Gallery - Melanie's Kitchen

A very happy 80th Birthday was celebrated over Eas

A very happy 80th Birthday was celebrated over Easter in Waiheke, boy did we have some laughs, she’s always dangerous when the Eady’s and Buckley’s are on tour, we missed you @will_buckley, it’s going to take some time to recover 💚Happy birthday Mum.

Bits n pieces from the garden, the last of my fait

Bits n pieces from the garden, the last of my faithful fennel plant, pineapple sage ( the most amazing plant from a cutting from @aroharetreats ) it literally smells like pineapple and grows like a weed and then gives you these lovely red blooms, then the end of season hydrangeas. Farewell summer.
Autumn has new beginnings 💚💉💉💉

Salad Nicose for dinner last night as found this s

Salad Nicose for dinner last night as found this stunning piece of Tuna loin from @farrofresh .
Very simple salad to prepare last minute but is truly morrish. A couple of add ons in this one with crispy capers and sage leaves made it next level #saladnicose #freshtuna

A wonderful weekend in the Bay of Islands with the

A wonderful weekend in the Bay of Islands with the very special folk from Lonsdale Hospital & Lonsdale Education centre, we had so much fun, ate & drank far too much !! A big thank you to Mark and Kim for catching these epic kingi’s, It was so fantastic to have these guys with us and share the bay of islands with them #bayofislands #kingfish #teambuilding #specialpeople

Over the last 9 months our daughter has developed

Over the last 9 months our daughter has developed an egg, diary allergy, so I started looking seriously at vegan recipes and ended up buying my first @chelseawinter book called Super Good . The reviews on the pad Thai in her book were outstanding and I thought really !!! But oh my goodness it was simple delicious and our daughter wasn’t even with us!! A small confession there might of been a few BBQ’d prawns on the side for male folk but they weren’t actually all consumed as this is how good this dish is. Never say never. #vegan #veganpadthai #superfood

Really enjoying my new sous vide machine from @an

Really enjoying my new sous vide machine from @anovaculinary and learning lots . It cooked these lamb rumps so perfectly each rump I put in a snap lock bag with a sliced garlic clove, sprig of Rosemary, a peel of lemon and salt and pepper then sealed the bag remove all the air and placed in the water bath pegging the bag to the side of my pot, attached the sous vide machine and cooked it in 58degrees for 40 minutes then removed the rumps from their bags and seared quickly on a hot pan served here with a shaved courgettes peas pine nuts and rocket drizzled with basil oil was delicious. Hope Aucklanders are coping with this lock down bloody Covid #alertlevel3 #again #sousvide #lambrump

Italian Custard Apple Cake from @annabellangbein

Italian Custard Apple Cake from @annabellangbein Essentials vol 2 . Such an amazing book it’s like a treasure trove of delicious treats #sundaydinner #family

Ok so I’m back with my COVID hat on with Aucklan

Ok so I’m back with my COVID hat on with Aucklands new Covid lockdown but just a couple of things to rave about . I have been a vaccinator for many years and we really need to encourage our very excitable and opinionated young people that receive a lot of vaccination information through social media that this sort of information is unbelievably destructive in our battle against COVID -19 . They are not scientists and are totally unqualified to make an anti vac stance. ( actually the anti vac’s arnt qualified either actually !! )
Vaccinations have destroyed disease profiles in the past to irradiate diseases that have caused so much wide spread death and destruction .
we must work together to become vaccinated !
This Facebook information is crap and utter bullshit ! These people are extracting the truth to distort our young peoples thinking .
Ok so moving on .....
Oh my goodness really enjoying the latest @dishmagnz recipes another gorgeous dish bbq’d pork sweet mango and herb salad . Slight Melanie’s kitchen variation as I used my new kitchen applicance and sous vide the pork ! Was sooo good . Give it a go🤗 #sousvide #tastyrecipes #pork #salads #lockdown #covid19vaccination #vaccination

Check out this Gorgeous recipe in the latest dish

Check out this Gorgeous recipe in the latest dish magazine, Faro with smoky prawns and blistered beans fantastic. By the way blistering beans either barbecuing or frying them turns them into something else, always salt them after cooking ! Thanks @dishmagnz #neweek #eatinglessmeat

