Tag Archives: pumpkin

Multitasking and my weekly roundup

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Soooo…..Leo turned 1 month old on Wednesday. I can’t believe how time flies! That means  it’s been a month since…….A) I’ve slept for more than 3 hours, B) I’ve been out of my PJs before 11am, C) I enjoyed a quiet shower without a baby crying in the background, D) my brain has thought about anything other than Leo for ten consecutive seconds, E) my boobs were my own and comfortable!……

……It has also been a month since this little face came into my life :-)

<3

This week I officially became a certified pro in multitasking :-) With Leo being a tiny preemie (the cute term for a premature baby), he feeds A LOT in order to catch up with his growth. Breastfeeding a preemie = no time to do anything else unless you do more than one thing at a time! For example, before typing this post I perfected the art of blog reading, lunch eating and feeding Leo!Leo guzzling away, toasted homemade bread and blog reading :-) That would be one of my fave blogs on the screen :-)

This was the week I also started getting my kitchen mojo back! Throughout my pregnancy, I lost my usual interest in trying new vegan health products and whipping up inventive recipes in the kitchen. However, since I’ve been on maternity leave, I’ve been able to catch up on my fave blogs and this has stirred my interest once again. On Thursday, when Leo looked like this….…..I dashed into the kitchen and made some of Lori and Michelle’s yummy pumpkin pie fudge. This recipe is simple, delicious, healthy and uses the ever popular pumpkin as it’s main ingredient. I can’t wait to try the twins’ plank workouts as soon as I’m given the all clear by my doctor! 

 

In the meantime, I bought a great book on caesarian recovery, to ease me back into a exercise in the next few weeks. It contains an exercise programme that can be done from day 1 post surgery and advances into the months beyond. Although you’re not allowed to do anything but lift your baby in the first six weeks, the book details some simple exercises that can be also done within this period, to aid mobility and get all the muscles affected by pregnancy, back into their groove. It made such a difference to me mentally to be able to say, “I’ve done my exercises today!”.I have a couple of upcoming posts on my experience with a c-section so I’ll spare you the details for now. What I will say, however, is that I had no idea how hard the recovery process was going to be and I’m dying to feel like myself again!

On Thursday morning, I was excited to receive a wonderful parcel from the lovely Susan, as part of this month’s VEGAN FOOD SWAP, courtesy of To Happy Vegans. 

I can’t wait to try all of these products as I haven’t had any of them before! I’m particularly excited to try the worcester sauce (I <3 worcester sauce!) and the truffles…..like Susan said in her little note, “You can’t have enough chocolate!”

I loved taking part in this months swap and can’t wait to get swapping again next month! :-)

One of the most exciting events of the week was taking Leo to my beloved Newcastle for the first time :-) Here he is in his car seat, telling me that he was A-ok! He also got to see his Auntie Nicky and drink coffee in Pret with us :-)  

 

All in all, it’s been a great week. :-) Thank you to all my favourite health bloggers for continually inspiring me on life’s journey :-)

xoxo

 

 

 

 

 

Pumpkin cinnamon swirls

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Hi Lovelies! And a “Happy Saturday!” to all of you! I hope you’ve had a good day and taken the time to relax a little after working hard during the week.

Today, I really felt that Autumn was in the air. The leaves are trying to hang on to their green colour but autumn is casting is spell, turning them gradually into shades of red and gold. There’s also a distinct chill in the air…..sigh……we’ve, once again, been cheated out of a summer…..

Now, if there’s one thing I hate- yes I use that strong word in this instance because it’s true- it’s being cold. All of my smiles get tipped upside down as the temperature falls and, as you can imagine, I don’t take to the change in temperature too kindly. Australia anyone?!

As part of a plan to embrace the seasonal changes, I pulled out the pumpkin and made some cinnamon rolls. I added raisins, vegan choc chips and just enough cinnamon to make my flat smell like Thanksgiving :-)

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Mmmmm! One of the best smells drifting from a piping hot oven is cinnamon :-)

These turned out lovely. Soft, fluffy and moist, with a good balance between the different flavours. I would definitely make these again as they’re great as a snack, with a cuppa or even as a dessert.

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Nom nom nom…!

Cinnamon Raisin Swirls
- 1 cup Libby’s canned pumpkin
- 1 cup wholemeal flour
- 1 tsp bicarb
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/3rd cup light brown sugar or maple syrup
- 1/3rd cup flame raisins
- 1/3rd cup vegan choc chips
- 1/3rd cup soya milk (approx)
- heaped tbsp cinnamon
Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin purée and then add the right amount of soy milk to form a manageable dough. Divide the dough into 8-10 segments and form swirls using sausages of the dough.
Place in the oven for 12-15mins @ 190deg C. Enjoy the aromas and be sure to “get it while it’s hot!”
;-)

I can’t wait to experiment with some more pumpkin recipes soon!

What’s your favourite thing about the Autumn?

Love to all!
Xoxo