Tofu and Pumpkin Curry

Ingredients

400g firm tofu, drained

1 Tsp oil

1 medium onion chopped

3 gloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp fresh ginger, minced

3 tsp medium curry powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp turmeric

400g  can of pumpkin puree

400g can of coconut milk

1 Knorr Stockpot (or concentrate stock)

1 Tsp soy sauce (gluten-free) 

fresh spinach leaves

green vegetables

1 large drizzle of maple syrup

lemon juice

parsley

Method

Drain and press the tofu. Cut into bite sized pieces.

Dice the onion, and cook in the skillet until golden brown. Add the tofu cubes and  allow them to gain a little colour.

Add the onion and ginger, cook for another 2 minutes before adding the curry powder, cumin and turmeric. Cook for 1 minutes, then add the pumpkin, coconut milk, concentrated stock and soy sauce. 

Then the sauce starts to simmer, add the diced vegetables and spinach. Cook until the vegetables are tender. Add a drizzle of maple syrup, and a good squeeze of lemon juice.

Check the seasoning, top with fresh parsley, and serve with rice.

Notes

This dish was based on this recipe, with a few tweaks to make it mine. The Beloved enjoyed the taste of the curry sauce, but wasn't a fan of the tofu. He has asked me to remade it, but using chicken next time.

Apple and Cinnamon Muffins

Ingredients

2 eating apples

100g brown sugar

240ml apple juice

1tso ground cinnamon

90ml oil

1 egg

250g gluten-free self raising flour

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Peel, core and chop the apples into cubes about 1cm in length. Add this to a saucepan, with the sugar, and about 60ml of the apple juice. Let the sugar dissolve in the juice, and gently cook the apples for around 5 minutes. Stir in the cinnamon.

Take the saucepan off the heat, and let the apples and sugar cool down completely. 

Add the rest of the apple juice, then a beaten egg, and lastly the flour. Divided between 12 muffin cases and bake for 22-25 minutes.

Notes

If you do not allow the apples to cool completely, when the flour is combined with the apples, the raising agent will activate, and start making carbon dioxide. This creates muffins without the correct level of fluff and bounce. Let it cool!

Needle and Hook Size Markers

 

This is a small selection of  the birthday present from my daughter. These are stitch markers but their primary purpose is to show the size of knitting needles or crochet hooks used. Sometimes there is a need to stop mid project and use the needles or hook in a different creation. 

The marker is attached, and when it is re-started, the crafter knows exactly what size of needle/hook was used. There is a code. The large blue cuboid signifies 5mm, the spheres 1mm and the silver leaf is 0.5mm. Going from left to right, the sizes shown are 10mm, 4mm and 2.5mm.

The darling daughter has crafted a full set to cover all the sizes of needles and hooks I use, and she has given me greater numbers of markers for the sizes most frequently used.

It gives me great pleasure to use them. They are beautiful, well made, fit the need wonderfully, and most importantly, made by someone I love, and who loves me.

Dipped in Neptune

Yarn: King Cole Tints Super Chunky (discontinued)
Composition: 100% Acrylic
Colour: Neptune
Pattern: Ribbed Wrist Warmers (a variation)
Size: adult
Needles: 4mm
Amount used:
Started: 30th October 2026
Finished: 2nd November 2026

There was one ball of yarn left after finishing the 'Wrapped in Neptune' cardigan/jacket. It whispered to me it wanted to become wrist warmers. This was looking to be rather difficult as the yarn is normally knitted on 10mm needles.

This is when I did a stupid thing, I unplied the yarn to split it in two, along its length. The upside of this was I could use 4mm needles, and the two balls of yarn are pretty much identical. 

Looking back, it would have been better to move up to a 5mm needle, but they are done now, and I'm not undoing them.

Wrapped in Neptune

 

I am delighted to present my new cardigan/jacket. 

Yarn: King Cole Tints Super Chunky (discontinued)
Composition: 100% Acrylic
Colour: Neptune
Pattern: my own perfect creation
Size: maghouin beg sized
Needles: 10mm & 6mm
Amount used: 1,100g
Started: 
Finished: 28th October 2026

This cardigan/jacket was made by working the fronts and back together, up to the underarm. The sleeves were knitted, and then joined in. Raglan shaping was used, and the under arms grafted. 

It felt like there were too many stitches as I approached the neck, so I switched down to 6mm needles to knit the short row shaping. This worked beautifully. The neckline was cast off, and then the stitches for the collar were picked up. This stops the neckline from stretching out horribly. 

I love this cardigan/jacket. It's warm and snuggly, and the colours go with so many other items of clothing.

Root Vegetable and Lentil Soup

Ingredients

1 Tsp oil

1 large onion

3 carrots

3 parsnips

1 potato

3 cloves of garlic

1 tsp medium curry powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1.5 litres vegetable stock

150g dried red lentils

salt and pepper to taste

Method

On a low heat, add the oil to a large saucepan. Chop the onion into chunks, add to the saucepan. Repeat with carrots, parsnips and potato. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Add the garlic, curry powder and cumin. Cook for another 3 minutes. 

Next, add the vegetable stock. Stir well, and then add the lentils. Stir well. 

Bring the soup up to a simmer, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Allow to cool, then use a blender and make the soup smooth, but not a puree. Add additional water to reach your preferred thickness of soup. Adjust seasonings.

Notes

Serve with fresh herbs, a swirl of non-dairy cream, or a scattering of pumpkin seeds.

We like our soup in large quantities, and this makes 6 bowls. It is roughly around 225kCal per serving.

Shepherdess Pie

Ingredients

1 Tsp oil

1 onion

1 carrot

1 leek

500ml cider

Knorr Stockpot

400g can chopped tomatoes

70g tomato puree

400g green lentils

200g dried red lentils

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp thyme

1 and a half Tsp wholegrain mustard

30ml BBQ sauce

850g mashed potato

100g vegan cheese

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Chop the onions, carrots and leeks into a fine dice. Saute in a skillet with a little oil for 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another two minutes. Then add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 20 minutes. 

The mixture should be firm enough to bear the weight of the mashed potatoes, but it should also not be too dry. Add water if it is too dry, or simmer to reduce the water content if too runny.

Transfer the mixture into a 20x30cm baking dish. Top with mashed potato. If you would like, sprinkle some cheese over the top. 

Bake for 30 minutes.

Notes

This recipe is very heavily based on this recipe from Vegan Larder. There were a number of alterations made.