Carrot and Pineapple Cake

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday. It’s all about family and friends, and everything that should be celebrated about life. My year has been full; to be honest I really don’t know how quickly it passed by. Someone once told me that the older we get, the more we feel that. I think it’s true. For me it’s so important to stop once in a while and appreciate all the good things that come my way. My year has been like a yo-yo, like everyone else’s I guess, but still I feel thankful for the dearest people in my life. Especially those friends with whom I reconnected. You know who you are. Also a special shout-out to Sadie from Sadie’s Nest, Julie from Hostess at Heart, Anna from Life Bellissima and Sarah from Sarah’s Attic of Treasures. Four lovely ladies right there!

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Peach and Chickpea Curry with Noodles

I have been meaning to post this recipe for quite a while and I guess there’s no time like the present. It was almost not going to happen, and as I’m writing this it didn’t happen yet. The people upstairs are blasting away at the wall installing their aircon, and now I’ve got Celine Dion blasting in my ears in turn. Thank goodness for noise-reducing headphones! There’s a solution for everything…well, almost. But now I’m back in the game baby and it feels good.

This morning has been rough. I woke up in a tizzy (is that expression still used today?) after taking for ever to sleep, downed some hot chocolate (not a good idea in this heat) before I changed into something other than my pyjamas to visit my mum. A few trips to the grocery store, veggie truck and other errands, and I was knackered. So if you see a typo or two today, please be kind!

Oats with peaches and crushed raspberries

It’s been quite a while since my last post. It’s not that usual for me to miss some weeks of photos and recipes but I must confess that lately inspiration has been scarce to say the least. I am not fighting it. I decided to let it go and write only when the content is good. I hate leaving things not-quite-right; it’s just not my style, so I went with the not-to-force-it attitude which works for me, at least for a little while. On a more positive note, J and I have also been to London till last week. We’ve been up visiting J2. It was good fun and we revisited some of our old favourite spots together with new ones. Exciting times indeed. The highlight of the trip was the fact that we managed to meet a handful of our dearest friends, a few in Guildford, with some Shakespeare thrown in the mix. Good times.

Peach Melba Muffins with White Chocolate Chunks

One of the things I get asked for most by friends and family are good recipes for muffins. Now this is quite tricky for me because I’ve had my issues when it comes to baking the little beauties. I’m not referring to this recipe in particular – these have been a total success. I blame my inability to get used to different ovens quickly and efficiently. The oven in our flat in Woking was very powerful and loads of muffins were burnt! The one in Guildford had a smaller wattage (or whatever you call it) so things took longer to bake. Now I’ve returned to a gas oven and to test it I’m finding myself making loads of pizzas. Some have come out with black bottoms, whilst others have been spared, and ended up in our bellies.