At the beginning of March, Taido was lecturing in London, so we decided to go over early and have a little getaway together. We do this a few times a year whenever one of us needs to be in London for something. Taido calls it “a London Jolly.”

It’s cheapest to take a London Jolly from Bristol by bus, but it’s so much more pleasant on the train. We went on the train this time to Paddington Station.

We started our time in London at The Globe Theatre to see The Tempest. The plays are at the indoor theatre in the winter, which I had never been to, but y’all…it is INCREDIBLE. It’s called The Sam Wanamaker Playhouse and it is entirely lit with real candles. How is this even possible? At intermission (called the interval here in the UK), they lowered the candelabras and changed the candles out to fresh ones. The actors even held candles as they acted.

The entire production was the most fun theatre experience I can remember. Half the actors were hidden in the audience. Someone would pop up next to you and interrupt the play and soon it would become apparent that they were part of the show. At one point, Prospero stopped mid-sentence to tell a woman in the audience to stop filming the play. He was very cross and went back and forth with her for an uncomfortable minute before she put her phone away. Then about 30 minutes later, the lady, for whom we were still suffering second-hand embarrassment, got up and joined the play as one of the actors. So clever.

It was wildly fun and I would return in a heartbeat to see whatever is showing at this theatre.

After the show, we went to the Mithraeum, an ancient Greek temple that was discovered after bombing during World War Two. It’s in the basement of the Bloomberg building. Someone on one of my tours told me that you can visit it for free, so it’s been on my London list for a minute.

Then we made our way back to East London in the neighborhood we always stay in. We stay right around the corner from Brick Lane, where the best bagels in the world are on offer 24/7 and curry restaurants line the road. Also it’s an easy bike ride from Columbia Road Flower Market if I happen to be there on a Sunday morning.

This time we walked to Dishoom in Shoreditch for dinner. Dishoom is a Bombay-inspired London staple that has now made it’s way to many other UK cities and even is opening in New York City(!), but we still don’t have one in Bristol. I resisted going there for a while, because of the hype (there’s always a long wait outside), but Taido convinced me that it lives up to its reputation and he was not wrong.

We loved everything we ordered: Gunpowder Potatoes, Black Dal, Chapati, and Broccoli Chili (Chilli) Salad.

The next morning, while Taido was lecturing, I did the Regent’s Canal walk that goes all the way from the Thames River at Limestone to Little Venice. I have walked part of it before, but never this entire 10-mile stretch in one go. I stopped in Camden for lunch, spent a little time reading in the sun on a bench and then met Taido for dinner at Bondi Green, a restaurant I love that is super close to Paddington Station. Even as much as I love Bondi Green, I was wishing for the same dinner from Dishoom after walking all day.

Around 7pm, we hopped back on the train and headed home to Bristol.

A successful London Jolly for sure.

In the days following our time in London, I was still dreaming about our meal at Dishoom so I started experimenting with copycat recipes. I was excited to find that the Broccoli Salad is actually available on Dishoom’s website (as well as several other recipes).

When we were in London, I picked all of the hot pepper out of my salad (I know…I am such a lightweight when it comes to spice), so I have adjusted my recipe to not include the peppers. And I added sunflower seeds and pomegranate seeds.

I have made this salad every week since we got back from London nearly two months ago, and I’m still not tired of it. I love to eat the leftovers for lunch the next day.

Here’s my version of the recipe. Feel free to add a red chili (chilli) pepper back in if you like!

Pomegranate, Pistachio and Broccoli Salad

Salad Ingredients:

2 medium heads of broccoli
150 grams (3/4 cup) roasted pistachio nuts
50 coriander leaves
8 mint leaves
50 grams (1/4 cup) roasted pumpkin seeds
50 grams (1/4 cup) roasted sunflower seeds
50 grams (1/4 cup or 8-10) pitted dates, chopped small
1 pomegranate, seeded

Dressing Ingredients:

50 milliliters (1/4 cup) lime juice (the juice of about 2 limes)
8 thin slices of ginger
1 teaspoon salt
40 grams (3 tablespoons) sugar or honey
25 milliliters (1/4 cup) rice vinegar
150 milliliters (3/4 cup) mild olive oil or vegetable oil
10 mint leaves

Instructions:

Cut the broccoli into very small pieces. Make the dressing by mixing all the ingredients with an immersion blender (or in a blender). Pour over the broccoli.

