It has been a busy week at school. Wait, let me rephrase that. It has been a busy, third-last week at school. Holy cow. Where has March gone? WHERE HAVE MY FOUR YEARS OF UNIVERSITY GONE? I am now appreciating my days off more than ever before.. my sleeping in until 9:15 a.m. and late, leisurely lunches. My student life is coming to an abrupt end, and I intend to pump the remaining month-and-a-half for all it’s worth.

I had a free morning on Friday, and decided to get up early and bike to the grocery store. It had been too long since I last did groceries, and I relied far too heavily on eating out/Tim Horton’s bagels this past week. Bad Hilary. The week before was so good, too, blogging and eating wise… After carting my bounty home in my purple backpack and handy dandy saddle bags (a half-roast chicken almost exploded in one of the bags: spring-on-bike, take one), I could hardly wait to start cooking. I made this salad for supper. It was healthy and delicious.

It also helped me start doing one very important thing, that being the clearing of my Ottawa cupboard.

Since I’m moving away from my beautiful home in this beautiful city at the end of April, I need to start using up my dry pantry goods. And woah, there’s lots of them. Three different varieties of cute pasta, a couple of cartons of beef stock (must have been on sale), an IKEA storage container filled with quinoa… It all must go. And so begins Operation Clear Cupboard. Over the next few weeks, I will slowly utilize all my random leftover goods, in hopes that nothing will go to waste.

First up was my black rice. I keep trying (and failing) to remember what meal I bought this for in the first place. It is really perplexing me, and I am frustrated that it appears to be a dinner that I never blogged about. Regardless, this salad will be its Hilary Makes claim to fame.

So check it out: we’re now 1/94538459 re: cupboard clearance. More to come.

Aren’t radish slices gorgeous?

PS: It is FINALLY outdoor food photography season again! Thank you, extra hour of sunlight and non-frigid temperatures.

Recipe: Black rice sesame salad
From My New Roots
– 1 cup uncooked black rice
– Pinch of sea salt
– 1 red pepper, julienned
– 2 carrots, julienned
– 5 radishes, sliced into discs
– 4 green onions, sliced on the diagonal
– ½ cup chopped cilantro
– ¼ cup sesame seeds, toasted
– About 4 tbsp of store-bought ginger sesame dressing (or see how Sarah at My New Roots made her own)

Prepare the black rice; you can either soak it overnight for optimal digestion, or simply wash it well 2-3 times, and drain. Place rice in a pot with 2 cups water and a couple pinches of sea salt. Cover with a tight-fitting lid, bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. If you are using soaked rice, check for doneness after 20 minutes, and drain any excess water. Otherwise leave it to cook for 50-60 minutes. The rice should be soft, yet chewy.

When the rice is finished cooking, place in a large bowl and pour the dressing over while still warm.

Prepare the vegetables. Toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet until they pop. Remove from heat. Add vegetables and sesame seeds to the rice. Stir well to combine. Season to taste. Store leftovers in the fridge.

Makes 3 servings.