Last little D.I.Y project in Wanaka before coming

Last little D.I.Y project in Wanaka before coming home. I was sick of the table looking so crap and couldn’t clean the staines off it had tried everything and looked at replacing it but limited choice and all very $$ so took a punt on tiling it. Haven’t done a lot of tiling before ( like well none ) but have watched a bit. I really enjoyed it I must say out there with the radio on and the glue and grout 🤗.. and I’m super happy with the result #diyprojects #tiling #oldbutnew

Chilli fish with Tahini Guy had a wee holiday away

Chilli fish with Tahini
Guy had a wee holiday away from the fold and caught a few fishies which he bought back to the home!! 😜
I used some of his lovely Hapuka which can be tricky to cook as it is so lean but reduced the cooking time and turned off the heat quickly and let it just cook in the heat of the sauce for 5 mins it was absolutely Devine, the recipe was from @ottolenghi Simple book #bakedfish #hapuka #chillitahini #willcookagain

Green Curry Courgette and chicken Pots . Really ea

Green Curry Courgette and chicken Pots . Really easy and super tasty
2 large courgettes
2 Bok Choy
1 cup bean sprouts
Packet of chicken tenderloins
Slices of ginger and limes and Kaffiar lime & corri leaves for the poaching liquid .
1/4 cup Green curry paste
1 tsp brown sugar or stevia
1 can coconut cream .
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup fish sauce
1 cup chopped up coriander
2 Finley sliced lime leaves
Zest of lime
Chopped up spring onion Vietnamese mint if you have it or Thai basil
Salt and pepper to taste .
Poaching the chicken
Place a lidded frypan with just enough salted water to cover the tenderloins on medium to high heat , add the ginger and squeeze the lime juice over the chicken toss in the squeezed limes too add lime leaves and coriander bring to the boil with the lid on and then turn the heat off immediately and leave covered ( the heat and steam will cook the chicken through without drying it out ) for 10 minutes meanwhile
Mix the coconut cream and fish sauce lime juice and green curry paste & sugar and gently heat in a pot . Sets aside
Using a vege peeler or a fancier option if you prefer peeling the courgette into thin strips place in a bowl add the bean sprouts and chop the bok choy up ( I use only the crunchy white ends ) but keep the tips for something else .
Next chopped up the herbs and spring onions then take the chicken out and chop and place in the coconut cream mixture
Place 1/2 cup fulls of chicken and coconut cream into a jar or glass tumbler then add the Veges on top then top with the herbs onion lime leaves and lime zest !#greencurry #pots #freshandhealthy #foodin15min

Life’s not fair 💚 @lakewanaka

Life’s not fair 💚 @lakewanaka

Merry Christmas to you all hope you have had a fab

Merry Christmas to you all hope you have had a fabulous day with friends and family with plenty to eat and drink !!💚💚🎄🎄🥂🥂🥂#christmasday #takecareofyourself

And just like that she turned 19 💕 @anabellaead

And just like that she turned 19 💕 @anabellaeady1 and for that a little egg and dairy free chocolate cake was made one of the nicest chocolate cake recipes ever will write it up soon #happybirthday #veganchocolatecake

We snap shot of how things looked last Sunday at E

We snap shot of how things looked last Sunday at Eady Christmas needless to say Monday was long ! Have a safe and fun Christmas week lots of love and happy cooking 💚🌲🌲🌲#christmasweek #funday

Really enjoying recipes from The third ripe book

Really enjoying recipes from The third ripe book called The third helping . Here is a lovely celebration Hummingbird Cake with salted Caramel icing luckily I took a pic of it as took it to work and the bloody thing up ended in the car 🙃🙃anyway the next photo are the fillets all prepared for Eady Xmas . This book would make a fab gift thank you @riperecipebooks #festivities #festivecooking #celebration #babyshower #specialafternoon

The drought is over ! Back doing craft activities

The drought is over ! Back doing craft activities in my happy place 💚#christmaswreaths

Been a while since I’ve been on the old gram but

Been a while since I’ve been on the old gram but managed to sneak down to Wanaka for a couple of days to do pre Xmas prep and cooked up these little egg and dairy free pancakes for the team here . Surprisingly light and fluffy served with some homemade berry Coulis maple syrup and coconut yogurt . #happydays #xmasprep #gardening #housemaintenence

