Butterflies in the stomach

All of us have experienced this phenomenon at some point or another in our lifetime. What the sensational tummy flutters have to do with the butterflies is one of the questions none of us wouldve probably bothered to think about but just imagine for a second, what if butterflies do somehow manage to land in our stomach? How would it feel??

I can tell you the answer: it feels fantastic! Dont feel disgusted to the thought, I have no intentions of making you eat the beautiful colourful creatures. I myself love to see them flying around freely, adding joy and fascination to the nature. Its basically the Italian word "Farfalle" which brought me to this idea.

Farfalla (lit. butterfly) is a famous type of pasta (also known as bow-tie pasta in several countries) and can be found almost everywhere in the world. Combined with bright-coloured vegetables, its wing-like shape does make you think of having butterflies on the plate.

Meat and Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

1/4 kg boneless mutton (boiled)
2 cups farfalle
1 medium red/orange bell pepper, cut in long julienne strips
pinch of salt
1/4 tsp crushed pepper
2 tbs mustard paste
1 tbs tomato paste
1 tbs tomato ketchup
1 tbs honey
1 tbs lemon juice
2 tsp worcestarshire sauce

1 tbs crushed garlic
2 tsp oil
1 1/2 tbs lemon juice
2 tbs fresh thyme (or any other herb of your choice)
salt and pepper
6 - 8 cherry tomatoes
1 apple (incase you wish to serve the salad cold)

Boil pasta in salted water until almost done. Also, boil the meat (I used pressure cooker for saving time).

Mix honey, tomato paste, tomato ketchup, mustard paste, salt, lemon juice and worcestarshire sauce in a small bowl. Tip: Be careful with the salt as worcestarshire sauce combined with honey is already very salty. Add in the boiled mutton.

Heat oil in a pan and fry garlic in it for a few seconds. Add the mutton mixture and fry for a minute on high flame. Add bell pepper and fry while stirring continuously.

Now add the boiled pasta; season with crushed black pepper, salt, lemon juice and thyme. Gently toss everything together and add the cherry tomato halves - just seconds before turning off the heat.

Transfer the salad into a serving plate.

Serve immediately or place in the refrigerator for atleast 2 hours for a summer variant. Add slices of one apple and put in the freezer half an hour prior serving.

And forget not to share the sensation caused in the tummy:)