Fruity Quinoa Chickpea Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing

I couldn't be happier when I arrived at my service apartment, and realized that I have an almost full kitchen - microwave, stove, oven, dishwasher – to keep me company over the next two months. Eating out every day just wouldn't do for me.

While having a kitchen is a good thing, I had to stock up on my totally empty pantry. Having an empty pantry and refrigerator reminded me of how expensive it is to stock up on a pantry, and essential kitchen ingredients, and made me wonder if it is worth the while to cook during my stay here. Despite the second thoughts, I still went ahead and stocked up on the following essentials:

- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
- Ground pepper
- Ground cinnamon
- Cumin
- Lemon and lime
- Canned beans
- Rolled oats (I need my oatmeal)
- Garlic (I use them a lot in cooking)
- Onion (I use them a lot in cooking)
- Quinoa (I was deciding between quinoa and brown rice)
- Tamari sauce (for Japanese dishes)
- White Miso Paste (for Japanese dishes)
- Dashi powder (for Japanese dishes)
- Walnuts (nuts are my go-to snack)
- Chicken broth (I need my savory oatmeal)
- Fresh herbs (basil, mint, rosemary, thyme, oregano)
- Fresh fruits (I need my daily dose of fruits to stay regular)
- A bar of dark chocolate !!

With my newly stocked pantry, the first dish I made was this quinoa salad. Quinoa is my best friend, and if you have been following this blog for some time, you should know how much I adore it. This salad is light, citrusy and perfect for summer – it’s perfect for the weather in New York and Connecticut now! Sala from Veggie Belly used ripe mangoes, but I substituted it with unripe mangoes because I didn’t want a salad that is too sweet. Either ways, I think they are still scrummy:)

Fruity Quinoa Chickpea Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing
Adapted from Veggie Belly
Serves 2

Ingredients
For the quinoa
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water

For salad additions
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup unripe mangoes, cubed (for sweeter variation, use ripe mangoes)
1/2 cup chickpeas, rinsed and drained

For the lemon basil dressing
2  tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 tbsp lime juice
1/4 tsp zest of lime
1 tbsp basil leaves, minced
1/2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. To cook quinoa, bring  1 cup water to a boil in a saucepan; add the quinoa, bring back to boil, cover and cook over medium heat for about 12 minutes, or until quinoa has absorbed all the water. Remove cooked quinoa from heat, fluff, cover and allow it to stand for another 15 minutes.
2. While the quinoa is cooking, combine the blueberries, mango and chickpeas in a bowl and set aside in the refrigerator. Combine the ingredients for the dressing. When the quinoa is ready, add the cooked quinoa to the bowl of fruits and chickpeas. 
3. Toss the salad with the dressing. Allow to chill for 1 hour or more to allow flavors to blend. Salad keeps well overnight. Enjoy!

What other pantry items would you buy during a two months stay like this?

What are the must-have items in your pantry?

Vanilla-Scented Poached Pears

Greetings from New York City!

I am finally here in NYC after a long 22-hour flight. *Phew* I might have told some of you that I will be in NYC and Connecticut for work, and here I am! Work has brought me to US, and I will be in Connecticut over the next 2 months. This is my first work trip, so I am really excited about this. Amidst the excitement, I was bored stiff during my flight, so I tried to kill some time during my flight with this post:

Since I started on my new job, I have not had much time to cook (or even blog). Breakfast has been my usual fuss-free savory oatmeal, fruit salad or granola; lunch has been on-the-go; dinner has been more of a social gathering with different groups of friends. While I think catching up with friends over dinner is a wonderful thing to do, I find myself missing home-cooked meals, and spending some personal time in the kitchen.

 So when I finally managed to sneak in some time on Saturday morning, I decided to kick start the weekend with some dessert for breakfast – Vanilla-scented Poached Pears. Since the theme for this fortnight’s cookbook challenge is ‘Desserts’, I am sending this in for that.

Poached fruits are not what one would typically think of when desserts are concerned;  chocolate usually tops my list for desserts. They are like the unsung hero amongst desserts . You often forget about them, until someone reminds you about how great they are.  For me, that ‘someone’ is The Candle Cafe Cookbook – a cookbook that my friend, May, gave me when she returned from her New York trip some time back. The Candle Cafe Cookbook is a cookbook by the Candle Cafe, a vegan restaurant that May fell in love with during her trip to NYC. Knowing that I enjoy vegan dishes as much as she does, May decided to share with me a slice of her trip, and bought me this cookbook. I have since tried several recipes from this cookbook, and the dishes have always turned out well; this time is not the exception.

This poached pear doubles up perfectly as a lovely breakfast when served over a bowl of oatmeal porridge. That is the beauty of any form of poached or grilled fruits – it is so versatile. If you are craving for a dessert, serve it with ice cream, and if you want a sweet weekend breakfast, serve it with yoghurt or oatmeal!!

Happy July 4th to all my friends in US!

Vanilla-Scented Poached Pears
Serves 4
Adapted from The Candle Cafe Cookbook

Ingredients 
4 medium pears, washed and peeled
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1/4 cup cranberries (I used dried cranberries)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 cinnamon sticks
1/2 cup apple juice (I used unsweetened apple juice)
2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Peel the pears and cut them in half from stem to base. Core the pears and leave the bottoms intact. Drizzle them with lemon juice.
2. Fill each pear with an equal portion of cranberries and almonds. Sprinkle the pears with ground cinnamon. 
3. Place the pears – filled side up- in a saucepan; add the cinnamon sticks to the pan and pour the apple juice and vanilla extract around the pears. 
4. Simmer, uncovered, over medium heat for 20 to 25 minutes, or until tender. Serve warm on its own, with ice cream, or over a bowl of oatmeal. Enjoy!

Cook’s Notes
These were great with dried cranberries, but I believe they would have been even better with fresh cranberries.

How do you kill time during a long-haul flight?

What is the first dessert that you think of?