Blender & Basil

Baba Ganoush – a simple dip recipe

Following the Levantine/Middle Eastern thread, we are back with another aubergine recipe. This time, we are using our beloved vegetables for a famous dip recipe, Baba Ganoush. While there can be variants, the classic recipe is very simple. This is the ideal dip to serve as a starter with crudities, a few toasted slices of…

Roasted peppers in oil – a simple Italian recipe

The temperatures are as hot in London as in Singapore and it is that time of the year everywhere when fresh veggie recipes come to mind. Also, peppers are in season, which means they are sweet and tasty, what better time to use them than for a simple summer lunch? In Italy we do conserves…

Double layer milk (shuang pi nai) – a simple Chinese dessert recipe

Chinese desserts are relatively few and far between, but there are a few special ones that can be hard to get in the shops, and this double layer/skin milk is one such dessert. The recipe dates back to the 1850s, and comes from the Canton region. The key ingredients are full fat milk and egg…

A Scrumptious Cocoa Cake – perfect for birthdays!

This chocolate cake recipe is inspired by Giallo Zafferano’s Scrumptious Cocoa Cake. In the Italian household of Blender and Basil, the hubby has a soft spot for chocolate. So when his birthday comes along I usually make a chocolate treat to celebrate – this year I made a more elaborate birthday cake than usual. The…

Steamed pork with broken rice/couscous (Fen Zheng Rou) – a traditional Chinese recipe

This steamed pork with couscous recipe is both traditional and modern – in that it uses couscous instead of broken rice, but the taste is so similar to what you’d traditionally eat that it’s very difficult to distinguish between the two. Traditionally the broken rice is made from chopping rice (or whizzing it quickly in…

Roasted Aubergines/Eggplants with Crispy Onions and Feta

Aubergines, or eggplants, are amongst my favourite vegetables to cook, and I really enjoy finding new ways of presenting them at the table and giving them a new taste. This aubergines recipe is inspired by a dish I found in the book Jerusalem, by Ottolenghi and Tamimi, which was given to me as a present not so…

Russian Salad – a simple recipe

For many years, Russian salad has been a mystery for me. In Italy we don’t consume it much, apart from the odd buffet-style dinner party so I never had too much curiosity about making it at home. In London, between my good Russian friend and my Spanish other half, I discovered the many faces of…

The quickest recipe for home made mayo

A very quick and simple one this week, it’s our home made mayonnaise recipe. I learned fairly recently that it is possible to make mayo using a hand blender and it was a life changing discovery. The biggest advantage of making mayo at home is that you will know how genuine the ingredients will be,…

Chinese Broccoli (Gai Lan) Barley Risotto – a rich vegetarian recipe

I’m a huge fan of barley benefits: it’s high in fibre and helps lower cholesterol; it’s very nutritious and enriches any stews, broths or even salads. When I saw the unreasonable prices of risotto rice in Singaporean shops, I quickly turned to a barley recipe as a perfect solution! Since I’m making the effort to buy…

Kale Pasta with cashew nuts – a simple recipe

We all love kale: with a boost of vitamins and antioxidants comes a great solution for a quick and easy meal. This simple recipe serves two, and a few of its ingredients are easily interchangeable. Use it as a base for one of those evenings when you think you don’t have anything to cook, and when you open…

Sardinian eel pie (Panada di anguille)

Easter has come and gone, and in Sardinia many families have cooked a very traditional dish for special occasions: Sardinian panada. Many claim that this pie was created during the pre-nuragic period. I doubt so, judging by its similarities with empanadas, I would say that the idea was probably coming from our Spanish invaders. Legend…

Pine nuts and corn stir-fry (Song Ren Yu Mi) – a simple Chinese recipe

With spring in the air, we’re here to share another light and easy Chinese veggie recipe this week. Pine nuts are not only subtly fragrant but extremely nutritious, and make up the main ingredient of this week’s recipe, along with corn. I’ve always got some frozen corn in the freezer as it’s so versatile and…