Make Home-Cooking Great Again.
A Nonna was born. Living my best Nonna life, making fresh pasta in Italy (2019).
Cook, Talk, Feed.
Growing up in Sydney, I always loved the mix of cultures and fresh produce.
Asian, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, Modern Australian, there was no shortage of delicious food. From family run charcoal chicken shops to trendy Japanese warehouse restaurants, you could eat well at any budget. However, nothing beats home cooked meals made by family (shout out to Cherrin Elfar’s mum who made the BEST baklava).
But my biggest inspiration comes from my Filipino dad. He loves to experiment in the kitchen. At a restaurant if he loved a dish, he would take notes on his iPhone. He would save newspaper clippings of recipes he wanted to try. If he was inspired by a dish on TV, he would further research it on YouTube.
My Dad: Never a dull moment with a PAL.
There was always something special about having dinner at home. You can tell when a dish is made with passion. My dad’s sister was the same. They have the same energy and love for food and family. Dinner with any PAL was always a loud, fun and joyous event.
I was very fortunate to have such happy memories of home-cooked dinners. Through this blog, I hope to share recipes which have brought me joy in my own kitchen.
Nonna Lizzie
Cooking Pasta with a REAL Nonna in Italy, Nonna Emma!
My alter-ego is an Italian grandmother. No one leaves Nonna’s house hungry. She doesn’t care for special trends or fancy tricks. She just cares about good food made with love…and feeding everyone.
This the same philosophy I have at my home in Singapore.
I typically start with a main ingredient and then build around it to add more flavour. The result is usually a bunch of pomegranate, fresh parsley, feta or crushed pistachios sprinkled on top… of everything!
But at the end of the day, all Nonna Lizzie wants is a good meal with some good chat.
Why GF/VEG/VE?
I never had any food intolerances… until about a year ago.
I thought my itchy skin patches were just because of stress. Doctors even told me so. I didn’t have eczema but there were itchy spots which would arise from time to time. I would also get extremely bloated, but I would attribute that to my bread baby or ice-cream triplets.
One day I was in bed just scratching my eyes and I knew this wasn’t just ‘stress.’ So I did a food intolerance blood test, here are the results:
As you can imagine, this was a BIG RED FLAG. Whilst I did not have severe allergic reactions, I was told to avoid the below:
Gluten, full stop.
Milk. Yes that includes 90% of cheeses, chocolate and ice cream.
Eggs. Yes, that includes cakes and cookies.
Almonds. Yes, that includes almond croissants.
Now life is focused on gluten free, vegetarian and vegan meals. Needless to say, I have had to get real creative to still enjoy the kitchen.
I still enjoy pizza and Kinder Buenos here and there, but I do my best to focus on GF and Vegan dishes.
Happy Cooking!
Nonna |nöńna|
NOUN
An Italian grandmother making the best dishes and sharing them with family. Mess with Nonna and we'll break your neck. Or leave a dead fish on your porch.
Hi I’m Liz!
Welcome to Nonna Lizzie. I cook GF/VEG/VE-ish food from my home in Singapore. Here’s some quick facts:
I’m OBSESSED with White Chocolate Kinder Buenos.
Recently discovered I’m intolerant to gluten, milk, eggs and almonds. Yes, that means chocolate and bread… devastating!
I was a digital nomad (Runaway Strategist) for 3 years.
Going to Israel changed my tastebuds forever.
My day job is in marketing, leading a fantastic team across SEA.
My background is Filipino but born and raised in Australia.
My partner and I named our house ‘Case del Nacho’ after our little Maltipoo Nacho.
Happy reading and cooking : )
Hello! From Casa del Nacho xx