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 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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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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Apricot Glazed Christmas Ham title card.

Sweet and sticky with a touch of spice, my Apricot Glazed Christmas Ham recipe is sure to please the Christmas crowds. Made with a delicious apricot glaze, this ham is the tastiest, most stress-free Christmas main around.

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German Christmas Stollen Title card showing two pictures of Stollen.

German Christmas Stollen is always a real treat during the holiday season. Made from an enriched yeast dough, loaded with rum-soaked fruit and candied peel, Stollen is delicious served with a cup of coffee or a warming mug of Glühwein.

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German Mulled wine recipe title card showing a mug of Glühwein and a man holding a mug of mulled wine.

A warming, gently spiced mug of Glühwein, or German Mulled Wine is one of the great pleasures of Christmas and the winter months. It is simple to make at home and fills the whole house with the most incredible aroma!

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Chocolate Pinwheel Cookies

With perfect spirals of chocolate and vanilla, my melt-in-the-mouth Chocolate Pinwheel Cookies are as good to look at as they are to eat. Made from crumbly, buttery shortbread they make a perfect and beautiful Christmas gift, though they are delicious any time of year!

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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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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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German style Gingerbread hearts

My easy recipe for making traditional Oktoberfest Lebkuchenherzen or Gingerbread Hearts at home. Hang these brightly decorated hearts around the neck of your sweetheart (or eat and enjoy!)

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Almond and Cranberry Nougat recipe title card.

Sweet and delicious, it is easier than you think to make homemade nougat. This recipe has no glucose or corn syrup and can be made with ordinary household ingredients. Perfect for Christmas gifts!

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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.


Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Pies

Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Pies

It’s a day for another comforting meal. Something nurturing, wholesome and flavoursome. Who could resist Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Pies? Crumbly short pastry cases, filled with chicken, mushrooms and vegetables in a creamy sauce. All topped with a layer of…

Classic Chocolate Berry Roulade

One of the surest signs that summer is on the way to Munich is the re-emergence of my local fruit stand on Munich’s Sonnenstraße. Perched in the most unlikely place amid the hustle and bustle, trams, buses, commuters and traffic…

Peaches and Cream Cake

Peaches and Cream Cake

Blue skies over Munich today. There is a hint of summer in the air, in the warmth of the sun and the gentle smell of grass and hay that wafts through the city when the wind comes from the south.…

Quick and Easy Hummus

Quick and Easy Hummus

Wow, it’s been a crazy start to the week and it’s only Monday evening! Reading the papers each day seems to bring more alarming and alarmist stories from across the globe, however life here in Munich seems to be carrying…

Pastéis de Nata Custard Tarts

Pastéis de Nata – Portuguese Custard Tarts

Today, I’ve got beautiful Portugal on my mind. I adore Portugal: the warm and friendly people, the colourful landscape, and the stunning UNESCO heritage cities dotted all over with the most amazing tiles. The old fashioned trams and winding streets,…

Spicy Herby Calamari Rings

Spicy Herby Calamari Rings

It’s the middle of the week, we’ve been on the road the last two days and I had a craving for some quick and easy seafood for dinner. Definitely a night for some Spicy Herby Calamari Rings. Living in Munich…

Perfect Chicken Liver Pâté

Perfect Chicken Liver Pâté

This Chicken Live Pâté recipe is absolutely fool-proof. Chicken livers are gently poached with flavourings before being whipped into silky, buttery, utterly moreish pâté. Topped with white wine and green peppercorn jelly, this is the perfect pâté for your next party.

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.

Garlic Miso Chicken Thighs
Summer Roast Vegetable Salad
Cream Chicken Pie Title Card
Chicken Parmigiana Australian style
Spicy Chicken Burgers serves with homemade coleslaw and fresh corn

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