Nana's Pantry

Lardy cake

As with many things I cook for this column, the experience of making a cake full of lard was warming, comforting and ultimately tasty eaten hot, straight out of the oven. "What's that delicious...
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Wendyl Nissen
Noodle/tuna fish cakes - reader contribution

Dear Wendyl, Here is an economical and tasty recipe from my stack of "yesterday's" favourites: Noodle/tuna fishcakes 1 pkt instant noodles (chicken flavour); 2 med size eggs ; 375g tin plain...
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Supper recipes

Supper is a meal that has largely been dropped from most Kiwi homes, but in Nana’s day it was common to have a small snack after dinner and before bed. These days the idea of snacking between meals...
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Wendyl Nissen
Making mince on toast

When I was in England recently I was reminded of this quintessential comfort food. Many cafés in Britain feature it regularly on their menu and there is nothing quite as warming and satisfying as a...
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Wendyl Nissen

Delicious cake filling recipes

In older times home cooks became quite inventive with fillings; sometimes a cake could turn out a bit dry or an ordinary sponge might need a bit of a tart up before putting on the tea trolley. Mock...

Oatmeal bannock recipe

When the weather is cold, out comes the porridge. There’s nothing quite as warming on a chilly morning than a bowl of hot porridge. But what to do with the leftovers? In my house they go straight...

How to make your own health crackers

In supermarkets, you can find dozens of crackers filled with wholegrains and seeds, but many of them have added sugar and salt. In the old days, Nana used to make them herself. They are very easy...

How to make rock cakes and coburg cakes

It might have something to do with winter and the need to stay inside near a warm stove, but I have been receiving some fantastic old recipes from readers lately for little cakes. They’re the sort...

How to make mint sauce and mint jelly

There is nothing quite as Kiwi as serving mint sauce with your roast lamb dinner. We inherited our mint sauce habit from our British and Irish ancestors but the use of mint as a flavouring dates...

Bread and butter pudding recipe

Wasting food was something nanas just couldn’t abide in the old days. Every scrap of food was used – when the bread was a bit stale it got used in bread and butter puddings. This recipe also makes...

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