College is Over but Some Things Don’t Change

I am still wrapping my brain around the fact that I just graduated from college this past Sunday. Luckily, my commencement turned out to be on a sunny, beautiful day despite the predicted rain and thunderstorms. To be honest, the entire experience was pretty anticlimactic. During the ceremony, a lot was going through my head that throughout the speeches given by both the president of the college and the student speaker, I found my thoughts drifting. These ranged from – “When will I get the chance to see my friends again?” to “How long should I live at home for?” I have decided to stay at home to save money and get used to working (not as a student anymore!)

Besides the fact that I am close to both of my parents, another pro to living at home is that I do not need to do all of the grocery shopping. I have a lot of ingredients available at home, which is awesome since I often modify my food creations as I go depending on what I can find in the kitchen. Surprisingly, before today’s lunch, I had not eaten fish since I arrived home. More often than not, a few of my friends ask me if I plan on eating arctic char the night I get home for a school break.

I was craving arctic char today, so I grilled it with honey and soy sauce. (You can find the recipe here). I decided to serve the arctic char cold on a bed of boston and arugula salad. (Spinach would be lovely here as well). To the salad, I added asparagus and string beans, which I cooked in salted boiling water for roughly 4 minutes and then shocked them in ice cold water to cool them and stop them from cooking once they were out of the water. The asparagus and string beans will also retain their beautiful green color after being shocked. For color, I also diced a vine tomato and half of a beet. I dressed the salad with balsamic vinegar and oil and added a little salt and pepper. Post-grad life is looking great so far!