Note: I like to do this step early in the day so that the broccoli has time to marinate in the dressing, which softens the broccoli a little so it’s a little less raw, but still crunchy. You could also blanche the broccoli for one minute and then drop it in an ice bath, but letting the dressing marinate has worked well for me.

In the meantime, I chop my dates, seed the pomegranate, toast the nuts and seeds, and tear the mint and coriander leaves.

I like to leave all these ingredients in separate little bowls during prep, and then I toss it all together just before serving.

Makes about 6-8 servings.

Enjoy!

The post Pomegranate, Pistachio and Broccoli Salad appeared first on Alison Chino.

Last week Taido read me a news article that stated that it’s rained in the UK every day in 2026. 

It was actually a relief to hear that out loud, because I have been wondering what was wrong with me and now I can blame the weather.

Then the sun came out on Saturday and there was a spontaneous city-wide celebration of the first time we’ve seen a fully blue sky in 2026. 

Everyone was outside. Parks were full, the city sidewalks were heaving as we all collectively emerged from our hibernation.

Of course, the rain was back on Sunday morning. But still, we know the sun is out there somewhere behind all those clouds and it will return again.

But right now, it’s a rare day that I don’t return from a walk drenched all the way to my toes.

My boots are permanently covered in a thick layer of thick, dark muck (that is the technical term) and the mud on the bottom ten inches of my trousers is there to stay.

Lately at home, I’ve been going through photos from sunnier days, trying to write about some of the places I’ve been in the last four years. Often I abandon the work because it just makes me want to climb aboard the next airplane bound for a beach cafe where I can feel the sun on my face.

So it’s no wonder I’ve been craving hearty warm casseroles for dinner at night.

I used to love shepherd’s pie and steak pies when we lived Scotland. But those were my pre-vegetarian days, so I tried this week to make a pie that feels similarly heavy, but is vegetarian. I was looking for some plant-based comfort food. And it was a success. 

This recipe, which I’ve only slightly altered, is going into the regular winter rotation. It comes from Sarah Bentley’s vegan cookbook, We Cook Plants.

It’s made with lentils and mushrooms, then topped with mashed potatoes and it’s the perfect one-dish meal for a wet day.

Vegan Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients:

1.4 kilograms (around 4 pounds) gold potatoes, halved, or quartered if large
250g cabbage (half of a small head), chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 carrots, finely chopped
1 celery stick, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
250g sliced mushrooms (about a half pound)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast, plus 1 tablespoon
1.2 liters low-salt vegetable stock (5cups)
320g dried brown or green lentils (1.5 – 2 cups)
2 teaspoons dried herbs de Provence
2 dried bay leaves
250 milliliters unsweetened oat milk (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
5 walnuts
2 tablespoons hulled hemp seeds

Directions:

Put the potatoes in a large pan of water with a pinch of salt; bring to the boil. Simmer for 25 mins or until soft. Add the cabbage for the final 2-3 mins, then drain.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and cook for 5 minutes more, stirring regularly.

Stir in the mushrooms and cook for another 5 mins, then add the tomato purée. Heat the stock separately. Stir the 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast into the stock, then add to the vegetable mixture along with the lentils, herbs, bay leaves and a grind of black pepper. Cover and cook for 20 mins.

Drain the potatoes and cabbage, then return to the pan with the oat milk and remaining 2 tablespoons of oil. Mash well, then season to taste. Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas 7/400°F

Check the lentils. If they look a bit dry, add 100-200 ml water and cook for 8 more mins. If a little thin, stir in 2 tablespoons of the mashed potatoes. Transfer to a baking dish; top with the mashed potatoes.

For the topping, chop the sunflower seeds and walnuts, add the remaining 1 tbsp nutritional yeast and a pinch of black pepper in a bowl and mix in the hemp seed. Sprinkle over the top.

Bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Let sit 10 minutes. Serve and enjoy.

Think of me if you make this recipe. I’ll probably be out walking in the rain and searching for snowdrops. 

The post Vegan Shepherd’s Pie appeared first on Alison Chino.

One of the best reasons I can think of for walking the Camino is to eat Spanish tapas, which are widely available along the route.

