Only Recipes, by Alessandra Zecchini ©

   For the mousse you just need to beat and egg yolk with a tbsp of soft dark sugar until it is very very fluffy and pale. You can use white sugar, but brown or moscovado will give the mousse a little 'caramelly' flavour. Then fold in 100 ml of whipped cream (very whipped, a step beyond fluffy but before 'clotting') and, finally, the remaining egg white, beaten to stiff peaks. Divide into two or three glasses (you only need a little) and refrigerate overnight, or for at least six hours. Wash and cut a punnet of strawberries then add some clean rose petals (organic), add one tsp of sugar and one of lemon juice. Stir and let it sit in the fridge for one hour. Stir well and add to the chilled mousses and decorate with a fresh strawberry and roses petals.  Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

  My family love paneer, most of our curries have it, and if they don't I often fry some on the side to add to warm roti or chapati breads. For this recipe I added some spices, including a little turmeric, so the blue cornflower petals looked stunning! Cut the paneer in slices. Heat some vegetable oil in a skillet or frying pan, add a few coriander seeds and a few cumin seeds and then, when the oil is hot, the paneer slices. Fry for 2-3 minutes on one side, then turn, add a pinch of salt and a little turmeric powder and fry on the other side for 1-2 minutes. Turn one last time so the paneer slices are completely coated with turmeric and then turn the element off.  Sprinkle with cornflower petals and serve immediately. Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Broccolo Romanesco is a beautiful vegetable, but if you cannot find it you can substitute here with a cauliflower. Cut the florets and drop them in salted boiling water, then cook them until soft but not mushy. Cool in cold water and drain, then dress with white wine vinegar or white balsamic (about one tbsp). Drain one can of chick peas (keep the chickpea water - aquafaba, to make  vegan meringues  or  other vegan recipes ) and add to the Broccolo. Add olive oil (about 2 tbsp) and salt to taste. To finish add some olives (ascolane olives are the best, otherwise used other marinated olives). Mix well and serve at room temperature. Photo and Recipe by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

  When preserving nasturtiums don’t just use the seed pods, the best part are the tiny green buds, the smaller the better although I also add some buds with the orange petals showing (mostly for colour) and also some tiny leaves, which are delicious! The seeds are crunchy so I add some too. Cover with white wine vinegar and keep in a dark place. When you open the jar they really smell like capers!    Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

I usually make  stained glass  cookie windows for the cookie house at Christmas, but this year I didn't get round to making a cookie house (you can find a recipe  here  with step by step images if you like) so I made some cookies, just for fun! All you need to do is cut out the cookies with a central pattern and fill the hole with some crushed candy. The candy will melt while the cookies are baking, and harden as they cool.    Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena goes well with fruit, and there is also a Balsamic cream you can buy which is less expensive and ideal to decorate plates.   Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Peas are a precious crop for me, I don't like to buy big bags of frozen peas like everyone seems to do in New Zealand (and other countries), it makes them feel 'cheap' and 'common' and an everyday boring side veggie... In fact I think that in so many years of blogging I have posted only one recipe using frozen peas and it is  here  (cooked with some foraged onion weeds - so the point of that recipe was to have a very low cost dish). I like my fresh peas and I like them to be the main player in a dish, like for  risi e bisi,  a traditional risotto dish from Veneto, Italy. And the best part of growing them? Is to keep the pods, and as I am a NO-FOOD-WASTE advocate, to use them to make stock, which will be the base of the risotto. So shell the peas and keep the pods, wash them well and place them in a pot with water (I used about 1.2 litres of water for a basket of peas) and rock salt and simmer for at least one hour. You can also add a little parsley or celery l...

This is the season for plums, and we also have a few last strawberries in the garden, enough to add to smoothies and make them sweet! In fact I love the fact that plums are a little tart, but they do benefit from the strawberry sweetness. As a base I used half apple juice and half coconut water. Perfect breakfast! And now a few things from my garden! Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

I picked some lovely radishes from the vegetable garden, did you know that you can eat the leaves too? They are full of nutrients, as well as delicious! Wash the radishes well, then cut in halves (or quarters if big), keeping attached some of the centre leaves. Set the outer leaves aside to use later. These are the radishes (with the tender centre leaves) ready to pickle. Add some salt, I used Japanese unrefined salt because I had it, but ordinary kitchen salt is fine. Put another bowl over the radishes and then a weight on top (a rock, or anything heavy that you may have in the kitchen). Leave for a day and night, move the radishes from time to time if you like, to get them pressed. They will put out lots of water and create a brine. This is what they will look like the day after. Put into a jar with their brine and keep in the fridge (they will last a couple of weeks... maybe more but I don't know, we eat them quite quickly! And n...

Caprese with edible flowers and Caprese with tree tomatoes and two basils Caprese is probably one of the world best known salads (and antipasto), and there are many variations, so here a couple more: Caprese with edible flowers I used red and yellow cherry tomatoes, and mozzarelline (the cherry size), plus added some edible flowers (borage and dianthus from my garden, organic of course). Add small basil leaves too before serving, if you like. Suitable also for a cocktail party, and ever so pretty! Caprese with tree tomatoes and two basils I used a mixture of vine tomatoes, cherry tomatoes and semi-dried tomatoes, mozzarelline (but you can use regular mozzarella cut into slices or pieces) and green basil and purple basil leaves. Dress with olive oil and salt. A filling salad or light lunch. Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

   This is a super risotto, I am so proud of it!! I made the recipe many years ago for a magazine but I used shaved Parmigiano, but I think that cut into chunks is better. Start like for all good risottos, with plenty of butter and a chopped onion (I used a red one to keep the colour scheme!). When the onion sizzle add the rice (I used arborio) and stir well: for a good risotto the fat at the beginning is important so make sure that the rice absorbs well the butter. Make really hot to the touch.  Boil and peeled three small/medium beetroots (or a very large one) and cut into cubes. Add the cubes to the rice and stir until hot. Remember that the rice has to be hot before you add the stock! Add the stock (vegetable in my case) ladle by ladle, and stir often, adding more stock when needed. The risotto is ready! Wow, look at the colour! Cut the Parimigiano Reggiano into small chunks with a Parmigiano knife. Get your Balsami...

You know I love eating flowers from my garden (they have to be organic), impatiens have a mild rucola flavour and are perfect for salads. The red ones are the best, I think.  Pick the flowers and then place in cold water to rinse. Put them on a tea towel to dry, then mix with extra virgin olive oil and salt to make a dressing. Leave a few for decoration.   Assemble your tomato, mozzarella and basil for a nice Caprese salad then drizzle with the dressing.  Enjoy! Have a great week! Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©