Only Recipes, by Alessandra Zecchini ©

The smoked scamorza is from  Il Casaro  and it is made with vegetarian rennet. To prepare the vegetables: I washed and quartered the fennel bulbs and passed them in butter, then I added a ladle of vegetable stock and cooked them slowly slowly, with the lid on, until soft. I used some of their juice to steam a bunch of asparagus, and then I cut the scamorza and put it on the hot pan for a couple of minutes, turning them after one minutes, just to soften and sizzle (but not melt). Serve with crusty bread if you like. Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Yes these are raw, vegan, sugar free and gluten free chocolate truffles, but what's more they are made using only 4 Fair Trade ingredients: Trade Aid Palestinian almonds, Trade Aid cinnamon, Trade Aid Madjoul dates, and Trade Aid baking cocoa,  plus one local ingredient, Hazelz hazelnut flour from Canterbury. There is no sugar, no dairy product, and no need for cooking.  I like using Fair Trade products because they are in line with the  Slow Food  principles of Good, Clean and Fair food. And with my philosophy. Furthermore the quality is really good! Take the Medjoul dates for example, they are so sweet and delicious, they can substitute sugar in many preparations. The baking cocoa is so good that you don't need to use it just for baking, it is perfect for puddings and hot chocolate too. The Palestinian almonds are different from my favourite Italian almonds, but they are quite unique, a bit spicy in fact. The cinnamon really aromatic, you need just a...

Agar agar must be the easiest pudding ever, and it is vegan and gluten free. Also, if you don't use too much sugar it will be low in calories (and no fat, I guess…).  For 4 serving I use 500ml of water, half tsp of agar agar powder (usually I use 1 tsp, but I wanted a softer and more wobbly jelly) and 1 tbsp of sugar (here too, personal taste!). For the  Fresh As  fruit powder dosage, it depends on your taste; for most fruit (like  pineapple ) I use 1 tbsp, or 1 and half tbsp (like  passion fruit ), but the raspberry powder is so intense that half tbsp with suffice, using the other half just to sprinkle on the jelly when is set. Bring to boil and pour into 4 jelly moulds. Let it cool down, refrigerate, and serve (with more  Fresh As  powder sprinkled on top).  Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Marzipan is the perfect sweet for the Holiday Season, and this is RAW, VEGAN and GLUTEN FREE, so it seems to cover most of the current food trends :-). Click  here  to see the recipe and step by step images (including how to use apricot kernels). Note that for colouring this time I didn't use berry juice but  Fresh As  raspberry powder, and also quite a bit of spiraling powder for a darker green hue. The nuts on top are optional, of course. I am entering this recipe for Sweet NZ #40, to enter your November Recipe  click here . Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

No raspberries this season, but you can make this pudding with freeze dried raspberry powder! I used  2  free range egg whites (no egg yolks or you will not get a pretty pink colour!), 3 tbsp of sugar, 1 tbsp of flour  500 ml of milk, 20 g butter and 2 tbsp of  Fresh As  Raspberry powder. Stir the first 4 ingredients and then, once the custard is thick, add the following two, stirring well. Turn off the heat and pour into 4 glasses.  Refrigerate before serving.  Top with frozen raspberries if you like. . Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Tonight's dinner,  gnocco fritto  with the stracchino  Massimiliano (il Casaro)  made! First stracchino made in NZ, Max approves! Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Attention all food bloggers and friends of Sweet New Zealand: Remember to enter your sweet recipes this month (info  here  - I am hosting so you will need to email me the entries) by February 27th and  you will be in the draw to win  two delicious packs of  Fresh As  products: Raspberry Powder and Strawberries slices. You can enter old recipes as long as you add the SNZ logo. You can enter as many times as you like, winners will be chosen with Random.org, so you just need to be lucky!

Nothing could be easier, and with only two ingredients (and yes, two of my favourite NZ products:  Fresh As  and  The Collective Dairy ). I used many different  Fresh As powders and freeze dried fruit slices  (you can find a few recipes  here ) in the past, but this time the choice was mango, as I like mango ice cream, and I guessed that mango frozen yogurt would be good too! I mixed 3 tsp of mango powder (btw, this is just 100% mango) to 450 g (half a jar) of  Straight Up  yogurt, and the put it in the freezer for two hours, stirring from time to time. The I whipped everything with an immersion blender (so I didn't even need to take the yogurt out of its pot) and served it. Easy as! Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

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  ©

I like dried apricots, nuts and other dried fruit dipped in dark chocolate, but this time I used  Fresh As  freeze dried fruit. The flavour is really intense, and the texture completely different, crispy and fresh! I used dried raspberries, dried lychees and dried feijoas. I had friends around and everything disappeared in no time. Most people preferred the raspberries, but I preferred the lychees and Max the feijoas. I did the mandarins already  here , and I am pondering about the next fruit to try! Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  © This recipe is for Sweet New Zealand, this month of April hosted by Monica of Delissimon.  

This is a super easy and super yummy sweet treat, gluten free and low in sugar too. Hull and cut the strawberries into halves (or quarters, if very big) then place in a bowl with a tbsp of sugar and 2 tbps of lemon juice. Stir and let them rest at room temperature for a few hours stirring from time to time to get more juice out, then refrigerate until serving time. To assemble place a few strawberries and their juice in tumblers, top with 1 tbsp or 2 of Greek Yogurt (I used  this one ) and finish with a  dried lychee.   Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

A little twist to my usual tiramisù with coffee: Italian Amarena cherries! I mixed a few cherries and their syrup with whisky (I usually mix coffee with whisky, I find it to be the best booze for tiramisù). Ingredients: 3 tbsp Italian Amarena cherries (with syrup) 2 tbsp whisky (a good one or, like in my case, what your husband let you use) 1 packet of savoiardi biscuits 3 large free range eggs 3 tbsp sugar 300 ml cream Cocoa to dust Mix the Amarena cherries with whisky: this is the syrup to soak the savoiardi. Use only half of the savoiardi, making your first layer in a 20 x 20 cm square and at least 5 cm high (or similar size rectangular) serving dish.  Please note: it is important not to over-soak the biscuits or the base will be too soft. Just dip them quickly on one side only (the sugary side is better), and place them in the serving dish with the soaked part facing up: this way the juices will slowly go through the biscuits. A...

This is too easy and yum!!! And how often do you get plums in your smoothie? 500 ml apple juice, 2 bananas, 1 tbsp  Fresh As   Plum powder Blend well. Serves 3-4 vitamin loving kids! Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Photo by Alessandra Zecchini  © I have a special bog candy for you this week:  Fresh As  products! Two lucky readers will receive the set as shown in the picture: 1 pack of strawberry powder, 1 pack of strawberry slices, and 2 packs of mandarin segments (plus recipe cards). You can also see the products  here , and for a sample recipe look here . If you live in New Zealand Click here to enter Good Luck!