food bits and something beautiful

At work, I went to get my black coffee from the refectory and saw a banner up for 'National Vegetarian Week', and accompanying leaflets. So ironic, because the hall was filled with the smell of wafting cooked chicken. Even more so, I've never noticed that smell there before.... shame! When I'm there tomorrow I'll ask what's happening to celebrate the week. Normally, there are usually good vegetarian options including one vegan one.

Recent food bits:

Tofu lasagne from 'How to be dairy free', fantastic recipe booklet. This lasagne is nice because the flavours taste lovely and rich and it's very Italian style with passata sauce.


Made a soya bean and sweetcorn salad (Post Punk Kitchen) which I loved but that Mit thought was ok, maybe a little heavy. I didn't have rice vinegar (which would have made it 'lighter', only balsamic so that was probably the heaviness).



Have you come across 'B never too busy to be beautiful'? (Well, I am, most of the time to even try!) BUT, this company is just a treasure chest of sumptuousness! Beautiful, cruelty free products in gorgeous, fair trade containers. I made a special trip one lovely saturday afternoon a year or so ago to Carnaby Street, London when they had a shop there.(They've closed that one, I think, and moved it to Oxford Street now, and there's also a shop in Covent Garden). The shops have everything so beautifully arranged. I was looking to buy some eye and lip make up for a wedding. The sales people were really helpful and incredibly glamorous- I had been blown in in the wind and rain, no make up and messy, and one of the girls offered to help me choose a lip colour. She rescued me really, as I'd just caught sight of my washed out face in the mirror, trying to apply the dark red lip gloss without a brush... yikes! It looked like I'd just polished off a sizeable jam doughnut! I felt decidely unglamorous. But I came away with eye glitter and lip gloss that were really pretty. And I've just received a new one in the post via online order in time for the wedding this weekend: )

Probably won't blog again until next week when back from Switzerland...am so excited about the wedding and seeing family. It'll be my first trip back, though, since ditching dairy which will be an interesting position to be in in Switzerland. I've got some soya milk packed and will take snacks. I always used to love the cheese and yogurts, so it'll be interesting. Maybe I can find out more about dairy farming when I am there. My impression is that it's much more small-scale and localised, and I always saw cows roaming freely on green hillsides. I bet it's a million miles better than the UK. Also, chocolate... I'll have a good scout around, if there's the chance, for dark...