Chocolate & Ginger

I’ve been suffering a bit of a “cooking block” lately. Feeling lazy and uninspired in the kitchen and wanting to dine out more than usual.

One sure way I put a spark back into my creativity is to hit up the specialty/ethnic grocery stores or the Farmers Market for a new item I’ve never cooked before.

Today’s key ingredient: Green tea soba noodles. Powdered green tea or matcha is added to give the noodles a subtle green colour. To prepare them, I cooked the noodles in a pot of boiling water for 6 minutes, drained in a colander and rinsed under cold water twice. Set aside.

Next I started on my asian pesto.. I toasted my pine nuts, sunflower seeds and black sesame seeds in a pan till fragrant and the pine nuts started to brown.

I then poured the mixture into a mortar and pestle and crushed them together..

The warm nutty smell emanating from the bowl  made the process all the more enjoyable..

I also added a couple of tablespoons of this rice seasoning for added flavour. Made from a mixture of seaweed, horseradish, shaved bonito, mustard and soy sauce.

Next I added brown sugar, tamari, rice vinegar, sesame oil and red chili pepper flakes. Stir together till it forms a thick paste.

Next I chopped up my veggies, a platter of beautifully vibrant colours. All purchased from my recent trip to the new Calgary Farmers Market.

It included fresh crisp green beans, scallions and juicy orange and green grape tomatoes..

Sweet and crunchy asparagus spears and broccolini (which I’ve been obsessed with lately). Like broccoli’s tastier cousin.

I also soaked a heaping handful of dried shitake mushrooms in a bowl of hot water till they were tender and cut them into thin slices..

I stirfried the veggies with half the pesto sauce till they were tender (I added one chopped up chinese sausage at the last minute for some added flavour). Then I used the rest of the sauce to toss with the cold noodles in another bowl.

Twirl a large forkful of the soba noodles onto a plate and top with a few spoonfuls of the gorgeous vegetable stirfry.

The flavours were incredible! The asian pesto had so many different dimensions of flavour which enhanced the sweetness of the fresh vegetables. The noodles had just the right amount of chew and perfect for slurping with chopsticks.

 I enjoyed these the next day for lunch, chilled atop a bed of baby arugula..the flavours are even better the day after.

The perfect spring inspired dish to add to your repertoire. I will definitely be making this one again soon.

Green tea soba noodles w/ black sesame pesto and spring vegetables

• 1 package green tea soba noodles (you can use regular)
• 1 tbsp pine nuts
• 1 tbsp sunflower seeds
• 2 tbsp rice seasoning (found in korean grocery store)
• 1 1/2 tbsp each: brown sugar, rice vinegar, tamari (or soy sauce), roasted sesame oil
• 1 tsp red chili flakes
• vegetables of your choice

Optional

• 1/4 cup of dried shitake mushrooms (rehydrated)
• 1 chinese sausage