Sylvia’s Pan-fried Hot Smoked Salmon

Pan fried Hot Smoked Salmon
This delicious dish was intuitively created early one evening in our cabin with water views whilst on a mini-break in Strahan a number of years ago. Travelling through Tasmania's south-west region we stopped along the way to purchase most of the fresh produce at road side stalls. The hot smoked salmon we bought that day. [...]

Sylvia’s Zucchini & Basil Frittata

Sylvia's Zucchini Frittata
Zucchini heralds the coming of Summer with brilliant bright deep-yellow flowers a magnet for bees who just love spending time in the early morning gathering their pollen and nectar for the hive. I love watching them! :) But back to the kitchen! Here is my delicious Summer Zucchini and Basil Frittata in all its golden [...]

Sylvia’s Chocolate Draped Pears

Sylvia's Chocolate Draped Pears
Pears and apples belong to the rose family and have their origins in the Caucasus. Both were introduced into Europe and northern India by the Aryan tribes from the original region. The wild pear has now been developed into nearly 1,000 varieties after interbreeding with native wild pears of Europe and Asia. Talk about going [...]

Sylvia’s Fried Zucchini Flowers

Sylvia's Fried Zucchini Flowers
One of my favourite summer and autumn cooking past-times is... you guessed it, picking baby zucchini and their flowers fresh from the garden. Taking them straight to the kitchen, making the simplest batter of them all, in Italian we call it la pastella, then dipping and frying these delectable morsels in hot oil to then [...]

Zucchini Gratin (French-style)

Zucchini Gratin (French-style)
This is another very easy recipe but with a French influence this time! If you still have an abundance of zucchinis in the garden, this might be the perfect way to cook them. This zucchini or courgette gratin makes for a simple yet satisfying main course, vegetarian dish or side dish to roast lamb, beef [...]

Sylvia’s Japanese Simmered Beef with Potatoes and Peas

Japanese Simmered Beef Potatoes Peas
This is a very easy recipe that I shared on ABC Radio Tasmania Afternoons Friday 19 January 2024 whilst chatting about food and cooking with the delightful John O'Hara. Do not be intimidated by the fact that it is Japanese. Contrary to popular belief Japanese home cooking is simple to prepare with inexpensive seasonal ingredients, [...]

Baked Medley of Summer Vegetables

Medley of Roasted Summer Vegetables
This dish is simply delicious and easy to prepare. Similar to Ratatouille, the French stewed vegetable dish from Provence, but without the sauce. I created it one lovely evening when we spontaneously invited friends to dinner. I used a colourful medley of summer vegetables from my garden, tray baked them with herbs from my garden [...]

Sylvia’s Spring Asparagus Frittata

Sylvia's Asparagus Frittata
Asparagus heralds the arrival of Spring with spears standing upright on the green grocer’s shelves and farmer’s markets, or if you are lucky, in your own garden! My Aunt and Uncle who live part of the year in Friuli (north-east Italy) and the other part at the family villa and farm in Campania (south-west Italy) [...]

Thai Stir-fry with Cherry Tomatoes, Eggplant, Garlic and Thai Basil

Sylvia's Thai Cooking Class Summer dish
Here is one of the dishes I cooked at our Cooking Demonstrations at the 2016 Tasmanian Garlic & Tomato Festival. It received an enthusiastic round of applause! This is a deliciously different Thai stir-fry dish using seasonally available cherry tomatoes, garlic, eggplant and fragrant Thai Basil, which I grow together with Italian Genovese Basil. They [...]

Avocado Lemon and Almond Salad

Avocado Lemon and Almond Salad
Quick and easy! A simple and delicious avocado salad to accompany grilled chicken, meat or fish. Or serve as an accompanying dish in a vegetarian meal with roast sweet potato. Avocados are highly nutritious and provide an excellent source of vitamins and monounsaturated fats. The spices I’ve added to the dressing give this salad an [...]