And I think the Spanish tortilla and Padron peppers are probably my favorite of all the tapas.

Spanish tortilla is a dish of eggs and potatoes that have been fried together in a skillet. It’s kind of like a thick omelette with potatoes. Similar to an omelette, you can add other things to your tortilla, like mushrooms or cheese.

It’s a simple dish, but it’s consistently good in Spain. I usually have it as a snack mid-morning when I am walking.

The first time I tried to make Spanish tortilla at home, it did not taste right. I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong as there are only a few ingredients.

Then we moved to England and I started having farm eggs delivered to my house. They have these rich yellow yokes, so the eggs are almost orange when you beat them in a bowl. And they just taste divine.

There are a few other details that I think make the tortilla taste more like the one I eat in Spain. You need to be generous with your olive oil, and of course, use the nicest olive oil you have. And then I think flaky sea salt helps it taste its best.

Alongside Spanish tortilla, I love to order Pimientos de Padron, or Padron peppers. These are seared peppers that look like jalapeños but are more like Japanese shishito peppers. For the most part, Padron peppers are not spicy. Every once in a while you get one with a kick, but mostly they are just yummy. You drop them into a hot skillet of oil until they blister all over. Then sprinkle them with sea salt.

They are so easy to make. The hardest part is finding the peppers. My local market here has them sometimes when they are in season (summer months), so I snatch them up and serve them alongside my Spanish tortilla.

Even without the peppers though, you can enjoy Spanish tortilla. Splurge on some fancy eggs and make yourself a little taste of Spain.

Spanish Tortilla Recipe

(adapted from Jamie Oliver)

Ingredients:

300 grams potatoes, peeled and diced (around one large potato or 2 medium ones)

1 onion, diced

olive oil

5 large eggs

sea salt

Directions:

Pour 3-4 tablespoons of oil into a small frying pan over a medium heat.

Add the onion and potatoes and cook for 20 minutes or until the onions are done and potatoes are cooked through.

Beat the eggs with a fork in a small bowl with a little salt and pepper.

When the onions and potatoes are cooked, remove the pan from the heat and carefully stir them into the eggs.

Add a little more oil to the pan and then pour the whole mixture back into the pan.

Turn the heat down to low and cook for around 20 minutes, or until the eggs are cooked.

Loosen the sides of the tortilla with a spatula. Carefully flip out the tortilla onto a dinner plate. Then slide it back into the pan and cook for 5 more minutes on the other side.

Flip the tortilla onto a serving plate. Slice and serve with bread, a few greens or Pimientos de Padron if you can get them.

The post A Little Taste of Spain appeared first on Alison Chino.

Between daylight savings and colder temperatures arriving, it’s SOUP season at our house.

We have had soup for dinner every night this week I think. Tomato and Potato Cheddar Soup. French Peasant Soup, Winter Veggie Curry.

Last night I made a White Bean Chili that I have made often in the last year, so I’m sharing that recipe below.

It calls for canned beans but I used dried that I cooked overnight before using here. I might be still trying to use up all the dried beans I bought back in the mad quarantine shopping days. Yikes.

I make this without meat but you can also add cut up rotisserie chicken to this soup if you don’t want it to be vegetarian.

Also you can ditch the chipotle peppers if you want it less spicy.

Happy Soup Season, friends!

PS. I have updated my recipe index (long overdue), so you can find recipes again on this blog.

White Bean Chili

3 small yellow onions, chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves garlic

1 quart vegetable broth

1 (7 oz) can diced green chilies

1/2 of a can of a 7 oz) can of chipotle peppers in adobe sauce

1 1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

1 (8 oz) pkg Neufchatel cheese (aka light cream cheese), cut into small cubes

1 1/4 cup frozen or fresh corn

2 (15 oz) cans cannellini beans

1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for serving

Options for add-ins when serving:
Tortilla chips or strips, Monterrey Jack cheese, sliced avocado

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a 6 quart enameled dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and saute 4 minutes minutes. Add garlic and saute 30 seconds longer.

Add vegetable broth, green chilies, cumin, paprika, oregano, coriander, cayenne pepper and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture just to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 15 minutes.

Drain and rinse beans in a fine mesh strainer or colander then measure out 1 cup. Set whole beans aside, transfer 1 cup beans to a food processor along with 1/4 cup broth from soup and the 1/2 can of adobe chili peppers, puree until smooth.

