Things I Love Thursday - shoes, blackberries and help from the universe

What's been rocking my world this week? Based on a meme by Gala Darling

Melissa shoes – I adore Melissa shoes. I first came across them on Amelia Raley's blog Doublespeak and have since gathered a small collection. They are so comfortable. I love the variety of styles. I love the way they are perfect for wet UK summers. I love that they're vegan. It's been a good week for my Melissa collection. I bought a pair in cowboy boot style for festivals fromNonnon (who use the excellent and communicative DPD to do their deliveries). My parents bought me back a couple of pairs from the US where Melissa has done a collection for Forever 21.

The happiness project by Gretchen Rubin – Just reading this is making me happy. Having borrowed it from a friend I can see that I'll have to buy my own copy so I can dip into it frequently for inspiration. I can see that I'm doing the right things – I'm being myself, I'm embracing novelty, I'm working on letting things go, I'm trying to get more sleep. It's good to know that there are other people out there doing the same.

The universe sending me signs – Well ok it might not be the universe but it's great that when you start thinking about something (like relaxing more) and then something to help appears – e.g. a one minute meditation film turns up in your inbox. Or the wonderful colleague who brings in her shoulder massager for you to try and as a result you feel calm, energised, and a tad floppy all day.

Family – You don't realise how much you miss your family until you spend time with them.

Foraging – picking handfuls of blackberries on my way to work is foraging at its easiest and most delicious. If only I'd taken a photo before eating most of them.

What's in my lunch box this week? In a hurry

I had a rather extended weekend in Somerset clearing out sheds and cupboards. I arrived home on late on Sunday afternoon via a burlesque class with a carful of 'things'. As I unpacked I happily patted myself on the back for having thought in advance about dinner. I was delighted with my menu planning abilities as I scrubbed up some new potatoes, and popped some vegan sausages in the oven. My self satisfaction lasted right until the moment I cooked the peas. That's when the penny dropped and I realised that things were looking a little short in the Monday lunch department.

Clearly leftover sausage and mash (and let's be frank on this leftovers were unlikely – I was rather nibblesome) wasn't going to cut it. So I did a quick fridge and freezer raid. Rescued a rather shrivelled green pepper. Thanked the gods of kitchens that I had frozen some chickpeas and pitta breads. Uncovered a bag of allotment picked rocket. As the oven was already on lunch was created.

Clockwise from top left:

• Mix of dates, twiglets, dark chocolate and almonds
• Dead to the world - Charlaine Harris
• Pittas filled with rocket, roasted chickpeas, and roasted green pepper.

Moral of this story? Don't get smug. Always plan ahead.

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What's in my lunchbox? Simply idyllic

The word 'idyllic' springs to mind as regards this lunch. It was a pleasure for so many reasons.

From a food point of view:

It used lots of produce from my allotment, or lovely seasonal things from the market. It was easy to throw together as it used leftovers from the weekend. I got to try out some of the ideas in An everlasting meal simply by throwing a load of vegetables in the oven.

From the top down:

· Cherries, purchased from the market and gently cooked to make them extra yummy

· Popcorn, home popped and mixed with coconut oil, salt and nutritional yeast

· Salad with spinach, rocket, roasted chickpeas, peppers and onions, with a drizzle of oil and balsamic vinegar

From a location point of view:

I explored the other side of the river and found a new delightful location to eat in.

Wishing you green ink and good food,

Annastasia

 

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What's in the lunch box? Chillies are not peppers

This lunch does actually look rather dull. A very limited choice of dishes, with a big sandwich taking up the bulk of the photo. It's not even an exciting looking sandwich. Frills of lettuce and layers of colour do not peep from between the slices. However the taste is certainly not dull. The filling is an olive and tofu spread from Veganomicon. The original recipe sounds pretty delicious, and I'm certain would have tasted it too if I'd followed it.

I made an alteration in the recipe that I haven't done in ages. When the instruction said to add red pepper flakes I added red chilli pepper flakes. I've no idea why Ido this. Any illusions I had that the two were interchangeable much have vanished years ago when I took my first combustible mouthfuls.

Maybe I felt that my food needed to compete with the ambient temperature.

