Only Recipes, by Alessandra Zecchini ©

I love summer and stone fruit! The orchard near my house sells a variety of plums, and these Louse plums are just a treat! You could also use some black doris or any free stone plums for this recipe. Ingredients 120 g butter 3 eggs 130 g sugar 1/2 tsp lemon zest 200 g self-rising flour 60 ml milk 3 large or 6 small Louise (or other) plums Makes 12 cupcakes Preheat the oven to 175°C. Line a 12-muffin tray with cupcakes paper cups. Melt the butter in a jug, either in the microwave or in the oven (while the oven is warming up for the cupcakes). Place the eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk, using an electric beater, until the mixture looks light and pale yellow in colour. Slowly add the melted butter and the lemon zest. Keep beating at a low speed now; add half of the flour followed by half of the milk. Add the rest of the flour and milk and keep beating making sure that there are no lumps. In the meantime wash the plums and cut into quarter...

I love this type of dumplings, for the filling I use what I have at hand really, but generally the base is tofu, Chinese dried mushrooms, soaked and boiled first (keep the broth for later) and fresh coriander. For flavouring I used sesame oil, soy sauce and a little fresh ginger. Blend everything into a smooth paste. The folding is easy if you are doing it with friends. The fact is that after the first ten I got tired and bored, and I had 50 more to do! So I didn't make some particularly pretty ones to look at! My son loves them, and I wanted to make him fold a few ("so that you can learn darling!"), but he politely declined saying that he was going to take some photos of me making them instead (he is so good at finding explanations!).  One of the things I do when folding the ready bought dumpling disks is to wet the borders with water so that they stick well. And then I dip (lightly) the bottom of each dumpling in a plate lined with vegetable oil. In this way...

I brought these egg moulds in Japan, you just need to put inside a boiled egg (peeled), close the mould and place it in a bowl filled wit water (cold) and after 15 minutes your eggs are shaped like a bunny and a teddy bear! So cute! I also got some small ones for quail eggs, can't wait to try them, the kids love them! Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

This recipe comes from my book  Savour , and I have just seen on the  Amazon website  that they have 4 'used' copies from $2.42 (plus postage), good to know as now it is almost impossible to find in New Zealand.  Rye Bread Ingredients: 300 ml warm water 2 tsp active yeast granules 1/2 tsp brown sugar 300 g rye flour 200 g high grade flour 1 tsp salt 1 tbsp molasses 1 tsp caraway seeds Place the warm water in a large bowl, add the yeast and brown sugar then set aside for 5 minutes. When the yeast starts to bubble, add both kinds of flour, salt, molasses and caraway seeds. Work into a dough for about 10 minutes using your fingers; it will be quite sticky so knead it in the bowl. Shape into a ball, sprinkle it with rye flour and leave to rise in the bowl, covered with a damp tea towel, for about 2 hours. Punch the dough and knead it for 1 minute. Form into an oval shape (this time I made it into a long loaf instead), sprinkle with m...

This is a no-cook dessert that can be made in two minutes, and with three ingredients. Also, it can be served as fruit, or cheese! Place a spoon of creamy ricotta in a glass or verrine, add some blueberries and a little bit of honey. Repeat with a second layer. Refrigerate until serving time. Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©