About

One of my earliest memories is baking cheese scones with my mum and grandmother at the age of 5, and I have never stopped cooking since then. A farmer’s daughter, growing up in the English countryside, everything was made from scratch, and I helped my mum cook and preserve whenever I could. Leftovers were turned in to something delicious, and nothing was wasted.

Having left England in 2008, I have since lived in Germany, Spain, Canada, Australia and Japan, and having returned to Australia, I currently living in the beautiful Adelaide Hills in South Australia with my husband and young son.

During this time I have also travelled extensively, spending a lot of time in France, Italy and Portugal in particular.

I love – some may call it a slight obsession – learning about different ingredients, techniques and recipes from each country – and their regional variations. As a mother of a 4 year old, I now enjoy teaching him about other cultures and flavours through food. Being a busy mum with a chronic illness means the meals have to be quick and easy too!

One of the biggest hurdles I faced when we moved to a new country – apart from the language – was the common case of ingredients I once used no longer being available, so this, together with having to drive 30 minutes to the nearest shop when I was a child, mean I am well reversed in finding substitutes for ingredients to enable me to keep cooking. I hope you find them useful too and they help you to continue to cook the dishes you love!

My aim with this blog is to bring these flavours and recipes to your kitchen, in a simple way, and one within your budget, that means you and your family get to enjoy and explore through food too! Relive holiday memories, and childhood tastes, as well as learn new dishes that will hopefully become family favourites.

I test, cook and photograph everything myself, and love every second of it!

Being brought up in the English countryside, most of our meals were made from scratch. It was second nature to be inventive with recipes, especially during the summer months when the vegetable patch dictated what we ate and led to the need for inventing new dishes from the bumper crops – how do you make runner beans exciting for the fifth meal in a row?! Leftovers were always used up too, not a scrap was wasted, and I am passionate about the drive against throwing away perfectly good food. Not only is it such a waste, but expensive too!

Through my journey blogging I have developed a real passion for photography and styling. I never thought I could love something as much as researching recipes, but I do! All the pictures on this site are my own (some taken quickly before my son destroys the shot – the joys of working from home!).

Why?

Suffering from ME/CFS for most of my life has shaped the way I cook. Luckily I enjoy cooking, but it has been out of necessity.

This is why my recipes are often:

EASY – few ingredients and flexible
QUICK – I haven’t the time or energy to spend hours making a dish
HEALTHY – I increase the vegetables, reduce the sugar and the fat – as this is the food I can eat.

I am a big believer in the importance of good wholesome food, and know how ill processed foods can make me feel, that’s why I steer away from them as much as possible.

I strongly believe you can eat healthily, even if you are short on time, cooking skills, and budget. Finding inspiration in recipes from other countries can greatly help keep dinnertime exciting.

If you’re interested in learning more about ME/CFS, I’ve written a book about my experiences