Surrey Street Market is now home to its first vegan food stall, with owner Penelope Harrison baking all the food from her own kitchen.

The former charity worker quit her job when she decided she was stuck in a rut, and set up her own stall after wowing her family with her vegan bread and cakes.

In a real labour of love, Miss Harrison singularly cooks all of her 14 different products at her kitchen in Canal Walk, Croydon.

She said: "My typical day begins at 5.30am, and my stall's open from 9am to 4pm.

"When I get home, I like to replenish my stock, so I end up cooking until about 11pm.

"It's a very long day, but I don't mind, because I really like what I do. It doesn't feel like work."

The 37-year-old swapped vegetarianism for a vegan diet seven years ago, for health reasons.

She said: "I wanted to cut down on cholesterol, and cut out animal products.

"But the supermarkets have lots of processed stuff, and I wanted to make my own and have it all natural."

An experienced cook Miss Harrison is yet to have any culinary disasters.

She said: "I haven't had any big problems, I've always been a keen cook, and I'm self-taught.

"My favourites are the vegan cakes and scones, but one of the best sellers are my vegan pasties.

"I'm open to suggestions, and some people are asking for flapjacks, so I might start cooking them too."

Miss Harrison has only been in business since July 28.

She said: "When I opened I wasn't really nervous because I'm very entrepreneurial, and I think you have to give these things a go."

Already attracting attention from the public, the chef has been told she has the market's first vegan-only stall.

She said: "The other market vendors say they've never seen this sort of thing before in Surrey Street.

"I want to last a long time, because I'm the only person doing this sort of thing.

"Ideally one day I'd like to get a shop and bake on the premises, but this is good for now."