In My Kitchen: February 2025

January was a really tough month for us - G got sick with what we think was influenza and was super sick for almost two weeks, and the wait for the specialist exam results was getting to us all... 

The last days in Italy...

We had these absolutely delicious biscuits from Belgium that my sister in law brought from Brussels 

I was inspired to make this lasagne from our visit to the farm La Rocchia in the hills above Padova. A vegetarian lasagne that's even better than the meat version if I may say so myself! It was a hit with the whole family and I hope it becomes our annual tradition... 

I made my own bechamel sauce with local Asiago cheese, the star was zucca (a green-ish Italian pumpkin), cavolo nero, peas and buffalo mozzarella. The fresh lasagne sheets really made a difference - did you know they come in two thicknesses in Italy?  

We spent a day in Venice, and visited the bridge where we got engaged in December 2022. How much has changed in the space of two years! These were some delicious cannolis we ate along the way...

A pizza "degustation" from our local pizzeria, we are lucky to have a very good one! That puffy crust is incredible and the left lower corner is the deep fried pizza.. not good for the coronary arteries but to die for!

Our last meal in Italy this trip - I made the tigelle, a traditional kind of flat bread from the Emilia-Romagna region, with my MIL's sourdough. The recipe came from the monastery cooking show, adapted for sourdough, and I replaced the lard with olive oil. They were kind of like English muffins with a softer texture, quite delicious with fresh prosciutto and cheese

Back in France..

My dear friend that I used to play piano duets with in Newcastle is quite obsessed with maple twists from Coles (or is it Woolies? only one of them carry them) and I was shocked that they sold one that looks identical in my local LIDL, so we had a maple twist video party. 

A pesto star I made for a party, I adapted the recipe to be vegan due to friends' dietary allergies but finally the dough didn't quite have the right texture ... have to try it again!

We continue with our Fancy Friday project where I make a 3 course meal themed on a vegetable every Friday. This was the broccoli dinner and given January is the month of galette des rois, I made my own savoury galette with a lentil broccoli filling. 

Picard sponsored one of our Fancy Fridays because G was sick and I didn't have the time or energy to cook... Picard is a lifesaver, the most incredible frozen food supermarket, apparently one of the most popular stores in France!

His illness was pretty tough, and I finally cracked open the Singaporean salted egg fish skin that Stefano brought back from his trip to Vietnam in July. I'm good at hoarding snacks like that! Funnily enough even when G refused to eat anything (even his favourites like banana or avocado) he wanted salted egg fish skin. 

For Chinese New Year I made this snake shaped cucumber salad using the viral tiktok way to cut cucumber, it was easy and really cool!

Our CNY spread: pink sea bream, pork & aneth dumplings, the cucumber snake and a cabbage/capsicum side. We were all sick and not feeling it, but we did our best to make it a special evening!

Curveball time.. 

I haven't yet found out how much S spent on this bottle of very special champagne but I suspect I may have a stroke when I find out - I've never had one with a handwritten label before! He ran out to buy it after we received the good news that I passed the specialist requalification competition and can now proceed to the next stage (finding a hospital to sponsor me for the two year transition period). It was a huge step in our lives, who would have thought that we would be here!

This is how we should all live, just do whatever you want. Want to sleep because lunch is boring? Just do it. 

Sending this to Sherry who hosts the monthly IMK series, thanks Sherry and have a great February everyone!