Hello and welcome back. Join me for a peaceful few days of cooking and crafting as we move into December, and the final stretch of 2023. This week in a break between rain clouds I went foraging for natural materials in the woods adjacent to my allotment as I wanted to make a seasonal wreath. I gathered willow, holly, broom, and spindle, as well as some variegated foliage which looked pretty, though I don't know what it's called. It's some kind of shrub.

I also share with you an idea for a vegan Christmas main, something to make for yourself or if you are catering to vegan or vegetarian family members or friends this holiday season. It would make a lovely main dish for Christmas or Hanukkah, or for any other midwinter feast you might have planned. Think of the recipe as an idea, you don't need to be rigid with the ingredients list, but you can play with it, using whatever vegetables you have to hand. It's a colourful winter vegan pie, or 'wellington', made with homemade puff pastry, or you could use a packet of premade pastry from the supermarket to save time. If you have some, winter squash or sweet potato would be a lovely additional layer for the orange colour it would offer.

The ingredients for the puff pastry:

300g plain (all purpose) flour
180g cold water
150g solid vegan butter

To make the pastry, use the traditional lamination method. There are many tutorials on YouTube if you need some extra help or guidance if you're new to making pastry, and the BBC website has some good recipes too.

Suggested pie fillings, each prepared separately:

8 10 mushrooms, pan fried with olive oil, 1 2 sprigs sage & thyme (or 1/2 tsp each dried) until the mixture looks quite dry.

1 small bag of spinach (200g), wilted in a pan with 1tsp lemon juice.

1/4 small red cabbage, shredded, fried with 1tsp red wine vinegar and a pinch of sugar.

1 small beetroot, peeled, then sliced or grated finely.

1 tin cooked beans (I used kidney beans) mashed with a fork, with miso, garlic, ginger, and mustard to taste. If in doubt, start with 1tsp each.

Assemble the pie as demonstrated in the video, making sure each layer is quite dry before adding. Brush the pastry with milk to help it develop a good crust, and bake at 200C / 390F for 45 minutes or until golden brown, cooking times vary with ovens. If you're cooking other things alongside your pie, the extra humidity in the oven may increase the time it takes for the pie to brown.

The puff pastry I made for this pie is slightly lower fat than traditional. Typically, puff pastry is made with equal parts flour and fat, but I have used just half the fat to make this dish lower fat. It's still very rich and the taste isn't compromised at all, though I dare say it'd puff up even more if I were to use a 1:1 ratio of flour to fat.

00:00 A walk in the woods with the songbirds.
01:27 Gathering natural materials to make a Christmas wreath.
02:38 Making vegan puff pastry (lower fat method).
04:10 Reading 'Pearl' by Siân Hughes.
04:31 Laminating pastry.
06:02 Preparing fillings for a vegan Christmas pie.
09:22 Assembling the vegan rainbow wellington pie.
16:17 Making a Christmas wreath with foraged materials.
21:46 The finished Christmas wreath.

If you're new to my channel, hi! My name is Stéphanie and I live in England. Here on Eighteen and Cloudy I make slow paced, relaxing 'slow living' vlogs about eco living, living a sustainable life, living a vegan lifestyle, and my allotment. I share my allotment with my husband and we grow vegetables, fruit and cut flowers on it. My videos are peaceful, I hope they help you relax and slow down, and perhaps encourage you to pause and take note of the seasons passing around you in your own neck of the woods.

#slowliving #sustainableliving #simpleliving