Lunchtime offerings:

· Sandwich with hot olive spread, spinach, and rocket

· Melon

· Home popped popcorn

· HHhH by Laurent Binet

London Vegan Drinks invades Wholefoods Kensington

I really enjoy looking at food. Even if I have no plans to buy anything there’s a certain pleasure to be had in admiring produce of all kinds. As a vegan I’m always intrigued to go somewhere new and see if they have products I haven’t previously tried. So I was pretty excited to hear that the new home for London Vegan Drinks was going to be Wholefoods Market in Kensington. I’ve visited the Piccadilly store on a couple of occasions and was happy with some more time in a similar environment.

As LVD didn’t start until 6pm I had plenty of time to enjoy vegan goodies in Camden.

My first stop was Loving Hut for some stir fry and a vanilla milkshake.

The guys serving couldn’t have been more helpful. I also had a great chat with another customer who said the place had turned him vegan 3 and half years previously. He’d bought a bunch of work colleagues over for the buffet and been amazed at how good the food was. When he found out it was vegan he decided that he’d better become one.

I was too full for dessert but happily a stride around the market and stables area left me ready to enjoy some sweet treat at Cookies and Scream.

I turned up at Kensington Wholefoods market expecting a store similar in size to the Piccadilly Circus one. I had no idea that this was 3 floors of mega store. I could have spent hours browsing on the ground floor (vegetables without plastic packaging, open barrels of lentils, peanut butter grinders, vegan chocolates) but thought I should go and be social!

The second floor is perfect for London Vegan Drinks. The room with a view is glorious, and has the best fake grass I’ve ever come across. I must confess I did spend some time digging down trying to find the soil because I was convinced it couldn’t be fake. The food court has ample food and drink options, and plenty of seating. I had vegan beer and pizza but could see plenty of things to try in future months. Hey, they had root beer…

I was really impressed with how welcome Wholefoods made us. From goodie bags to menus to smiley staff, it was a really great experience. It’s clear that Wholefoods get that vegan like to eat and drink as much as anything else. Food is important to us and we like to enjoy a variety of food stuffs which don’t all have to be totally healthy. We love cake as much as the next person.

I couldn’t resist picking up some groceries before leaving and am determined to check out some of the other services on offer. I love the thought of taking my own bottle to fill with olive oil, and I’m sure I spotted a similar offering for wine.

So to sum up I’m really excited about what Wholefoods has to offer, and looking forward to the next London Vegan Drinks so I can explore more.

 

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Things I Love Thursday

Lunches in the sun - my new work location by the river makes me feel like I'm in the middle of the countryside. I can eat lunch under a different tree every day.

Foraging opportunities - so far this week I've identified Sweet cicely , Darwin's barberry, Fennel, and Hedge mustard. And on a similar note, I'm still drinking lots of nettle and plantain tea.

Dancing like there's no one watching - I'be really been enjoying burlesque classes and practice this week. It's been great to work off some energy and tension by pulling ridiculous faces, getting into character and stretching my muscles.

Warm nights - with sash windows open at the top there's a suitable breeze to make warm nights a delightful experience that says summer is here; enjoy it while it lasts.

Meetings in parks - I met with Carla and Naomi to plan our next stage of world domination, and the park was the obvious place to designate our board room.

Easy iced coffee - I froze, in a ice tray, the leftover coffee from the weekend. Today I blended it with vanilla syrup and soy milk. The perfect morning beverage. Alas I drank it all before I thought to take a photo.

Actually getting to wear my summer clothes - all my clothes that look wrong with tights and cardigans are getting worn, and will continue to be worn (until the heat wave ends and they go back in the wardrobe for a year or two).

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What's in my lunchbox? Just for the dressing

I made this lunch pretty much entirely for the delicious dressing. It’s from a recipe in The Garden of Vegan. It’s easily overlooked as the recipe title focuses on the spinach and tofu that form the salad, rather than on this delicious tangy dressing. It’s perfect for the hot weather we’ve been experiencing of late.

The hot weather has also made lunch outside a truly enjoyable experience. Having recently moved offices I’m getting to appreciate riverside walks and plenty of delightful spots for lunch right on my doorstep.

Clockwise from top:

• Sex and Stravinsky by Barbara Trapido - enjoying this so much I might have to do a rare book review post
  
• Home grown strawberries and dark chocolate
  
• Twiglets
  
• Wonderful dressing – a blend of miso, oil, vinegar, ginger, soy sauce and garlic
  
• Salad – radishes, various leaves (spinach, rocket, Oak leaf lettuce) and Italian style tofu (yes, plain fried tofu would have worked fine but I was feeling inspired).
  

This is where I enjoyed my lunch while listening to birds and watching butterflies.

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