So for the past several weeks I have been making my own lunch. I was getting tired of the same old stuff with out any variety. Thus began my search for interesting and tasty recipes. Then one day I came across this recipe for Orzo Salad with Artichokes, Tomatoes, Chickpeas, Feta & Lemon Basil Dressing:

ingredients:

• 4 cups vegetable broth (you can use water)
• 1 1/2 cups orzo
• 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
• 1 cup chopped artichoke hearts
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes
• 1 cup feta cheese
• Salt and pepper, to taste

For the Lemon Basil Dressing:

• 3/4 cup basil leaves, packed
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

directions:

1. Pour the broth into a heavy large saucepan. Cover the pan and bring the broth to a boil over high heat. Stir in the orzo. Cook until the orzo is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring frequently, about 7 minutes. Drain the orzo through a strainer and rinse with cold water. Drain completely and transfer the orzo to a large bowl.
2. Add the chickpeas, artichokes, tomatoes, and feta cheese to the orzo. Stir until combined. Season with salt and pepper.
3. To make the dressing: in a blender or food processor, blend the basil, garlic, salt, and lemon juice until smooth. With the motor running, slowly add the oil. Blend until combined.
4. Pour dressing over orzo salad and stir until well combined. Serve salad immediately or chilled.

Overall I found the orzo salad to be quite good and it didn’t take very long to make. I highly recommend this to anyone who wants something a little different for lunch.

SOURCE: Orzo Salad with Artichokes, Tomatoes, Chickpeas, Feta & Lemon Basil Dressing

California has passed a law that prohibits employers from asking applicants for their passwords to Facebook, Twitter, and other social media web sites. This bill officially takes effect on January 1, 2012. “The Golden State is pioneering the social media revolution and these laws will protect all Californians from unwarranted invasions of their personal social media accounts,” Brown said in a statement.

Currently there is a law similar to this in the house called The Password Protection Act of 2012, which not only makes it illegal for employers to ask for these passwords it would also make it illegal for the employer to discriminate against a current employee who refuses to divulge their passwords. Illinois and Maryland have also passed a similar law.

I see this as a step forward in protect the rights of employees, if they view the public side of a Facebook or Twitter profile that’s fine. But asking for a password to poke around the private parts of those accounts is over stepping the privacy boundaries. I only hope that more states will follow ad pass similar bills. In this digital age employers are finding more and more ways to invade the privacy of their employees private life and to an extent the methods they use are acceptable but when they start to poke around the private password protected areas of the web they pushing the legal boundaries.