Add Neufchatel cheese to soup along with corn, whole beans and pureed beans and stir well. Simmer 5 – 10 minutes longer.

Stir in fresh lime juice and cilantro. Serve with Monterrey Jack cheese, more cilantro, avocado slices and tortilla chips if desired.

The post White Bean Chili appeared first on Alison Chino.

Y’all recently I have started making Moon Milk, also sometimes called Golden Milk.

I have been loving the addition of turmeric to All The Things lately.

I enjoy a turmeric tea and a turmeric latte,

but I am even more delighted with the discovery of Moon Milk because of its de-stressing properties.

I have a growing sensitivity to caffeine and I am always looking for the path to being less amped up.

Plus I have been eating less sugar, so this honey-sweetened drink feels like a treat.

I first heard about Moon Milk from Alexandra Franzen while she was promoting her latest book, The Checklist Book.

One of her recommendations in the book is to make a checklist for your day where you begin and end it with the moments you want to have in your day. For example, at the top of your checklist you write something like “First Moment of the Day” and then at the bottom you write “Last Moment of the Day.”

I’ve been surprised at how this simple practice enables me to set an intention for how I want to start and end my day.

I start every day with my coffee and my journal. Before I look at my phone or my email or anything else, I sit and drink my coffee and write in my journal. (I actually usually do this in my bed, because I have the most wonderful husband who brings me my coffee in bed almost every day.) So I pretty much have my “First Moment” down.

But writing down my “Last Moment” has created all kinds of new ideas for me.

I have been trying out different creative “Last Moments.”

Gratitude Meditation with Essential Oils

Get in bed with my novel at 9:30pm

Tea + Books with Simon

Meditate on a quote or verse for ten minutes

Hot soak in the tub with Eucalyptus bath salts

One of the “Last Moment” suggestions from Alexandra was to try something called Moon Milk. So I started trying recipes. Most of the ones I found use almond milk or regular cow’s milk. And we’re on an oat milk kick at the moment. We’ve been making our oatmeal with it and using it in most recipes, so now I’ve created an oat milk version of this lovely late-in-the-day calming drink. I’ve also included the adaptogen ashwagandha, which is the true calming element in the drink, but it has many other possible benefits.

My recipe is below. Hope you enjoy!

Moon Milk

Ingredients:

1 cup oat milk

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 teaspoon ashwagandha root powder

3-4 cardamom pads

2-3 grands of pepper

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1/2 – 1 tablespoon raw honey (adjust for desired sweetness)

Directions:

Heat up milk in a saucepan on a stove until warm but not boiling.

Drop in the cardamom pods and whisk in the spices and ashwagandha.

Allow five minutes for the flavors to meld.

Then add the coconut oil and turn off the heat.

Allow mixture to cool for a few minutes before adding the honey.

Stir in the honey, strain out the cardamom pods and enjoy warm.

The post Moon Milk appeared first on Alison Chino.

Curried Red Lentils (Daal) and Rice

When I first moved to a new house in Aberdeen, my friend Claire made these curried red lentils out of what I happened to have in my pantry after we had unpacked it.

I watched in amazement as she produced this gorgeous dish for dinner from what I had around.

It remains one of my favorite dinners to make as the dry ingredients are easy to have always on hand. Also, you can use tomato paste if you don’t have tomatoes or lemons if you don’t have ginger. Making substitutions based on what I happen to have is part of the beauty of this meal. And it always reminds me of my friend Claire and her willingness to help me turn a rather quirky old house into a home.

After we eat this meal, we package up the leftovers into lunches for the following days as the flavors seem even more rich the next day.

Curried Red Lentils (Daal) and Rice

Ingredients:

2 cups red lentils

2-4 tablespoons butter (or Ghee if you have it)

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated

1 tablespoon curry powder

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1 can diced tomatoes

5-6 cups fresh spinach leaves, chopped

2 cups jasmine rice

Optional garnishes: fresh cilantro, lime pickle, mango chutney and plain yogurt

Directions:

Cook the 2 cups of rice in three cups of water. (I use a rice cooker for this.)

Bring the 2 cups of lentils to boil in 4 cups of water. Reduce heat and let simmer until lentils have absorbed water (10-20 minutes).

