After the response to the natural sweetener date syrup post that I did a few weeks ago, I decided to try using another dried fruit instead of dates. I use some Turkish dried apricots and have been very happy with this sweet, delicious syrup. Whilst the flavour is not as neutral as the date syrup, it is perfect for adding a twist to your breakfast or porridge or perhaps even baked goods (although I haven't tried this yet.)

I love apricots, and this a great way to add that beautiful flavour to lots of meals. My favourite has been in a healthy and nutritious brekkie parfait which is simply fresh fruit, muesli, natural yoghurt and apricot syrup layered in a glass.

This is one of the easiest recipes I have made I think. It is also one I make on a regular basis. Dates are a fantastic natural sweetener but obviously in their normal whole form, you can't add them to everything. Turn them into a liquid however, and you have a mild tasting, totally natural and raw sweetener. I like to substitute date syrup in everything from baking to in a green smoothie or even in my cup of tea or hot chocolate.

Last week I had a few days of eating lots of fresh, raw & clean foods. Plenty of vegetables, fruit and some lean proteins. Just wanted to avoid processed foods...so no breads, pastas, packaged goods etc...

So I whipped up some delicious low fat hummus dip to have with raw carrots, celery, capsicum & cauliflower. I can't think of anything more tasty with vegies! This is great for entertaining too - it's so simple that you will never buy store hummus again.

Do you know what I love? Fresh herbs. Even more so I love using fresh herbs to create simple yet exquisite tasting dishes. What can be more simple but delicious than a fresh pesto?
Really easy to make, I used this with handmade orrechiette, handmade Spelt & Semolina Wholemeal Pasta and later in the week just on top of some chicken breast. Perfect a top some crusty bread too!

This past weekend, I had my lovely friend Pip visiting me from Melbourne. She loves to bake and cook just as much as me, so it was quite exciting to be able to do so together again. We literally spent all day baking and then preparing some delicious tapas style early dinner, before going out for a glass of wine (...just one for me as I don't really drink anymore so it's all a bit much!)

Pip made the most delicious tomato sauce, that we used on top of feta stuffed baked mushrooms. I don't really know if it should be called a sauce, but it is really quite versatile. You could use it on bake fish, or roast chicken or even just as a pasta sauce. It is everything I love about food; simple, fresh ingredients and flavours combined in the perfect quantities to make something just exquisite.

We also threw together some delicious, rich salmon & avocado rolls. These are really easy and such a lovely combination of colours. They also taste incredible. (Pip doesn't even really like avocado, but still ate these.)

I had totally forgotten about the onions that I had in the Box Fresh delivery from last week. How could I miss those?! There was also plenty of garlic left over (need more ideas for that too!) and chilli and herbs. So I knew that there was going to be more onions coming in the order today, and then I would have 6! Onion jam was the solution.