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.
I am so excited to have you here, so let's dive in and get cooking!
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!
Speculaas or Dutch Spice Cookies are a wonderfully old fashioned Christmas treat and so delicious! These light and crisp cookies are full of fragrant and exotic spices, perfect for the festive season.
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.
Super light and fluffy on the inside and crisp and sugary on the outside, my German-style Donut holes or Quarkbällchen recipe is so easy it’s like kitchen magic. Made without yeast, they are ready in minutes. Perfect for parties or sharing with friends (or just eating all to yourself!)
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.
Tender, moist turkey breast filled with traditional stuffing and roasted to perfection. This delicious roast is ready in under two hours, making it perfect for smaller celebrations.
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!
Spitzbuben are one of the most beautiful traditional German Christmas cookies. Also known as Linzer Augen or Linzer Cookies, the delicious combination of buttery short pastry and tangy redcurrant jelly is a Christmas classic.
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.
My Homemade Marzipan recipe is super easy and tastes miles better than store-bought. This eggless, no-bake recipe comes together in minutes with just three ingredients. Perfect for Christmas time, fruit cakes, cookies, marzipan candy and more.
Perfectly tender, rosy roast beef is easier than you think! Slow Roast Beef produces juicy, delicious beef every time.
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.
Chicken Lentil Soup
Hearty and nutritious, my Chicken Lentil Soup is a great big warm hug of a meal, perfect for chilly winter days. Loaded with lean meat, veg and pulses, a big pot of this comforting soup will feed the whole family and warm you up from the inside out.
Lemon Shortbread Cookies
Crumbly, zesty and utterly delightful, my Lemon Shortbread Cookies are like a burst of sunshine on a winter’s day. These buttery cookies make the perfect gift for lemon lovers and are delicious alongside a cup of coffee or afternoon tea.
Cinnamon Star Cookies (Zimtsterne)
The ultimate German Christmas cookie, Zimtsterne or Cinnamon Star Cookies are deliciously chewy morsels, topped with a crisp layer of snowy white meringue.
Homemade Spreadable Butter
Did you know it’s incredibly easy to make your own spreadable butter at home? With this clever recipe, you can have lovely soft butter directly out of the fridge all year round.
German Braised Red Cabbage (Blaukraut)
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.
German Potato Dumplings (Kartoffelknödel)
Here in Germany, we love our dumplings! Served alongside a roast with plenty of gravy, German Potato Dumplings or Kartoffelknödel are an absolute must. Don’t worry if you have leftovers; they taste fantastic fried the next day!
Super Fluffy Donut Holes (Quarkbällchen)
Super light and fluffy on the inside and crisp and sugary on the outside, my German-style Donut holes or Quarkbällchen recipe is so easy it’s like kitchen magic. Made without yeast, they are ready in minutes. Perfect for parties or sharing with friends (or just eating all to yourself!)
Sticky Orange Chicken Drumsticks
Gloriously golden and smothered in a tangy and spicy marmalade sauce, my Sticky Orange Chicken Drumsticks are seriously finger-lickin’ good! Serve with fluffy rice and green beans for a tasty and satisfying meal for the whole family.
Recipes By Meal Type
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While people often associate Germany with pretzels and beer, it’s really all about coffee and cake!
