Lemony roast chicken

and a browned butter cake PLUS marinated tuna and buffalo mozzarella toasts

Happy weekend! 

I really love the weekend – it’s when I have the most time to spend in the kitchen to just potter and try new things out. Even though I am cooking every day, the weekdays are also often full of meetings, emails and other life things! So I’ve decided to try and send this newsletter out just before the weekend, because I think that’s when you perhaps have that time too! 

I actually just got back from a few nights in Sydney! A little bit of work but also some nice relaxing times too. I visited some of my favourite spots, Piña in Potts Point - my go-to is the Brussels sprouts salad with grilled chicken, and Bar Copains, Surry Hills for amazing wines and some of the best food (and service) in Sydney! It was so great to get away and recalibrate a little! Studio Gardner was really dreamy and we also checked out the 24th Biennale of Sydney: Ten Thousand Suns at the MCA and walked everywhere!

Strawberry Matcha at Piña. Capella was a beautiful stay. That salad at Piña. Studio Gardner. MCA

Today’s newsletter  is a lovely one and I hope you enjoy! 

Three recipes with a focus on using pantry items to really bolster a dish.

First it’s some beautiful toasts or bruschetta! Good quality tinned tuna marinated with capers, shallots, lemon etc! Onto grilled and garlic-rubbed bread with buffalo mozzarella! This would make a very good lunch or I like to serve it as a snack for a few people!

Then, a delicious roast chicken which rests on a bed of olives, sun dried tomatoes, chickpeas and lemon. It’s so full of flavour and really great for a weeknight dinner or a weekend lunch with friends.

Finally, a very delightful cake – browned butter and salted vanilla Swiss buttercream and fresh thyme. I liked Swiss buttercream (made by first heating egg whites and sugar then whipping it into a meringue before adding butter) because it isn’t too sweet. But If you didn’t want to make the buttercream, a simple dusting of icing sugar would suffice. Either way, it’s comforting and homey and that perfect balance of sweet and salty. Fantastic as we move into winter.

Thanks for subscribing! It is so amazing to see so many more of you here each week, reading, subscribing and cooking along! 

Julia x 

Marinated tuna and buffalo mozzarella toasts

Serves 4, as a snack 

2 slices sourdough bread

1 garlic clove, halved

1 x 120 g tinned tuna fillets (in brine or extra virgin olive oil)

3 strips lemon peel, thinly sliced

2 tsp capers in salt, rinsed

1 French shallot (eschalot), halved and finely sliced

Small handful of parsley, roughly chopped

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

2 x 100 buffalo mozzarella

Grill the bread in a frying pan or on a grill over a medium-high heat until golden on both sides. Rub each slice of toast with a garlic half. Set aside. 

In a bowl, place the tuna, lemon peel, capers, shallot and parsley. Pour over the olive oil and vinegar and season to taste. Gently toss the tuna in the dressing to marinate, trying to keep the fillets as whole as possible. Allow to marinate for 5-10 minutes. Set aside. 

Drizzle the toasts with a little extra virgin olive oil then tear open the buffalo mozzarella and lay across the toasts. Top with the tuna mixture and drizzle with extra olive oil, if desired. 

Marinated Tuna And Buffalo Mozzarella Toasts

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Lemony roast chicken with olives, chickpeas and sundried tomatoes