Tuesday May 25th

Day 36

I’ve been cooking vegetarian food for my father today. To supplement his diet at the residential home where vegetarianism is a bit of a mystery. Luckily it’s the water I swim in - what to do with meat is my dry land.

I didn’t know till I emptied the fridge of all veggies and started chopping, what dishes I would make him. They just had to be sloppy (easy to freeze) and full of flavour. And have coconut and cheese somewhere - as these are two of his favourite ingredients.

By noon I had two pans bubbling on the stove. One yellow - mild curried lentils, chunky with carrots and potatoes, swirled with pureed spinach, glossy with creamed coconut. The other red - a herby tomato sauce packed with long white canellini beans, butternut squash, leeks and swiss chard. This one became a crumble with a topping of rye breadcrumbs and grated cheddar.

Later I decanted them into little plastic tubs and glass ramekins - one size portions to be popped into the freezer at the home. For a day when vegetarian inspiration runs dry.

As a surprise I also baked him a batch of coconut macaroons. Squidgey sweet in the middle, toasted prickly on the outside. I call them coconut kisses. When I opened the tin and showed him his face lit up.

“ Just like my mother used to make,” he said.

I hope they were. She was a very good cook.