While lentils are cooking, melt butter (or Ghee) in a large skillet. Sauté onion for 5 minutes. Add garlic and ginger. Cook two more minutes. Add all the spices and cook a minute or so to allow the mixture to turn into a thick paste.

Add the tomatoes and a little water if mixture is too dry. Once the tomatoes are hot, add the spinach and the lentils. Stir until mixture is hot. Only allow the spinach to barely wilt.

Serve immediately with rice and your choice of toppings.

The post Curried Red Lentils and Rice appeared first on Alison Chino.

Since we have moved back to Arkansas, we don’t seem to have as much time for breakfast. The boys are running off to school during the week and to activities on the weekends.

There is just so much happening!

But Taido still tries to fix a fun breakfast on Sunday mornings while he is home for the weekend, so this week we had this classic apple pancake that is actually a German recipe.

Which makes sense, because this time last year, we were covered up with apples in Germany. They were falling off the trees on all of our walks and neighbors left them in boxes on our porch.

When we walked by the farm, we could smell homemade apple cider vinegar being made. Taido drank it religiously last fall to keep away winter colds. (Apple cider vinegar supposedly cures everything that ails you!)

I have always made this recipe in cast iron skillets, and thank goodness we had one lone cast iron skillet with us in Germany so I made this pancake in it, as well as many other favorite recipes.

But it’s fun to be back at my parents’ house where Mama has a whole stack of cast iron skillets, so we can have apple pancake in all different sizes.

I have a cookbook full of German recipes that a friend gave us at church in Germany, and I think it will be fun to use it while we are home to recall the hearty Swabian meals we enjoyed over the last year.

I hope our table will always serve to both remind us of the different foods we have shared with others and to welcome new people (and new foods) to our lives.

Apple Pancake

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 large tart apple

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup sifted flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons butter, melted (optional)

Put a 9 or 10 inch cast iron skillet in the oven. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Peel and core apple. Slice thin and sprinkle with half the cinnamon and sugar. Set aside. Mix eggs, milk, flour and salt. Beat with rotary beater for 2 minutes. Pull out hot skillet, drop one tablespoon butter in and swirl around. Pour batter on to melted butter. Place apple slices on top of batter, covering in full. Bake uncovered for 15 minutes. Puncture pancake with fork a few times, turn oven down to 350 degrees and bake about 10 more minutes. Remove from oven and pour melted butter over pancake (if using) and sprinkle with remaining cinnamon and sugar. Loosen from pan. Slice and serve immediately.

I triple this recipe and divide it between three random cast iron skillets.

The post German Apple Pancake appeared first on Alison Chino.

Every month at my grocery store, Tesco, they put out a new complimentary food magazine with recipes and lately it has been my cooking inspiration.

This month I made several recipes from the May issue and this spring green risotto is going into my regular meal rotation. I already love risotto, but the idea of adding pesto takes an already incredibly flavorful dish to a whole new level.

Asparagus Pesto Risotto? Yes please.

Basically, this dish is now full of all the best things in life…wine, basil, cheese. 

The result is super happy. Add bread and pour a glass of whatever wine you used to make it. Open the windows and let the springtime in. Of course, if where you live it’s only 40 degrees F in the spring time, then you can turn on your heat lamp, close your eyes and pretend you’re in Italy.

Asparagus Pesto Risotto

(slightly adapted from the May 2016 Tesco Food Magazine to serve 6)

Ingredients:

10 ounces asparagus (around 2 bunches)

16 ounces risotto

1 1/2 cups white wine

16 ounces frozen podded broad beans (could substitute spring peas or any green bean)

3 vegetable stock cubes

3 tablespoons olive oil

3 large or 5 small shallots, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup fresh basil leaves

1 lemon, zested and juiced

1/3 cup olive oil

6 ounces ricotta cheese

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1/4 cup walnuts

Trim about an inch off the asparagus and discard. Then chop the tips off and set aside.

Bring 6 cups of water to boil. Cook the asparagus stalks for 4 minutes or until softened. Remove with a slotted spoon and allow to cool.

Add the stock cubes to the pot and allow to dissolve.

Add the basil, lemon zest and juice, olive oil, ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and walnuts to the cooked asparagus stocks and blend together to make the pesto. (I did this step in a tall plastic measuring cup with an immersion blender but you could also use a food processor.)

