Cold Soba Noodle Salad

Is anyone home?

It’s clear that we M’s are missing in action.  After such a long hiatus you’d think we’d have a bit of magic up our sleeves.  Well, we do, but it comes in the form of this update:

M1 is enjoying her new venture into the world of wine, M3, hers within the homegrown cotton industry.  (okay, maybe M3 is into a bit of wishful thinking.  Her cotton hauls, to-date, have yielded a simple sandwich bag of fluff.  Let’s go easy on her.  She dreams, and schemes, wildly….Oh, and have I caused you concern for M1?  Shame upon me!  That girl is working within the wine industry.  Yes, it does involve a bit of sampling, but things are okay. This is her employment, and let’s face it, if you can get a job like that, well, why wouldn’t you? 😉 )

We’ll be sporadic in our postings….ugh, that’s kind of clear, isn’t it? Our apologies.  We never meant to leave you up in the air, but as life happens, so do adjustments.  Please check in from time-to-time.  You never know what we might offer you.  After all, we are rogue, in more ways than one.

Personally, I might show you my cotton.  We’ll leave the beverage part to M1.

😉

Come, let’s meet, Rosa…..

This bit of wonderful is the inspiration of Rosa Mayland.  I’ve read Rosa’s blog for years now,  yet I find myself asking,

Why has it taken me such a long time to delve into her wonderful and wondrous array of culinary delights?

Perhaps I’ve simply been so wrapped up in the joy of her photography, or the shared interest of all things feline, that I held myself back from enjoying the obvious.

(Soba noodles are made with buckwheat!  I was surprised to discover this specialty, having always thought that buckwheat could only be found in a pancake item.  Silly me! These are wonderful.)

Today, I ventured beyond the horizon, dipping my senses into the unexpected.  The ninja in me caught a bit of action, slicing, dicing, boiling noodles, as I plotted.  Thank you, Rosa! My taste buds were challenged, my senses, renewed.  This is a dish that will be enjoyed often, especially while fresh produce abounds and there’s an ample supply of my new favorite noodle.

The Cold Soba Noodle Salad

Recipe by Rosa Mayland, August 2011

Ingredients for the vinaigrette

• 4 tablespoons sweet Japanese soy sauce (Kikkoman is her suggestion)
• 3 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons wasabi paste
• 3 teaspoons (1 T.) fresh ginger
• 2 1/2 tablespoons sesame seeds (black or white, roasted is her suggestion)

Ingredients for the topping

• 2 medium carrots, cut into thin matchsticks
• 1/3 cucumber, cut into thin matchsticks

Method for the Soba Noodles

• Bring a large pot of unsalted water to the boil
• Add the noodles, sprinkling them strand by strand into the water
• Gently stir to immerse them completely
• Simmer over low heat for about 4 minutes, or following the package directions
• Drain and rinse with cold water
• Place in a bowl and set aside

Method for the vinaigrette

• mix all the ingredients together
• Pour over the salad & mix together thoroughly before adding the sesame seeds and tossing again
• Refrigerate for about 30 minutes, so that the flavors develop

Method for the garnishes

• add the carrot & the cucumber, mix
• serve…..

I went rogue when it came to a few additions.  There was a small handful of orange, itsy-bitsy cherry tomatoes and a mild Hatch green chili pepper that found themselves involved in my bit of mischief.  Oh, and then I had scored a bit of wasabi-flavored sesame seeds from my favorite market. 

Visit Rosa’s site to see for yourself what other amazing items abound.  This lovely lady is amazing in more ways than her food and photography pursuits, she’s a rather gifted soul that has a very special sense of being.

Allow your soul to be nourished.  

Hummus

I think that mom and I are both boycotting our ovens this month due to summer time temps.  Actually, mom is boycotting the oven because of the heat and I’m boycotting cooking because I have a new job that requires me to be on my feet most of the day, thus resulting in me being in a constant state of exhaustion.

I suggested hummus as the recipe of the week because it’s easy and always yummy. I don’t really follow a recipe for hummus, but mine always turns out super garlicy.  I used both fresh and roasted garlic.  And for this batch I used one can of garbanzo beans and one can of cannellini.   I think I’ll stick with this for a while because the cannellini added some extra creaminess to the hummus.

I topped off the hummus with sun dried tomatoes and fresh basil from my garden.  I probably should have mixed some basil directly into the hummus, but I made a batch of pesto the other day and the plants haven’t replenished themselves yet so my basil supply was limited.

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Almost vegan…..’cept for the sour cream addition, but what the heck, this is so tasty that you’ll probably quickly forgive me, or, perhaps you’ll simply opt for a non-dairy, vegan option when it comes to that particular item. (Yeah. That’s it!)  😉

M1, shouted the heads-up for this weeks recipe idea:

There is no way to fail, in this household, when it comes to serving up anything that involves that trusty little gem, the garbanzo bean. They are simply, glorious!

Garlic Hummus with Tahini

• 3 1/2 cups of garbanzo beans + about one cup of broth
• 2/3 cup tahini (sesame paste)
• 8 large gloves of garlic, minced
• 2 lemons, freshly squeezed
• 1 large lime, freshly squeezed
• 2 teaspoons of ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 3/8 cup sour cream
• 2 Tablespoons virgin olive oil

Prepare dried garbanzo beans by soaking overnight.  Drain and cook as you would any bean, seasoning to your own liking.  Once tender, remove from heat and allow to cool before proceeding.   Be sure to keep a bit of the broth, about one cup.

