PASTA SALAD WITH APRICOT VINAIGRETTE DRESSING

So finally here I am , updating my blog after a long time. obviously its not that I don't cook, but its just that I take a picture, upload it to my computer and tell myself "I have to post this recipe to my blog". So now I have a good number of recipes that I need to update my blog with.

This salad that I made, was a quick fix Sunday lunch. Surprisingly I had just the right ingredients in my fridge and my pantry. Got them all together and dressed it up with a yummy apricot vinaigrette dressing. It was perfect for a sunny Sunday afternoon.

Here goes the recipe

You will need

• Pasta- 1 cup (You can use any. I used the spiral pasta)
• Spring salad mix- 1 packet
• black beans- 1/2 cup (boiled or tinned)
• beet strings- 1/4th cup (I used tinned beets strings)
• cucumber-1/2 (sliced)
• carrot-1 (thinly sliced)
• walnut- 4-5
• sliced almonds- 2 tbsp
• dried cranberries- 2 tbsp
• For the dressing
• Balsamic vinegar- 1/4 th cup
• olive oil- 2-3 tbsp
• apricot jam- 1 tbsp
• salt and pepper to taste.

You have to

1. Boil the pasta as per the package instructions.
2. In a bowl, empty out the spring salad mix. Add the beet strings, the carrot and the cucumbers. Add the boiled red kidney beans.
3. In a separate bowl, mix all the ingredients for the dressing. Whisk it all together. Refrigerate it for twenty minutes or so. This helps the flavours to settle in.
4. Just before serving, drizzle the dressing over the salad, toss in the walnuts, almonds and cranberries.
5. Serve.

This is more like a meal on its own. With the pasta, the beans the greens and the nuts.Its like having all the nutrition tossed together in one bowl. Enjoy.

Keep a look out for more recipes. Its spring cleaning and I am cleaning my backlogged folders. Yuhooooooo!!!!

ALL AT ONCE......

Hello all fellow bloggers. I do not know where to start. The past few weeks have been like lightning, it all came so fast and went by so fast, I actually need to stop, take a deep breath and start afresh, much more clear and organised.

At first there were just a few things that I had to manage. There were days when I use to love the luxury of doing what I wanted to do and when I wanted to. And then there were days when I felt as though I was not doing enough.

And then everything was just swung towards me all at once, as though telling me " you wanted it, now you have it".......

To make all this a little more comprehensible, I am talking about work, home, business and my passions/ interests . Everything just needed to be done and taken care of.

I was volunteering with a nutritionist once a week or from home. Her assistant was going for another job, so she asked me to join her full time for nearly three weeks. Simultaneously, my friend approached me with a business proposition.

That was pretty exciting, as we researched more about opening up a tea kiosk, we found out it was no easy job. So we decided to start off something smaller and more easy to manage. We decided on selling tea, online and holding tea events. So the planning started.

Our first tea event was just last weekend (more on that later). So every evening when I got back from the nutritionist, me and my friend worked on our small little venture. The business name, business cards, packaging, everything. I will elaborate on that later in my next email.

Working nearly 14 hours a day, work at home was piling up and off course the blog was getting neglected. And not to forget my carpel tunnel syndrome, I actually needed to prioritise it all.
I felt so left out, seeing every one posting yummy stuff, and every day I would tell myself , I need to update my blog, and it never happened until today.

Starting Monday, I am only working twenty hours a week at the nutritionists place and then rest of the time devote to my little tea venture. I actually need to be more organised and more effective.

I seriously admire all those bloggers who do it all. Manage work, home, and their passion for blogging. Hats off.

I promise myself to be more disciplined and manage time more efficiently. I want to get back to my old blogging habits, and take part in events. I was just beginning to get noticed in the blogger world...booohuuuuuuuu!!!!!

But sometimes this break helps too. I have lots of recipes to update and will be updating them all soon.
Hope to have all my readers, ready for all my new recipes.
I am finally doing the balancing act.
wish me luck and give me some tips.
and we do not have kids yet!!!!!!!.

Take care guys.
Tea updates, website, name, events coming soon.

DARING BAKER'S - Chocolate Valentino

Finally I made it. With so much going on around me I baked my way through the Daring baker's challenge.

I did not manage to make the ice cream so I used store bought ice cream. I went ahead making the Flour less Chocolate cake.

The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

Here is the recipe

Chocolate Valentino

preparation Time: 20 minutes.

You will need

16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped

½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter

5 large eggs separated

You have to

1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) and melt, stirring often.

2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling. Butter your pan and line with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.

3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large bowls.

4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).

5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together.

6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.

7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter.

8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way full, and bake at 375F/190C

9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C.

Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet.10. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold.

I think I used a bigger cake tin, so my cake did not rise a lot. So I cut it into rounds, using a cookie cutter.

Topped it with vanilla pecan ice cream (store bought off course).

Drizzled it with chocolate sauce and added some dried cranberries.

My husband and I just shared one serving and and might indulge in an other one, soon after I am done updating this.
So till the next daring baker's challenge here is happy baking to all.

Hopefully I will be the first to post in the next challenge.

Enjoy.