Heat the oil in a deep skillet or enamel iron casserole (Le Crueset).  Add the shallot and cook for five minutes, then add the garlic for a minute more. Stir in the risotto and then pour in the wine. Allow to bubble until wine is absorbed.

Add the stock a ladle at a time, stirring until absorbed before adding the next ladle. This takes about thirty minutes.

When the rice is cooked, add the broad beans and asparagus tips. Cook and stir for about five minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Then stir in the pesto. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve immediately with bread and parmesan cheese.

The post Asparagus Pesto Risotto appeared first on Alison Chino.

I know you can make gingerbread at any time of the year, but for some reason I only make them at Christmas.

Christmas and Gingerbread Men just go together, like Easter + Bunnies. Ice Cream + Summer.

I love the way gingerbread makes your house smell like Christmastime.

I’ve used Martha Stewart’s gingerbread recipe for about twenty years now, and I have yet to taste one I like better. Also, it rolls out well and holds its shape when using cookie cutters, so that’s helpful.

This year, I had to adjust the recipe a bit to make it with British ingredients. Treacle instead of molasses. Some folks say the two are interchangeable, but after experimenting a bit, I’m not entirely sure. I ended up with a combination of dark treacle and golden syrup to get the taste that I usually get from molasses back home.

Also, while making these little fellas, I may have whined about eleventy-million times about the fact that Tiny Oven can only bake three at a time, which basically means it took me the better part of four days to bake a double batch of this recipe.

Gingerbread Men 

(makes about 24 4-inch little fellas)

Ingredients:

400 grams plain flour

2 teaspoons ground ginger

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

85 grams unsalted butter at room temp.

120 grams dark brown sugar

1 large egg

½ teaspoon vanilla

85 grams black treacle

170 grams golden syrup

Royal Icing

250 grams icing sugar

10 grams powdered egg whites

50ml warm water

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

Directions:

In a small bowl, mix flour, ginger, nutmeg, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl beat butter and brown sugar until light. Beat in egg, black treacle and golden syrup. Slowly add flour mixture until just combined. Flatten dough into two circles, wrap each in parchment paper and chill for for an hour. Roll out each disk on a floured surface and cut out shapes with cookie cutters. Re-roll scraps to make more gingerbread men.

Bake for 8-12 minutes, depending on desired softness at 180 degrees C or Gas Mark 4. Allow cookies to cool completely before decorating.

Icing: Whisk together water and egg white powder. Add cream of tartar and icing sugar. Transfer icing to a pastry bag with a small tip or a plastic tip with a small hole snipped in the corner. Decorate cookies as desired.

The post Gingerbread Men appeared first on Alison Chino.

So I’ve been attending this international gathering of women this fall and one week we all brought food from our countries to share.

Of course Italy totally wins at All Things Food.

A gal from Italy brought a cookie that is meant to appear like salami but is actually chocolate.

I knew immediately that I would have to try and make it for my kids.

And it turns out that it is super easy and that there are recipes all over the internet for it. You can add coffee or some kind of liquor to the mix to give the sliced treats more depth of flavor and you can also change up the kinds of chocolate, but so far just plain dark chocolate plus cocoa powder is my favorite.

Basically you crush up some digestive biscuits (or animal crackers in the USA), melt some chocolate, add some very fresh organic eggs, sugar and butter and form that mess into a log that you refrigerate, slice and serve. Easy peasy.

Also, you could totally tie the ends of your chocolate logs with ribbons and give them as gifts. Because CUTE!

Go on and give it a try.

Chocolate Salami

Ingredients:

200 grams or 7 ounces dark chocolate

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

3/4 cup or 150 grams sugar

1 stick/4 ounces or 113 grams butter, at room temperature

2 eggs

250 grams Rich digestive biscuits, smashed into crumbs (9 ounces)

Directions:

Stir sugar and softened butter together. Melt chocolate and add to sugar and butter. Mix thoroughly and add cocoa powder. Whip the eggs in a small bowl with a fork. Stir into the chocolate dough until thoroughly mixed in. Fold in biscuit pieces and dump onto parchment paper. Form into three logs and then refrigerate for 30 minutes or until firm. Slice and serve.

Enjoy!

The post Chocolate Salami appeared first on Alison Chino.