Monday 20 July 2020, in the 5th month of Lockdown

In Switzerland, we are still surviving under lockdown due to the Corona virus which has spread worldwide. However, here in Switzerland, things are well organised and not so difficult. Richard and I have been trying out more recipes and planning meals at least twice a week!

On 15 July, Matthew's 36th birthday, we made a delicious ham and mushroom lasagne. We found the recipe in the only cookbook we brought with us from UK - Sainsbury's Pasta Italian Style by Patricia Lousada - published in 1981 and still going strong!

You can find the recipe in the Main Dishes section - see right.

Wednesday 6 May 2020, Cooking during Lockdown

In Switzerland we are now into our eighth week of lockdown due to the Covid-19 virus. Although it has been a difficult time, there has also been an opportunity to enjoy and develop more activities at home. Richard and I have been collaborating, mostly without disagreement, on our meal planning and cooking. We have also used up a lot of things from the freezer.

Some of our favourite recipes are in these files already - fruit crumble using seasonal rhubarb is a favourite just now, and shepherd's pie is one of our main meal stand-bys. I have also tried a new one, potato scones, which uses up leftover mashed potato. The scones are very tasty! You can find the recipe for scones and also for granola in the Baked Goods section.

We also have home-made hummus quite often using chick-peas, garlic, lemon juice and zest and tahini paste, obtainable from the health food shop. We enjoy eating this dip with pitta bread and raw carrots and peppers. See Starters section.

Last weekend I baked a mushroom and bacon quiche which we enjoyed over two days. See section on Main Dishes. Pastry is one of my strengths, I think.

Monday 23 July 2018

Today I added a recipe from Heidi for her popular apricot tart . If I were to make a sweet fruit tart with a custard I think I would blind bake the pastry. Heidi uses liquid sugar for the custard, which I haven't tried. I think I would heat the milk and sugar together and add to the beaten eggs and vanilla essence.

I entered the recipe under Desserts although Heidi says it's really a meal! She suggests using other fruits such as rhubarb or raspberries when in season.

Monday 30 April

Today I added Anna's recipe for paella to the Main Dishes section. We tried it at the weekend and it was delicious.

Thursday 6 April

This week I made hot cross buns, a typical English favourite in the weeks before Easter. They are very tasty served with butter. The photo of the buns attracted quite a lot of attention on Facebook. As I write, we still have a few left.

You can find the recipe in Baked Goods (see links right). Scroll down to find the recipe plus other English favourites.

Monday 16 January 2017

I've just added the recipes and cooking instructions for our traditional Christmas Lunch. It's in Main Dishes. Hope you enjoy reliving it.

Monday 12 December

I've added an entry Tapas to the Main Dishes section. It comprises pictures and titles of some easily recreated dishes. I also added a note about Smoked Salmon to the Starters section last week.

I don't have any other recipes waiting to be added at the moment, but might do a Christmas Lunch feature.