I had a great time this week in Belgium. Those of you who read my last post, my Mediterranean quinoa salad recipe, already know that the “Café Numérique de Liège” invited me to talk about my blog at their first event of 2016.
The theme of this technology event was: “ Vivre de son blog: mythe ou réalité ”, that is: can we make a living from blogging? Is it a myth or a reality?
I shared with the audience my experience as a blogger as well as a few blogging tips. Also I highlighted the importance of finding a niche and creating content that stands out. And in relation with the possibility of making a living from blogging, I gave my honest opinion: Blogs do not make money, businesses do! So yes, it is possible to make a living from blogging but you need to transform your blog into a business!
In my case, my business plan is to use my food blog to offer my Nutrition & Health Coaching services as soon as I get my diploma at the end of this academic year.
It was a very interesting event where I had the opportunity to meet 3 brilliant bloggers: Sophie Ismaïl from “Alerte à Liège”, Elodie Wilmès from “Love Tralala” and Kathleen Wuyard from “Boulettes à la Liégeoise”.
They also shared with the audience their own blogging experience and their approach on how to make a living from blogging.
And back to my home in Dublin I am happy to share with you my last healthy and tasty Mediterranean recipe, a delicious and creamy lentils soup with pasta. This is a variation of a traditional Lebanese dish called “rishta”. It is a vegan recipe, a good source of plant based protein, fibre and vitamins, very easy to prepare and ready in little more than 30 minutes.
If you try this nutritious, vegan lentil soup please let me know, leave a comment and rate it. I would love to know what you come up with. Enjoy!
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 ½ Litre (3 pints or 6 cups) Vegetable stock
- 300g (1 ½ cup) Brown lentils
- 50g (1/2 cup) Small shaped pasta
- Sea salt
- Have the lentils well washed (in cold water) and the onion prepared as indicated in the ingredients description.
- Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over moderate heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and sauté for 3 minutes until lightly golden. Add then the lentils and cover with the vegetable stock. Cook for 25 minutes stirring from time to time.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and with the help of a hand mixer (ideally a powerful one of at least 450 watt) mix it all well until perfectly combined.
- Add the small shaped pasta to the lentils soup and salt to taste, and heat for 4 minutes or the time indicated in the pasta package. Remove from the heat and serve hot.
