Recipe Post: Vegan Aubergine Curry

Hello from a glorious sunny Oxfordshire.

So this is the weather this week :) Got my flip flops out!

This afternoon I'm off to celebrate little Elliot's First Birthday. Happy Birthday Elliot! If you didn't catch his mum's guest post you can read it here.

So what has been going on. Well Jessica's Cupcakes has been really busy the past few weeks which is fab and I have a few more things planned for that which will go on the blog. Pink Chilli Virtual Assistant has really taken off and I'm so busy now with a number of clients.

Friday night me and Keely had a girly night as I couldn't make her hen night. Here are some pictures from the evening :)

On Sunday I made a delicious Aubergine curry and had to share the recipe. It's vegan so even better!

Aubergine Curry
Serves 4 people (or 2 really greedy people)

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil plus extra to drizzle on aubergines
2 large aubergines (eggplant)
1 medium onion ) chopped
1 can of coconut milk
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp turmeric
1tsp yellow mustard seeds
1 chilli (de-seeded and finely chopped)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200. Slice eggplant lengthwise and sprinkle salt on the fleshy side. Rub both sides with olive oil and roast, skin side up for 25-30 minutes until tender.

2. Meanwhile in a large pan heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Add the chopped onion and cook for 3-5 minutes. Add all the spices and continue to cook for another 2 minutes.

3. Add the chopped tomatoes and coconut milk. Leave to simmer. Then one aubergines are done chop them into bite sized pieces and add to the curry along with some chopped coriander. Cook for another 2 minutes. Serve.

I had mine with rice and roti but you could have any type of bread, serve with potatoes or use this as a side dish.

Blog Planning

Sorry for the lack of posting recently. Things have been crazy busy with both Jessica's Cupcakes and Pink Chilli Virtual Assistant. I'm pretty much working 7 days a week and up until about 11pm. But I know it will pay off in the long run. Two clients have come on board in the past two weeks which is fantastic. **Happy Dance**

I love blogging but with 3 (soon to be 4) to run it's been a little manic recently to keep on top of things. So some extra planning was needed! Now I went to the place where I pretty much go for everything now....Pinterest! God I love Pinterest.



There were a couple of planners I liked:

My Blog Topic Planner from Bridgette Edwards is one I am probably going to use for my business blog which is currently through my website but I think I'm going to also set up a wordpress one also.

This next one is from Mommy Words and I think I will use it for my business blog with the Topics planner above

The next one is likely going to be used for my Jessica's Cupcakes Blog and it's from Living Locurto

And for this blog I think I'll be using this one from The Flourishing Abode. This one I think is my favourite :)

I'm also looking for people who would like to guest blog with me. Guest blogging is a great way of driving traffic to both bloggers and also gives their readership a fresh edge. So if you would like to do a post- even if you are new to blogging please get in touch via my Facebook page.

Oh Hello Sun

The past few days the sun has been shining in the UK. It's so lovely to see!!! It's like we are all coming out of hibernation. Today I've been out planting some bulbs ready for next year and the crocuses I planted last year have started to come out :)

I'm hoping to be able to spend a bit more time on the garden this year. The 2 main things I want to get done is the big vegetable patch at the back and our patio/shingle/shed area, I want to make it more inviting and welcoming. Need to pressure washer the patio, re-paint he shed and get some nice pots and plants around. Oh and some nicer garden furniture. At the moment we have the horrid white plastic set. But it will do while funds are low. I always put a nice table cloth over it when we use it.

This afternoon I'm holiday a cupcake party and then I want to get back and do some business admin and menu planning for the next 2 weeks.

The 30 day photography challenge got forgotten a bit with everything I've had going on- very sorry.


Photo of me taken by Keely Jane who has gone to Vegas today! Have fun!!!

If anyone knows of any fab gardening blogs please post them in the comments :)

Jess

xx

Valentine's Day and Spicy Butternut Squash Soup and Happy Birthday Tom!

I love Valentine's Day. I know we don't need an excuse to tell someone we love them but for me it's an excuse to get balloons out!!! Yay.

We spent our Valentine's eating in as having to watch the pennies.  I made the table look a bit cheesy :)

And Phil left me a little note before he went to work :) This little board we always update with little messages. 

And for dinner we had Sweetcorn fritters with Mango & Avocado salsa (I made it vegan and will post he recipe soon). For main we had butternut squash, sage and pine nut pasta and for dessert strawberries dipped in dairy free dark chocolate- yummy. Oh and lots of wine.

Butternut squash is one of my favourite things to use in soup so here is a nice warming soup that's so easy and doesn't have loads of ingredients.

Spicy Butternut Squash Soup (Vegan)

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

1 butternut squash peeled, seeds removed and cut into chunks

1/2 large onion chopped

1 pint vegetable stock

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1.2 tsp paprika

3 tbsp dairy free cream ( I use alpro soya cream and it's great)

salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. In a large pan heat the olive oil and place the onion and butternut squash in. Cook for about 5 minutes making sure to stir. Add the cayenne and paprika and coat the onion and squash.

2. Add the vegetable stock and simmer for 20 minutes until the squash is tender. Transfer to a blender and blend until smooth. Mean while heat another small pan with oil and fry the sage leaves until crispy- about 2-3 minutes. Then transfer to some kitchen paper to soak up the oil. Set aside.

3. Add back to the pan and add in the cream and salt and pepper to taste. Serve into bowls and sprinkle with the crispy sage.

One last thing before I go. Just want to wish my baby brother a Happy Birthday. 

Here is his birthday cake I made

Here he is a few years back...

And here he is now, not so much a baby anymore.....

Happy Birthday Tom xx

30 Day Photography Challenge Day 4: Something Green

Ok day 4 is something green. This pictures combines two of my favourite things- coffee and Cath Kidston :)

I drink way too much coffee.

Yesterday we had Elliot's christening. Here is the post from when he was born :)

Catherine asked me to do cupcakes for the reception so here they are- I loved doing the Farm Animals. You can also follow my Jessica's Cupcakes Blog here and my Facebook page here.

I've had a lot going on with a lot of cake orders but also getting the new business off the ground. Please like me on my Facebook Page :)

Right I'm off to have dinner and watch Eastenders! And then a bit of business admin before bed :)

Bedtime Reading

137 Ways to Pamper yourself, Lift your spirits or recharge your life