corn and coriander fritters

what you need

1.5 cups corn kernels

2 spring onions finely chopped

½ onion finely diced

1 knob of ginger finely chopped

1/3 bunch of coriander leaves chopped

½ red capsicum finely diced

1 tsp dried cumin

½ cup of water (if you’re using tinned corn, use the water it comes in)

2 eggs

1 cup self raising flour

Sea salt flakes

Cracked lack pepper

Olive oil

what to do

Preheat oven to 180 degrees (350 fahrenheit).

Sauté the onion and ginger in a little oil until soft and translucent.

Place the flour, 1 cup of the corn kernels, onion, ginger, cumin, water and eggs into a food processor and process until well combined.

Place mixture into a large mixing bowl and stir through the remaining corn, shallots, capsicum, and coriander and season the mixture with sea salt and black pepper.

In a non-stick fry pan place a little oil and set over high heat.

Using a 30 ml (1 oz) ladle cook fritters 2 at a time, approx 1 minute per side or until golden.

Transfer to an oven proof rack and tray and cook for a further 3-4 minutes in the oven.

cajun spiced nuts

These are great to serve at a party or when friends come over for drinks you can also toss a few into a salad to give some extra bite and crunch.

What you'll need
1 kg mixed nuts

Good pinch Sea Salt flakes

Cajun Spices 50gms

2 Egg Whites Lightly whisked

What to do
Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, rub the mixture together with your hands to get a good coating over the nuts

Place on a lightly greased tray and dry at 120C (250F) for 40 minutes

Once cool keep in an airtight container. They will last for a couple of weeks and you can crisp them up again in an oven at about 100degC (230F) for about ten minutes

new york style pizza dough

What you'll need
½ teaspoon active dry yeast

350ml warm water

2 ½ teaspoons sugar

2 ½ teaspoons) salt

15 ml olive oil

4 ½ cups) OO flour

What to do
Set the yeast in the warm water for 5 minutes, or until it starts to ‘bloom’

Add the remaining ingredients until they are just combined

Place a wet cloth over the bowl and let sit for 20 minutes. This step allows the starches to hydrate and better develop the dough as you proceed

Knead the dough for at least ten minutes, or until the dough is stretchy and does not rip when your finger pushes down on it

Put the dough in a warm area and let sit until it doubles in size

Punch it down, knead for three minutes, and let it rise until again doubled

Punch down again and shape in to 300gr balls.

let stand for 10 minutes, roll out and top as required.

Mango-Chili Salsa

What you need

200gr diced mango flesh

100 g (5 oz) mango puree, you may prepare this with the remaining flesh around the seed and the trimmings of the mango fillets when cutting the dice

90 g ( 3 oz) red or green bell peppers, diced

50 g (1 2/3 oz) red onions

10 g coriander leaves, chopped roughly

salt to taste

white pepper from the mill

1 piece lime, juice only

2 piece red finger chili, chopped

30ml (1 fl oz) virgin olive oil

What to do

In a bowl, combine all ingredients except the coriander leaves. Season well and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Add the coriander just before serving

raspberry friands

what you need

• 190g unsalted butter


• 60g plain flour


• 1 1/3 cups (200g) icing sugar, plus extra to dust


• 120g almond meal


• 5 eggwhites


• 100gr raspberries

what to do

Preheat oven to 180°C. Melt butter and use a little to grease a 12-hole friand pan. Dust with a little flour, shaking out excess.

Sift the flour and sugar into a large bowl, then stir in the almond meal.

Place eggwhites in a small bowl and lightly froth with a fork. Add to dry ingredients with melted butter, stirring until completely combined, then gently fold through raspberries. Fill each friand hole two-thirds full. Bake for 25-35 minutes until golden and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven, leave in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Dust with icing sugar just before serving.

Chicken Cacciatore

what you need

4 chicken thighs

2 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

1/2 cup all purpose flour, for dredging

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 large red capsicum, chopped

1 onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

3/4 cup dry white wine

1 can diced tomatoes with juice

3/4 cup chicken stock

3 tablespoons drained capers

1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves

1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves

what to do

Sprinkle the chicken pieces with 1 teaspoon of each salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour to coat lightly.

In a large heavy sauté pan, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. Add the chicken pieces to the pan and saute just until brown, about 5 minutes per side. If all the chicken does not fit in the pan, sauté it in 2 batches. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside. Add the red capsicum, onion and garlic to the same pan and sauté over medium heat until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the wine and simmer until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juice, broth, capers and oregano. Return the chicken pieces to the pan and turn them to coat in the sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer. Continue simmering over medium-low heat until the chicken is just cooked through, about 30 minutes for the breast pieces, and 20 minutes for the thighs.

Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a platter. If necessary, boil the sauce until it thickens slightly, about 3 minutes. Spoon off any excess fat from atop the sauce. Spoon the sauce over the chicken, then sprinkle with the basil

Best Served with penne pasta..

vegetable & feta tort

what you need for the pastry 2 cups bakers flour 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 tsp sea salt water as required for the filling
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
400g pumpkin, peeled and diced 2cm
1 large kumara, peeled and diced 2cm
6 silverbeet leaves, thickly sliced
1 cup crumbled feta
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg, beaten

what to do For the pastry

Place the flour, salt and oil in the bowl of an electric mixer with a dough hook and mix in enough water to make a stiff dough.Knead with the dough hook for 10-15 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. This can also be done by mixing in a bowl then kneading by hand. Remove from the bowl, cover in plastic wrap and rest the pastry in the fridge for 2 hours or overnight.

For the filling
Heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the onions and garlic and fry gently until soft and well browned. Remove from the heat and cool.

Cook the potatoes in boiling salted water until tender. Drain well and crush coarsely with a fork. Boil the pumpkin and kumara separately in more salted water until tender. Drain well and cool. Boil the silverbeet leaves until well wilted, cool under cold water then squeeze dry and chop again.

Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Roll 1/2 the pastry out to make a disc 35cm in diameter. Place on a baking sheet greased with olive oil. Put the potato in an even layer over the pastry, leaving a border 2cm wide all around the edge. Spread the fried onions on top, then the pumpkin and kumara. Sprinkle the silverbeet and feta over and season with a little salt (depending on how salty the feta is) and black pepper. Roll out the other 1/2 of the pastry and place on top. Brush the edges with egg and crimp or twist together all around to seal the pie. Brush the top all over with egg and make several cuts on the top to let the steam escape. Bake for 40 minutes or until well cooked.

Remove from the oven and cool slightly