What a lovely day we had on Saturday when Cooking on the Bay cooked at my former cooking school venue, On the Ridge Cooking School in Kureelpa, in the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast! Nine enthusiastic local and interstate cooks drove a variety of distances, the furthest was Sue from Mt Tamborine, a 3 hours [...]
Autumn on the Sunshine Coast brought some beautiful sunshine, as well as a few cool, cold, over-caste, very wet April days; showers, then sunshine, followed by more light rain, and then a heavy downpour before the sun shines again. This is wonderful for our garden, my herbs are flourishing, the trees and shrubs have luxurious, [...]
Every so often I need to advertise for a 'Kitchen Steward' or kitchen assistant/helper to help me with cooking classes at Cooking on the Bay. My Kitchen Steward plays an important and valued role in contributing to the participant's enjoyment of the class. As those of you who have been here will appreciate. This time, [...]
At Christmas time, in our French Odyssey – Journey through France and the French Bistro Classics Desserts cooking classes we make this beautiful and delicious Bûche de Noël - French Yule Log 'Christmas cake'. During the last class, I was asked about the French traditions behind this cake and so after a little research and [...]
This is a simple, rich and delicious sauce to accompany a variety of fish dishes as well as scallops, prawns, chicken, pork, and vegetables too. Like the classic wine butter sauces, it is less stable than the classic emulsion sauces because no eggs are used. This lemon butter sauce is simply a reduction of [...]
These treasures have a crisp, sugar-dusted exterior, with a chewy, lemony-marzipan centre. Traditionally made with almonds, honey, and lemons for that quintessential Italian citrus goodness, these biscuits go perfectly with a chilled glass of the other island specialty, limoncello. Makes 30-35 cookies Ingredients: 2 egg whites, room temperature 1 pinch salt [...]
When lemons are plentiful it is a good time for making limoncello, the delicious, refreshing, lemon Italian liqueur that is so popular on the Amalfi Coast and the Cinque Terre. Serve it on ice, sip it, and be transported to summer in Italy. My Limoncello recipe is drawn from my collection of various Italian [...]
Italians enjoy citrus cakes at breakfast time and so we always have one freshly baked for our arrival morning tea in the Italianicious Cooking classes at Cooking on the Bay. For some time now, this has been one of our favourites. It is a very light and fresh cake, one which may be made [...]
Years ago, in 2007, I attended La Varenne Cooking School in Burgundy, and one of the many dishes we cooked there with the chefs was the classic Tarte Tatin. The class was held in one of the beautiful kitchens of the Chateau du Fëy, the home of La Varenne Cooking School and its founder, Anne [...]
This brown beef stock recipe forms part of my Mastery in the kitchen - the foundations of cookery - Stocks, sauces and soups program. To be a good cook you need to master the fundamentals of cookery and stock-making is one of those. The best stock is full of flavour, colour, body and aroma. Good [...]
