Lentil Quinoa Curry

It was my birthday last Saturday. I'd been dreading it for months because unfortunately I turned 35 - which in my book is officially old. I don't feel 35; I'm not sure I even look it. But it's crept up on me somehow and I've had a hard time shaking the feeling that I'm late for something.

M had to go out of town for work and all my friends are back home so I was by myself. I was on the verge of pulling the covers over my head and waiting for it to be over but instead had a fairly excellent solo day. I sat in the sun on a park bench and ate a big lemon bar from a local bakery for lunch. I sipped a glass of champagne later that night at a nearby restaurant and ate a gorgeous cheese platter consisting of a wedge of Spanish blue, a ruby-stained poached pear, rustic crackers, truffled honey and dried fig.

The next day I woke up and felt different. Not anxious, or lonely, or fretting but instead really quite happy. I know that my life is beyond good and there's nothing I can do about finally reaching my scary age. It is what it is. I felt energised, and cooked and cleaned my way through the day.

My new, older (maybe wiser) self invented this quick curry out of odds and ends in the pantry. It's healthy, filling and topped with crunchy bits of apple, pistachio and coconut. It might seem a bit strange not to simmer the lentils and quinoa together with the other ingredients but I know that those lentils can turn their cooking liquid murky and I wanted to preserve the bright orange curry. I ate a big bowl of it with warm slices of naan and froze the rest of it for future lunches.

For 4 servings:
3/4 cup french lentils1/3 black or red quinoa1 tablespoon canola oil1 small red onion, finely chopped1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped2 teaspoons sweet curry powder1 teaspoon garam masala1/2 teaspoon coarse salt14 ounces (400 ml) light coconut milk14 ounces (400 ml) stock or water1 small crisp, tart apple, diced2 tablespoons unsweetened shredded coconut2 tablespoons coarsely chopped pistachios