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Nicky Barber, Delicious Monster

Hi There! I’m Nicky.

I’m a mom, food photographer, writer, recipe developer, and the person behind Delicious Monster. Thanks for popping by and welcome to my little neck of the woods full of food, recipes, parenting & everything in between.

learn more about me here >
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Latest Posts

Festive Gift Guide 2023

Easy Peasy & Pumpkin Risotto

Easy Peasy & Pumpkin Risotto

Upside Down Onion & Gruyère Tarts

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In an attempt to mix things up on my feed, and as In an attempt to mix things up on my feed, and as part of a promise I made to @the.kitchen.think months ago, I’m going to start showing my face a lot more around here from now on…

For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Nicky (the Nicola in my bio is thanks to having to list my full name for that silly blue tick which I’m currently thinking about cancelling), and I’m the person behind Delicious Monster ✌🏽 

Some random facts about me:

I’m based in Joburg although I grew up in Cape Town. I’ve made two attempts to “never live in Joburg again”, but I keep finding myself back here 🤷🏼‍♀️ 

Besides jumping between Cape Town and Joburg a few times since 2010, I’ve also lived in Shanghai, London and Bali. I’ve managed to figure out and find new pieces of myself in each of those places and am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to travel as much as I have 🧳 

My next planned trip will be for a family holiday to Sweden at the end of July ‘24. The reason why we’re going to Sweden is because my little sister lives in Stockholm with her Swedish fiancé. This will be Frankie’s first overseas trip and I’m already so excited to travel with her 🇸🇪 

I’m left-handed and have the worst handwriting. The irony here is that I still use notebooks and write lists for myself 🖊️ 

The necklace you see around my neck is The Eye of Horus, which is an Ancient Egyptian symbol thought to have protective powers. I bought it for myself in Bali about a week before I found out I was pregnant and have only taken it off once (when I had to go into theatre the day Frankie was born). It’s a piece of jewelry I will one day give to her because it’s part of our journey together 𓂀

The only vegetable I absolutely loathe are green peppers. They are the reason I refuse to eat Chicken Ala King 🫑 

I’m a big fan of classical music and wish more people listened to it. One of my favourite pieces is Adagio for Strings, composed by Samuel Barber (no relation) 🎶 

My 40th birthday is at the end of January and I still don’t know how I’m going to celebrate it 🎈 

Thanks so much for being here! I’d love you to introduce yourself in the comments below 👇🏼
The Perfect Sugar Cookie Dough 🎄 I’ve found The Perfect Sugar Cookie Dough 🎄

I’ve found the perfect sugar cookie dough and managed to turn it into 8 different types of cookies with the addition of a few extra ingredients. The dough comes together in less than 5 minutes with the help of a food processor, can be made ahead and frozen. 

The Perfect Sugar Cookie Dough (makes around 1kg)

250g butter 
150g white sugar 
100g light brown sugar 
2.5 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp almond essence
1 large egg
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
2 tsp lemon juice
420g flour 

1. Cream the butter and both sugars in the food processor until combined. 
2. Add the vanilla and almond essence, egg, baking powder, salt and lemon juice and pulse until combined. 
3. Add the flour and continue pulsing until the mixture forms a dough. 
4. Transfer the dough to a clean surface, bring together to form a ball, flatten and then wrap in baking paper and either chill in the fridge or pop into a freezer bag and freeze for later. 

Cookie Ideas:

Custard Cream Sandwiches
Chocolate Chip & Vanilla Cookies
Dark / White Chocolate & Pistachio Christmas Trees
Chocolate Chip Bells
Blood Orange Marmalade Linzer Cookies
Ginger Cookie Rusks 

#christmascookies #christmasbaking #christmas #festivecookies #cookies #sugarcookies
Imagine if you could make one cookie dough and tur Imagine if you could make one cookie dough and turn it into a multitude of different cookies? Keep an eye out for my Festive Cookie Collection, coming soon 🍪
Almost 9 months since Frankie was born, which mean Almost 9 months since Frankie was born, which means 9 months in and 9 months out. The last (almost) 18 months have been hardcore and have taught me that for multiple reasons, having a baby is one of the hardest things you can do. Another huge lesson is that the myth of postpartum recovery only lasting 6 weeks is absolute rubbish! It’s way longer than that. 

I’ve had to nourish my body (and mind) through supplements and food, because believe it or not, coffee alone won’t help you. 

@futurelifeza Mother’s Food™ has been specifically designed to help moms, whether you’re pregnant, breastfeeding, or like me and dealing with general recovery after growing a human from scratch and everything that comes with that. 

Mothers Food™ Shakes and Oat Bars are high in protein and fibre, vitamins and minerals, and contain collagen. 

Cheers to the journey of motherhood - navigating through the challenges, embracing the lessons, and finding strength in the process. Grateful for @futurelifeza Mother’s Food™ for being a reliable companion in this adventure. Here’s to many more months of growth, recovery, and love! 🌸 #sponsored #partnership
Almost 9 months since Frankie was born, which mean Almost 9 months since Frankie was born, which means 9 months in and 9 months out. The last (almost) 18 months have been hardcore and have taught me that for multiple reasons, having a baby is one of the hardest things you can do. Another huge lesson is that the myth of postpartum recovery only lasting 6 weeks is absolute rubbish! It’s way longer than that. 

I’ve had to nourish my body (and mind) through supplements and food, because believe it or not, coffee alone won’t help you. 

@futurelifeza Mother’s Food™ has been specifically designed to help moms, whether you’re pregnant, breastfeeding, or like me and dealing with general recovery after growing a human from scratch and everything that comes with that. 

Mothers Food™ Shakes and Oat Bars are high in protein and fibre, vitamins and minerals, and contain collagen. 

Cheers to the journey of motherhood - navigating through the challenges, embracing the lessons, and finding strength in the process. Grateful for @futurelifeza Mother’s Food™ for being a reliable companion in this adventure. Here's to many more months of growth, recovery, and love! 🌸 #sponsored #partnership
instagram 🤝🏼 reality Swipe left for the bef instagram 🤝🏼 reality

Swipe left for the before pic prior to fixing the white balance, saturation, exposure and contrast. A lesson in how it’s not just about taking a photo 💅
On Sundays we @drinkmartys Extra Spicy Tomato Cock On Sundays we @drinkmartys Extra Spicy Tomato Cocktails 🍅

Came home on Thursday to one of the best deliveries I’ve received in a while, including everything needed to make 4 different and delicious tomato cocktails using Marty’s Spiced Tomato Juice. 

Big thanks to @drinkmartys and @hotovenmarketing for putting such a great press drop together 🙌 Mentions must be made as well for the brands who partnered on this drop: @funky_ouma, @blackmambafood, @capetowngin, @oryxdesertsalt, and @mahalabotanical
It’s beginning to look a lot like festive cookie It’s beginning to look a lot like festive cookie season 🍪 The recipe for these, and a few others, coming soon…
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