A French classic Coq Au Vin. So easy, basic ingre

A French classic Coq Au Vin. So easy, basic ingredients are Red wine, bacon, mushrooms, garlic, onions, herbs. The key is to soak the chicken in a bottle of red wine the day before !! Bloody beautiful ... #coqauvin #frenchcooking #forfriends #easycooking

Gorgeous Saturday Dinner thanks @dishmagnz issue 9

Gorgeous Saturday Dinner thanks @dishmagnz issue 92 for a lovely easy as Prawn,Chorizo and Fish Stew, definitely adding this one on melanieskitchen #eatingin #saturdaynight #weekend ##fishstew

So here are the left overs of the Chick pea aquafa

So here are the left overs of the Chick pea aquafaba, Guy called them vegan t ies 🤭
1/2 cup aquafab ( chickpea Juice)
1/4tsp cream of Tartar
3/4 cup castor sugar
1tsp vanilla.
Turn the oven on to 100 degrees
Line a baking tray with cooking paper parchment
Put the aquafaba in a mixer with a whisk attachment with cream of Tatar and whisk on high until soft peaks, a good 10 mins
Add the caster sugar tablespoon by tablespoon slowly until well combined another good 10 mins
Fold in the vanilla and put mixture into a pipping bag
Pipe mixture onto the trays and bake in the oven and cook for 90minutes and turn oven off and leave in oven until cool and the meringues peel off the baking paper .
Fab recipe #vegancooking #veganmeringue #aquafaba #eggallergy

Homemade Pitta bread didn’t disappoint it’s ve

Homemade Pitta bread didn’t disappoint it’s very easy and so much nicer than store bought. Recipe was an @allrecipes one served with @annabellangbein creamy hummus topped with Panfried chickpeas and smoked paprika oil. Yummy. Wait till you see what I made with the chickpea aquafaba 😝💚#backinthekitchen #homemadepitta #hummus #stormcoming

Thank you @dishmagnz Roasted Butternut with Rosema

Thank you @dishmagnz Roasted Butternut with Rosemary and Stracciatella one of the nicest pumpkin dishes ever!! also check out in their latest issue is the roasted cabbage with tarragon and mustard cream, incredible !! #backinthekitchen #onholiday #pumpkin

Guy gave me this recipe to read on the plane on my

Guy gave me this recipe to read on the plane on my way down to Wanaka, thought it looked like a bit of me so had to try, didn’t have all the herbs but is lovely it is called Green Herb bagna cauda an Italian dip made from anchovies garlic and olive oil recipe was found in The Guardian where Mr Ottolenghi writes his regular column check out my white daphne it’s gone nuts this year 💚#bagnacauda #greenherbs #littleholiday #whitedaphne

Hope all the Dads out there have had a lovely day.

Hope all the Dads out there have had a lovely day. Was lucky to spend the evening with the Dad to our kids 💚 They were offsite !! Haha 🤗Panfried John Dory with caper lemon butter and citrus mash and sautéed lemony veg recipe from @akaroacooking fabulous book. Let’s cook kiwi #happyfathersday #supportingeachother

The perfect quick midweek meal right here. Asian B

The perfect quick midweek meal right here. Asian Bolognaise 500gm pork mince
1 chopped red onion
2 Tbsp fresh ginger
4 crushed garlic cloves
3 Tbsp chilli bean paste I used fresh chilli
1 Tbsp Chilli sauce
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
5 Mushrooms preferable shiitake
1/4 cup rice wine
2Tbsp oyster sauce
1 cup Chicken or beef stock
1 Packet noodles
Salt and pepper and perhaps some kepap manis and if you have a 1/4 cup coconut cup cream add that too !!
Chillies, coriander, bean sprouts,and spring onions to serve
Place the onion in a wok or fry pan and cook to soften
Add to the oil and onion the garlic and ginger add the chilli sauté
Add the mushrooms and rice wine, kappa manis and rice wine and oyster sauce and seasoning cook down until the sauce thickens then add the pork mince until browned
Add the stock and coconut cream if using and cook for 10 minutes
Add the noodles pre cooked and heat in the mixture toss to combine
Serve with chopped red chillies heaps of coriander and bean sprouts ( almost essential ) and spring onions .
#midweekmeal #asianbolognaise # easybutyummy

