Fresh herb pesto

Nothing beats homemade herb pesto. It is a lot tastier than the store-bought kind as well as filled with phytonutrients and vitamins. I have a few variations of this recipe in my Spring and Summer recipe e-book but the below recipe is the one I began with years ago when I first started the blog.  […]

My homemade harissa

I used to write off harissa as just another firey hot paste, until I made my own and realized how many fragrant spices and herbs are used in its confection. As you can imagine, there are as many harissa recipes as there are cooks, so don’t worry if you don’t have the right peppers or […]

Muhammara – a really good red pepper dip

I first tried making muhammara years ago in Dubai because I wanted an alternative to hummus and didn’t know what to do with that big pomegranate syrup that had been sitting in my cupboard for 6 months. Wow, I was blown away: this spread – which is very popular in Syria but also in other […]

Rustic smoked mackerel paté

I discovered this delicious little spread in the UK over the summer and couldn’t get enough of it. It’s one of these old recipes that’s made a comeback in recent years and is on a lot of restaurant menus there. So when I found smoked mackerel at Spinneys the other day, I jumped on the […]

The ultimate summer caviar

To me, tapenade screams of summer. It’s what I call the Provencal man’s caviar. Just the thought of this herbed olive paste reminds me of my first summer in the south of France, where I saw it served as an appetizer on every restaurant terrace alongside a glass of rose, perhaps a Pastis or a […]

Rillettes de thon

Rillettes de thon is a French tuna-based dip commonly served in summer on toast or with veggies as an appetizer. It traditionally calls for canned tuna blended with some cream cheese and chives but I find that the addition of capers and lemon zest bring your taste buds to a much higher place. And like […]