.

Cook the wholemeal spaghetti al dente, then thin the ricotta sauce with a little hot water from the spaghetti pot. Drain the spaghetti and mix in the sauce. Top with the remaining pine nuts, and with some parmesan cheese, if you like. 

For a vegan version instead of ricotta you could add some soft tofu: the pine nuts, basil, olive oil and garlic should be able to flavor the tofu sufficiently (unless you are one of those crafty people who can make vegan soy ricotta, and then you are set!). 

 Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Miniature cupcakes and sugar flowers, and a sugar craft workshop for children

I make all types of cupcakes, but I have to say that I prefer the smallest ones. In fact some of my cupcakes are becoming smaller and smaller, and so are the sugar roses and flowers which go on top of them! Here are some details with my fingers, to show you the sizes. And yes, I like miniatures!

I still make big ones though, and I just made 24 large and 36 small cupcakes for yesterday becasue Arantxa and I went to this:

It was a long day teaching children how to make sugar roses, and we even got a couple of volunteers from Waitakere College to help: first they set up the table with us, then we thought them how to make the roses (they are art students, they learned fast!!) and then the children started to arrive and I got too busy to take photos! All I can say is that I took with me 60 cupcakes (big and small) and about 5 kg of fondant and finished it all! We made hundreds of flowers and the table was constantly busy with little fingers working. A quick estimate would be that each rose is about 20g (maybe 10g for the actual rose, and 10g got dropped, eaten or 'lost' in the process) so count our roses!!!  Well, hopefully someone took some good photos of when we were surrounded by kids, all I can say is that after that we spent Sunday really relaxing!!! Thank you to the Corban Estate Art Centre,  all the volunteers, and all the attendees at the festival!!

Last thing to show you: since I had some chocolate fondant left over, I mixed it with a little almond and a little strawberry fondant and roll it out (it looks like a precious wood veneer!) then cut it with a hearth biscuit cutter, added a stick in the centre and secured two hearts with a little raspberry royal icing (another left-over). Very sweet, but pretty to look at. I will work on this 'veneer' pattern though, I loved it!!

 Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

My best homemade chocolates so far: nama choco with fruit powders

Actually, these would be perfect for Mother's Day, and they are so easy to make!!

Nama choco are my favourite Japanese chocolates, to make them I followed this recipe from talented blogger Nami of Just One Cookbook. Basically it is the same recipe for chocolate ganache: two parts good quality chocolate to one part of cream, and this time I used Whittakers Dark Cacao 62%. Brake the chocolate with a knife and then melt with the cream over a pot of water at Bain Marie. Pour into a rectangular/square container, smooth the top and refrigerate. When set cut with a warm knife, rinsing the knife in hot water and drying it between each cut. Yum, the chocolates already look yummy as they are!!

At this stage you should dust them with cocoa, but after doing that I added some colour.

Mostly I used Fresh As powders: passion fruit, pineapple, strawberry and blackcurrant. Then I used some Fresh As dried blueberries slices, and some spirulina powder (green tea would go well too!). So all the colour are naturals, and yet they are so bright and beautiful!

I have to say that they looked and tasted so professional that I will make them again. At home we are real  intense chocolate lovers, so these nama choco went down a treat (when I told the kids that I made nama choco they said "YESSSS!"), then I tried them on my Italian language students, and they liked them too, so I thought of putting the recipe on the blog :-). The fruit powders works well not only for colour, but to offer a fresh fruity note to the intense and creamy chocolates. These should be stored in the fridge, but take them out 20 minutes before serving them, unless it is a hot day, or you are one of those people who like chocolate straight from the fridge (and that I can never understand!).

And when these are finished (I still have a couple left in the fridge) I'll move on to the goodies that my husband brought me from South America, lots of chocolates (from the expensive to the 'over the counter') to try, and the first are going to be my favourite: Alfajores! Usually he gets them from Argentina, but this time they came from Chile, I wonder if they are going to be very different. Maybe Gloria can tell me if this is a good brand?

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

I am entering this recipe for Sweet New Zealand #10, the monthly blogging events for Kiwis, this month hosted by Jemma of Time for a Little Something.

We are still looking for a host for June, especially if you haven't had a turn yet!!!

Please contact me if you like to host: remember that you must be living in New Zealand, of be a Kiwi living/blogging overseas.

Last item on this post: Tomorrow Arantxa and I will be here all day to show kids how to make sugar roses. Please come and join us, Corban Arts Centre, Henderson, Auckland

Free art workshops and activities, children's performances, schools' art exhibitions of children's art, photography and multi-media.

Date: Saturday 5 May, 2012 | Time: 10 am – 4 pm | Free entry and parking (onsite).