Chocolate-It's What's for Dinner

I've been making this pasta salad so long I don't even know where I got it from originally. It's a little different than your regular old pasta salad as it has a citrus dressing. It was a nice addition to the Brunch table. Chicken & Bow Tie Pasta Salad 1lb cooked farfalle pasta 2 c cooked chicken, shredded 1 1/2 c red seedless grapes, halved 1 c celery, cut on the diagonal 1 c grape tomatoes, halved (optional) 1/3 c red onion, minced Dressing: zest of 1 orange 1/3 c fresh orange juice zest of 1 lemon 1/2 c fresh lemon juice 1 T rice wine vinegar 3 T olive oil pinch of sugar may be necessary parsley chives salt/pepper In a large bowl combine all of the salad ingredients.  In a small bowl whisk together all the dressing ingredients.  Taste and add additional sugar if necessary. Pour over salad. I made this the day before.  I found it needed additional dressing the next day - the pasta had absorbed all the dressing so it was a little dry. But ...

Yeast is an amazing thing.  You take this dried stuff, add some liquid and other "food," and it puffs up unbelievably! I have a star pan from King Arthur Flour that I bought a few years ago. I don't think they carry it anymore but it is a great pan for brioche or just any sort of sweet yeast. A variation of this recipe came with the pan. When I say variation, it's basically the same recipe but they give different fillings and toppings ideas. I decided to make it with an almond filling and that it didn't really need a topping. I opted for the lemon zest, also opted for the vanilla, and used regular yeast instead of "instant" (more on than in a sec). I opted out of the dried fruit and nuts.  I thought since I was using a filling the added bits would be a little too much.  Before:  After: You might have noticed that I put the dough to rise on my radiator. Supposedly this is a big no-no in the bread making world but I always put a towe...