Fantastic easy meal Red Curry Pork Meatballs. 500

Fantastic easy meal Red Curry Pork Meatballs. 500g Pork mince 2 red chillies chopped. 2 lime leaves thinly sliced. 3 cm generous grated fresh ginger. 2 garlic cloves 1/2 tsp salt. 1 egg white ( optional I find it binds well without and allergy free)
2 tbsp peanut or rice bran oil
2 tbsp red curry paste
400 ml coconut milk
200 ml Chicken stock
225 gm tin of bamboo shoots
Sliced green beans or zucchini sliced oblong
1 cup basil or coriander leaves
3 cups bean sprouts .
Mix the pork mince with the chilli, ginger, garlic and lime leaves and salt and shape into small round balls and refrigerate.
Heat oil in a large deep frying pan and fry the balls in batches for 5 minutes turning frequently.
Remove and keep warm.
Add the curry paste to the pan and cook for 1 minute
Poor in the coconut milk and chicken stick and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Return the meatballs to the pan with the bamboo shoots and greens simmer for 2 minutes
Throw in the bean sprouts and herbs top with peanuts ( optional ) and crispy store bought shallots and serve #midweekmeals #pork #redcurry #cookingmadeeasy #glutenfree #eggfree #allergyfriendly

She is coming back ! So guess what this is missing

She is coming back ! So guess what this is missing ? Fabulous recipe from @lennawallace who has an amazing repertoire of allergy friendly recipes . #allergyfriendly #eggfree #doesntlooklikeit #diaryfree #thirdbornchild

Loads of lemons on my tree called for a lemon meri

Loads of lemons on my tree called for a lemon meringue pie coupled with the fact that Anabella is back at uni and is now very much egg free and this baby had about 10 eggs so needed to make hay while the sun shines ! Winning recipe by @annabellangbein Essential book volume 2 💚🤭#noteggfree #lemonmeringuepie #eatingseasonally #bloodydelicous

My First ( and won’t be the last ) batch of Pau

My First ( and won’t be the last ) batch of Paua Dumplings and Paua Pie. It was quite the feast thank you so much for the amazing Paua @kim_n_ant. Will pop recipes up on www.melanieskitchen.co.nz soon. #newzealandfood #paua #saturdaynightathome #willhaveleftovers

A pivotal moment in Melanie’s kitchen today. Gro

A pivotal moment in Melanie’s kitchen today. Growing up Brussel sprouts were the bain of my life. Boiled forever and left to the end of my meal which meant I had to eat the little bastards cold ! They ganged up on my plate like nasty green balls and I hated them. When I became a mother one thing I felt impowered about was that I would never subject my children to these green balls and would never buy them . Today I bought my first bag EVER of Brussel sprouts and cooked this bloody delicious winter salad primarily because I follow @riperecipebooks and they shared this recipe. Anwar’s Beautiful Brussels + Broccoli Salad. I served it warm and it was lovely. So there you go after all these years I eat and buy Brussel sprouts who would of thought. #neversaynever #wintersalad #brusselsprouts

Back Saturday night entertaining at last. I decide

Back Saturday night entertaining at last. I decided before I buy the new book from the @ottolenghi crew I’d spend time in some of their earlier books most of these recipes came from the Jerusalem book. Including this nurtured Lamb shawarma, baby spinach with dates and almonds and pumpkin with red onion tahini and za’atar. We reflected over dinner how we have really changed the way we eat and entertain gone are the days I used to spend a large portion of the night plating up the meal on very hot plates teaching my daughter how to place the sauce correctly and wiping off any that happened to be in the wrong place heaven forbid ! Then finely sitting down taking a large gulp of wine with guests patiently waiting to start their meal, and I’m thinking thank god that’s done only to be up shortly afterwards to plate the desert !! 😅. Anyway enough rambling Check out these recipes though you will love them #simpleentertaining #saturdaynight #entertaining #jerusalem #rugbyaotearoa

Load More… Follow on Instagram