Only Recipes, by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Jam made with plums from Oratia. I removed the stone and cooked the plums with a little water and some jam setting sugar (this was a present, and I wanted to try it). The NZ jam tradition seems to be 1kg of sugar for 1 kg of fruit (or even more sugar if you make raspberry jam) for an Italian this is too much. I go for 40 to 60%, with the latter being my preference if I need to preserve the jam for a long time (it helps agains botulin). You can taste the fruit better with less sugar :-). And our cats, Nikita (left) and Marameo (right) are also enjoying the last of the sun, sleeping outdoors all day long! Marameo is 18 now, an old lady cat    Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

I love shelling fresh beans from the garden, especially borlotti, as they are so pretty! I usually put fresh beans in soups, or boil them to make a salad (and keep the water for a soup). To cook them slowly in a frying pan takes a bit longer, but they are delicious! Chop a small red onion and sauté with a little olive oil for a few minutes, then add the borlotti. Stir and add a little water and salt, cover and check form time to time, stirring well and adding more water when needed. It takes about a hour (or more if you simmer on low), so be patient. No need to add tomato paste as the onion will almost melt and make a nice colored sauce. Taste for salt at the end and adjust with black pepper, if you like. 1000 times better than baked beans!   Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

For the first layer I made a vegetarian jelly with agar agar, you can follow the recipe  here , but instead of pineapple powder I used a handful of frozen boysenberries. When the agar agar was set I added a layer of sponge soaked in whisky (up to you how much, but don't use cheap whisky unless you want a cheap dessert!). Then I made a vanilla creme like this  one  and covered the sponge. Finally I added whipped cream and boysenberries.    Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©