Delicious, easy recipes by Jay Wadams

Welcome to
Days of Jay

I'm Jay, cookbook author and food photographer.

Days of Jay is my website, where I share easy, delicious recipes for home cooking.

My recipes are packed with photos and useful tips and tricks to help you as you cook. They are all inspired by healthy, seasonal ingredients and my travels across the globe, especially in Germany, Italy, Cyprus, and Australasia.

Welcome to
Days of Jay

I'm Jay, cookbook author and food photographer. Days of Jay is my website, where I share easy, delicious recipes for home cooking.

My recipes are packed with photos and useful tips and tricks to help you as you cook. They are all inspired by healthy, seasonal ingredients and my travels across the globe, especially in Germany, Italy, Cyprus, and Australasia.

I am so excited to have you here, so let’s dive in and get cooking!


It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!


Well, the countdown is until the year’s end, and Christmas is just around the corner. Check out some of my most popular Christmas and festive recipes below!

German Dominosteine Chocolates Title Card.

Dominosteine are a traditional German Christmas praline made from layered gingerbread, fruit jelly and marzipan, all coated in a luscious layer of rich dark chocolate. These delicious treats are fun to make at home and are so tasty!

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Biscotti or Cantucci are a deliciously crunchy Italian treat. My recipe for Almond and Apricot biscotti is so easy and perfect for the festive season. Serve with a strong espresso or a glass of Italian vin santo.

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Homemade Irish Cream couldn’t be easier to make, tastes streets ahead of the commercial stuff, can be adjusted precisely to suit your sweet tooth and makes an excellent gift for friends – if you are prepared to share it!

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A plate of Vanillekipferl or Vanilla crescent cookies surrounded by Christmas decorations, walnuts, clementines and a candle.

Possibly the tastiest of all German Christmas cookies, Vanillekipferl are, crumbly, buttery crescent-shaped cookies, scented with heavenly vanilla. Yum!

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My Mulled Wine Cheesecake is full of Christmas’s rich spices and flavours. A deep-red, almost black mulled wine jelly on top of a creamy citrussy filling with a deliciously spicy base. This fabulous no-bake cheesecake is Christmas heaven!

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Beetroot Cured Salmon Gravadlax

We’ve landed back in beautiful Munich to the clear and crisp skies and very chilly nights of late winter. It’s not quite spring yet, but the promise of it hangs in the air, brightening the mood and sending the locals outside to soak up every last bit of available sun. I’m rather enjoying the opportunity…

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Classic British Christmas Cake recipe title card.

Even though I grew up on the other side of the world in New Zealand, it wouldn’t be Christmas Day without a Classic British Christmas Cake. This dense and sweet cake, packed with dried fruit, spices and plenty of brandy is an absolute must for the festive season and is something I look forward to…

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With beautifully bright colours Cranberry Orange Cured Salmon is a wonderful dish to serve as a starter at your festive table. It’s so simple to make and home and delicious with a creamy horseradish sauce.

With beautifully bright colours Cranberry Cranberry Orange Cured Salmon is a wonderful dish to serve as a starter at your festive table. It’s so simple to make at home and so delicious with a creamy horseradish sauce.

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German Braised Red Cabbage title card.

No festive table in Germany would be without a big pot of braised red cabbage, flavoured with apple, cloves and juniper berries. Depending on where in the country you are, this could be called Rotkohl or Blaukraut and it is the perfect accompaniment to roast goose.

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Cinnamon Star Bread Title Card showing star bread from two angles. Text overly 'Sweet Cinnamon Star Bread'.

One of my favourite Christmas bakes is Cinnamon Star Bread. With the delicious flavour of cinnamon rolls, this sweet bread recipe makes a beautiful loaf to feed a crowd. It is also actually much simpler than it looks, relying on clever cutting and twisting of the layers of dough to achieve the beautiful design.

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The Latest Recipes From My Kitchen

Discover my latest and greatest recipes below, or use the search function to find exactly what you’re looking for.


Dark Chocolate Mousse Cake

Dark Chocolate Mousse Cake

Chocolate lovers rejoice! Today I am sharing the recipe for my ultimate Dark Chocolate Mousse Cake! This is a fabulous recipe if you are having people round for dinner. It’s a real crowd-pleaser and everyone always seems to find room…

Gluten Free Chocolate Cake

Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake

The sun is shining, the sky is brilliantly blue and the fields are full of waving green grass that has sprung up seemingly overnight. The bowl of strawberries on the kitchen table is filling the kitchen with the sweet smell…

Turkish Chicken Shish Kebabs

Turkish Chicken Shish Kebabs

I am declaring barbecue season officially open! To get the ball rolling I have a truly delicious recipe for you, one that I have on rotation all summer long. Turkish chicken shish kebabs (Tavuk Siş) are tender, tangy, and so…

Beef and Lentil Cottage Pies

Beef and Lentil Cottage Pies

It’s a sunny Sunday, still and quiet here. The clouds and blustery winds of the last few days have finally departed, leaving a bright blue, cloudless sky in their wake. It’s the ideal day to get some work done on…

Braised Chicken and Beans

Braised Chicken and Beans

It’s been a real spring day today, with bursts of brilliant sunshine interrupted by squalls of rain. The mountain opposite the house has been disappearing periodically behind a veil of clouds, then suddenly appearing again, green and lush with all…

Homemade Chicken Pad Thai

Homemade Chicken Pad Thai

It’s Friday! The arrival of the weekend in these unusual times is somehow not quite as exciting as it used to be. When we’re all working from home the eagerly awaited 5 pm escape from the office has lost its…

Summer Berry Chocolate Tarts

Summer Berry Chocolate Tarts

I can think of Easter weekends here in Munich where there has been a thick blanket of snow, gale-force winds and a sullen, steel grey sky. These were the times when we were all happy to be inside, hiding away…

Spiced Carrot Cake Loaf

Spiced Carrot Cake Loaf

With the barrage of news bulletins and onslaught of social media health advice over the last month, it’s been easy to forget that we are in the lead up to Easter! Normally we’d be gleefully snacking on chocolate eggs and…

Recipes By Meal Type


light-bites
Main Event
Sweet Things
cocktail hour

Marillenknödel – Austrian Apricot Dumplings
Wurstsalat (German Sausage Salad)
Easy Cherry Tomato Tart
Zwetschgendatschi (Bavarian Plum Tart)
Homemade Chocolate Popsicles

Looking for Dinner Inspiration?


Below are some of my most popular dinner recipes. Quick and easy with simple ingredients and big flavours.

Melt in your mouth pork, topped with a vibrant green sauce, Salsa Verde Pork Tenderloin is so incredibly tasty it is worth making two as the first is guaranteed to disappear in a flash!
Easy Chicken Lo Mein Noodles 1
Speck and Artichoke Risotto
Easy Thai Beef Salad Recipe Card.
Zigeuner Schnitzel or Gypsy Schnitzel on a plate served with french fries and a glass of beer
Pork Medallions and Peppers

My FAvourite German Cake Recipes

While people often associate Germany with pretzels and beer, it’s really all about coffee and cake!

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Easy German Cake Recipes