One of the great rites of passage as a new mum is the first day you get to venture out alone without kids. My cousin’s little boy is just on 10 months and at about 6 months we decided a day out without baby was in order. The real dilemma was of course, where should…
Black Pork Belly
I got the idea for this recipe while still in the states.I was perusing my favourite blogs, and Lorraine at Not Quite Nigella, posted a review for a new restaurant in Sydney that was serving Sri Lankan food. One of the dishes she tried while she was at the restaurant was a Black Pork Belly…
Quick Passionfruit and Macadamia Cheesecake Cup
With two small children, our family goes through a lot of fruit. A few weeks ago, it was late on a Sunday and we were facing the prospect of starting the week sans fruit. Mr Firehouse volunteered to go to the shops as the grocery shopping was often a task that fell to me. As…
Macadamia White Chocolate Cookies
For the first six months of our marriage Mr Firehouse worked FIFO. He would fly into Perth early on a Monday and stay a week, sometimes two, before flying back on a Friday. We had a bunch of lovely friends in Perth who took great care of him. Inviting him over, taking him out and…
Sweet Potato Pancakes
For a long time my son Callum didn’t like toast for breakfast. He preferred cooked breakfasts, pancakes, waffles, bacon and eggs. I had neither the time nor the energy to indulge him so I created some cheats. This was one of them. A sweet potato pancake that I made in bulk and froze. Easy…
Pumpkin Curry with Coconut Milk
As you probably already know, I’m a big lover of pumpkin. Especially pumpkin soup. It’s warming, sweet, creamy and comforting. However, when I have made it for Sri Lankan relatives, especially male ones, they don’t seem to get it. I suspect this curry has a lot to do with it. Pumpkin, cooked Sri Lankan style,…
Borscht
My family has rather a strong connection with Russia. In the late seventies my father travelled to the former USSR to study mining engineering. He spoke no Russian, knew no-one and had never travelled outside Sri Lanka. He spent the first year learning Russian and over the next five became well and truly immersed in…
Carrot Leaf Sambol
Sri Lankans don’t really do salad, not in the traditional Western sense anyway. A green leaf sambol or mallung is about as close as we get. Mind you, it’s a pretty good substitute. Seasoned with chilli, and lime juice and mixed with crunchy fresh coconut it’s both tasty and nourishing in the truest sense. These…
Lemon Curd
A few weeks ago I left the role of the SAHM (stay at home mum, if you’re not up with the lingo) and joined the ranks of the working. It makes for a busy week, frantically bolting out of the house at 7 with 2 kids, then rushing back in time for dinner, baths, bed,…
Chocolate Friands (Gluten & Dairy Free)
My parents, born and raised in Sri Lanka, are highly bemused by the sudden popularity of coconut oil, especially as many of the virgin coconut oil products come from Sri Lanka itself. They find it highly comical that health food nuts and buffs are paying exorbitant amounts of money for something that’s rather cheap and…
akkis kitchen 