Only Recipes, by Alessandra Zecchini ©

I have beautiful sage leaves in the garden now, big and fat, perfect for frying! Make a batter with egg, flower and a pinch of salt, add some cold water to thin it down and coat the sage leaves. Fry in hot olive oil, drain on kitchen paper and sprinkle with salt. Serve with aperitivo. you can also fry sage leaves without batter, just as they are, they are delicious! Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Sage flowers are beautiful and have a delicate taste of sage, lighter than the leaves. They are perfect for sprinkling on food like risotto, pasta, bean salads and roasted vegetables. I also like to make sage flower butter, which is also a way to make the petals last longer (sage butter will keep in the fridge for a couple of months, depending on the expiring date of the butter, of course!). There are two ways to make this: one is to melt the butter completely (a bit like making ghee) and then insert the flowers little by little while the butter is cooling, and then pour it into a container before it is completely solid. This way you loose a little aroma, but the butter lasts longer. The other is to soften the butter at room temperature and then work the flowers in with a fork or spatula, and then roll the butter up into a log and refrigerate. I love this but then I end up using too much butter as it is so good on warm bread...). In either cases every time you need a bit of flavoured...

I made a dinner for 4 for the garden: fried zucchini flowers ( recipe here ),  borage bread cutlets ( recipe here) , fried sage (just fried the sage leaves  with the leftover oil from the zucchini and borage fritters), fresh salad leaves,  boiled new potatoes and carrots with herbs sauce  (just mixed feta with basil and parsley). It was delicious,  and such a satisfaction to grown my own dinner!                                                                                                               And now, And And now some photos from the Waitakere Ranges, where I live,  and of a New Zealand native bird, the tui, eating nectar from flax flowers. ...

Red capsicums are so nice fried in olive oil, and then sprinkled with a little salt… this time I tried a different pairing though: sage! And it works really well. Of course I really like fried sage, so I guess that that help. (In the background I have some fried eggplants for the parmigiana, but you all know how to make that right?) :-) Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Digging up the garden I pulled some ugly carrots and a few potatoes (white and yellow). I cleaned them and boiled them until cooked but firm, then I remove the skins (from the carrots too!) and sautéd them with olive oil, garlic, sage, rosemary and a pinch of salt. Really simple but super tasty!! Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

One of my favourite kitchen smells is garlic and herbs sizzling in olive oil! Here I used fresh rosemary, sage and oregano, a couple of garlic cloves, and a few long Asian eggplants, cut into halves or quarters (depending on their size). When the eggplants were done I added the asparagus (which take less time) and sauté the lot for one more minute, then added more fresh herbs, a good pinch of salt, a heavy lid, and turned the heat off. If you leave the veggies like this for 5-10 minutes they will just 'finish' cooking in their own steam. I had herbs leftover, so I half-boiled some new potatoes, peeled them (sorry Kiwis, but I love to peel my potatoes, unless they are organic) and placed them on a baking try lined with baking paper. I added rosemary and sage, salt and olive oil. I baked the lot and the kitchen smelled lovely.   Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Kazuyo  gave me 4 artichokes, so we got one each and I cooked them  alla romana,  the   best way to make a few artichokes go a long way. Cut the spikes off, and the stalks and then immediately put the artichokes in water and lemon (so that they don't become black) to wash them. Finely chop plenty of Italian parsley with garlic and a pinch of salt, and use this to fill the centre of each artichoke. Place the artichokes side up in a pot, drizzle some olive oil in the centre of each artichoke and add a little water at the bottom (about 2 fingers). Cover with a lid and simmer on low for a long time (1-2 hours) adding water from time to time. The artichokes are ready when the leaves easily detach with your fingers.  This is Vegan and Gluten Free To eat the artichokes remove the harder outer leaves with your fingers and just scrape the flesh off with your teeth (keep a bowl on the side to discard the used leaves) until you get to the h...

Puy lentil, red onion and herb soup Ingredients 300 g puy lentils 1 bay leaf 1 pinch of salt 1 red onion 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (plus more for serving) 1 sprig sage 1 sprig rosemary 1.5 l vegetable stock 1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley and chives Served with homemade onion ciabatta Rinse the Puy lentils and place in a pot with plenty of water and one bay leaf. Cook for about 25 minutes, then add one pinch of salt and stir. Drain, discard the bay leaf and rinse again. Chop the red onion and place in a capable pot with the oilve oil, sage and rosemary, and s auté for a few minutes, then add the lentils, followed by the vegetable stock. Simmer for about 30 minutes, and just before serving add the chopped parsley and chives and another drop of extra virgin olive oil. Photo and Recipe by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Canederli ( Knödel in German) is something my Mum made often when I was a child. There is no strict recipe because they are made with left-overs, and the base is left-over bread. But  here  you can find my basic recipe, with step by step instructions. I really prefer them in a broth, but the other day I wanted to make them with onions and cheese, I didn't think of publishing them on the blog as the photos are not exactly pretty, but my husband loved them! He said that he actually preferred them served this way! Once again left over bread was put into good use! Canederli with Cheese and Onion Sauce Prepare the canederli and cook them in a light vegetables stock (instructions  here ). Peel and finely slice 4 onions (white or brown) and simmer them slowly with a little olive oil and salt. I cooked them in my Le Creuset pot, on low and keeping the lid on, for about 45 minutes. I added a little stock from the canederli from time to time, but j...

Use big sage leaves, wash them and dry them with a tea towel. Place a little mozzarella onto half of the leaves and cover with another leaf. Make a batter with one egg, one tbsp of flour, a pinch of salt and two tbsp of beer. Dunk the sage 'sandwiches' into the batter and then fry in hot oil on both sides. They are so good you won't believe it!!! Photos by Alessandra Zecchini ©

I used courgette (zucchini) flowers borage flowers nasturtiums and a few sage leaves... Make a batter with 1 egg, 1 tbsp of flour, a pinch of salt and a little cold beer. Dip the flowers and leaves in the batter and then fry until golden. Fantastic!