Tandoori Paneer and Vegetable Biryani Serves: 2 Takes: 23 minutes Calories: 398 Difficulty: Easy Ingredients: 1 tablespoon tandoori spice mix 150g paneer cheese, cubed zest of a lime low fat cooking spray ½ onion, diced ½ cauliflower, cut into small florets 1 carrot, peeled and diced 125g dried basmati rice 300ml boiling hot vegetable stock 75g cherry tomatoes, halved 75g fine green beans 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander leaves Method: Mix the tandoori spices, paneer cubes and lime zest. Heat a deep wide lidded non-stick frying pan and spray with the cooking spready.  Remove the paneer from the bowl and reserve the excess spies. Add the [...]

We moved into an old Victorian house about 2 years ago, and one of the first things we did to try to keep the house warm and energy-efficient was to insulate the loft. We found a system through Ecological Building Systems that incorporated sheep’s wool as insulation, a great option, as it is natural, not harmful to touch, has a particularly good insulation value, and is breathable, which protects the house from moisture. To start, we removed the old fiberglass insulation and debris.  We had to wear full body suits and respirators as the material is harmful. We then installed [...]

We all know that recycling is a priority for reducing the impact on the environment, including consumption of raw materials, greenhouse gas emissions from manufacturing and logistics, and end of product life waste.  But should we look to plastic or glass for our packaging? Glass or plastic: which is better for the environment? - BBC Future Hannah Husband has shared her tips for reusing glass jars. I save a lot of my jars to reuse, the large ones are great for freezing leftovers, storing leftovers in the fridge and the small ones I use for taking snacks out for the [...]

What local business do you regularly support? I live in the village of Timperley in South Manchester which has a few local shops including an amazing greengrocer /deli called Fresh Farm Foods that opened in the 1980s. It sells a range of delicious fresh locally sourced produce including pies, deli items, fruit and veg, hampers, and Christmas wreaths. I discovered recently that they source corn from a farmer in Knutsford, which I thought was amazing.  It was so nice to know that I was supporting another local business as well. Internal view of Fresh Farm Foods How have you become [...]

Not long after I joined Plus-Project in 2021 there was a Single Day Event in Knutsford. Among other presentations was one by Octopus EV on their salary sacrifice scheme. In August 2023 I took delivery of a Tesla Model 3. A benefit was that I could sell my current car, which was expensive to run, and use the money to invest in eleven solar panels and battery systems from Effective Home. The initial cost was expensive but in eight years they will have paid for themselves. I am saving about £75/month charging the car rather than burning diesel, and no [...]