In a large food processor, or blender, process cooked garbanzo’s into a paste, using a bit of the reserved liquid.  Consistency should be more paste like, than fluid.

Once the beans have been processed, add other ingredients and continue to blend, fully.  (I processed mine until they had that ‘mashed potato’ look about them, being sure to  incorporate and purée all my ingredients.)

This recipe rewards you with a rather large amount of dip.  I’ve taken to freezing half of mine for use at a later date.  I’m not sure how well it will survive the deep-freeze, but with the Texas heat burning a hole through my britches, I probably won’t give a darn. Anything that’s frosty will surely be welcomed.  Now all I have to do is think before I eat…..you know, like, remember to thaw it a day ahead in the topside of Miss G.E.

P.S.  This is known to keep vampires away.  And dragons are known to eat this before flame throwing action.

😉

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Radish, Cucumber & Apple Salad

What better way to stay refreshed than with a crunchy bit of cool.  And that’s exactly what this salad was.  I’d hoped for a bit of leftovers, but those two hungry bears arriving for dinner had feasted most feverishly, and all that I have to remember this bit of history is the veggie & fruit photo-op’s.

Wait here, while I stir things up…

(Stone ground mustard, olive oil, rice vinegar, a bit of lemon with a bit of salt and pepper.)

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Crunch, crunch, crunch…crunch…I lost the photo of the apples, or more precisely, I ditched it. Twas not a pretty post-op.  Mixed up, it wins, but naked, well, it was just ugly.  😉

(The original recipe didn’t call for any jalapeno’s, but I’m a rebel, living for a thrill ride down the back alley of veggie-ness, messing things up with a bit-o-smoke.)  😉

Some folks just have big-time Mojo.  They know how to toss the unexpected into the mix, knowing full well that the result will exceed all expectations.  Dara, the sweet soul behind, Generation Y Foodie, ups the ante with more than a few tasty ideas.  I’m so happy I stumbled upon her food blog. I’ll be perusing her offerings for future feasts.

Dara’s recipe can be viewed here.

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I never would have thought to put apple, cucumber and radishes in a bowl together, but now I’m sad I waited so long to do so.  I wish I’d thought to put jalapenos in as well!

This salad was so cool, refreshing, and delicious.  I will definitely make this again in the near future.

I’m glad I invested in the new jar of stone ground mustard.  I stood in front of the mustard aisle for a few seconds trying to decide it whatever mustard I already had in my fridge would suffice, but decided to splurge and purchase what the recipe called for.  Definitely worth it!

Guac attack!

Chipping my dip…

A dish that doesn’t require exact measuring; just my kind of thing on a busy summers day.

The jalapeno’s weren’t as zippy as I would have liked, but they still held their own amidst the cilantro.

I found another use for my pastry cutter:

I’d thought about making a guacamole ice cream recipe, initially, but in the end I rallied around the old standby of a salad/dipper.

….

If I could only eat one thing for the rest of my life it would definitely be guacamole.

The spicier, the better.

(purple onion and a couple of cloves of garlic didn’t make their way into the picture, but they did end up in my bowl of guac)

The final product turned out to be more yellow than green, but I promise that it tasted delicious!

So yummy!

I smiled when mom commented on using her pastry cutter to mash up her ingredients.  When I was younger I thought the pastry cutter was specifically for guacamole.  I would use one if I had one, but I had to make do with a potato masher 🙂

 

Caprese is easy…

And guess who opted for ‘easy’?

This week’s choice didn’t need a lot of planning on this side of the fence.  The garden is offering a bounty of basil and those lack-luster tomato plants have forgiven me for one more week.

Here’s a peek-see at the ingredients necessary to put this plan in motion:

We are green with envy around this shack.  If one didn’t know any better they could claim that I simply posted a redux of last week’s fare, siphoned off and served up in a different vessel.

Fresh Basil Vinaigrette

But I promise, I didn’t fudge.

This weeks inspiration comes after I set my eyes on several other foodie bloggers posting about Caprese, on a stick.  Some folks opted for skewers, other’s used the stand-by, and ever ready, toothpick.  It doesn’t matter how you serve this refreshing bit of salad.  Just serve it!  You will enjoy the respite.

I guarantee.

The fabulous, Jaden Hair (www.thesteamykitchen.com), is responsible for this fantastic recipe.  I adapted it with the bounty of my garden; it’s a glorious find and one that I’ll be enjoying for as long as there is fresh basil, cherry tomatoes and fresh mozzarella.

http://steamykitchen.com/5086-caprese-salad-with-basil-vinaigrette.html

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This was perfect for a warm weekend meal.  It will be even better later in the summer when I can (hopefully) use tomatoes from my garden.

I want to use this basil vinaigrette on everything!  For any non vegans, I think it would be wonderful on some grilled chicken.

I will definitely be making this all summer long.  Perhaps I’ll even cheat a little next time and use fresh mozzarella instead of my non dairy mozzarella cheese.