It’s been more than a while since I’ve written in this space. So much time has passed that I’ve had something like nerves about putting pen to paper, as it were.
But here I am. And hopefully, there some of you are.
I’ve been incredibly excited about food and cooking over the past couple of months and I began brimming with excitement and inspiration about a return to blogging in this space again.
As you may well have noticed, Eating for England also has a rather wonderful fresh new look. I’m incredibly lucky to have had my good friend Holly working on this redesign. Holly and I have been friends for four years now and she knows me well enough to understand my style and aesthetic perfectly. Didn’t she do a beautiful job?! A new layout, logo, and lots of other design features – it’s all new and I feel doubly inspired to share in this space again after the wonderful work she’s done. Check out her blog to see how multitalented this lady is; I’m pretty amazed by all she does.
So, here we are and here is a new recipe for you.
I recently discovered a lovely blog called Farmhouse Delivery, authored by the farm-to-table company of the same name based in Austin, TX. The blog is full of inspiration for making the most of a CSA box overflowing with a wealth of vegetables and features stunning step-by-step photos of most dishes too.
Farmhouse Delivery is where I first stumbled upon the idea for a buckwheat soba noodle salad and it seemed that from then on I kept seeing similar inspiration all over.
The great thing about a dish like this is that you can really easily adapt it to suit whatever you have in your fridge. Snap peas were abundant when I made it and I happened to have some asparagus and green onions but you could easily go with green beans, if you have those around or maybe lima beans or edamame. Throw some cucumber in if you like – add lots of crunch.
The two things I love most about this dish are the gingery-sesame dressing with a real zing from the lime juice, and the crunch factor. Don’t miss out on that by eschewing peanuts and some crunchy vegetable, as both make it such a pleasure to eat. The added bonus to this dish is that it’s ready in the time it takes you to boil some noodles so weeknight staple, here you come.
Buckwheat Soba Noodles with Sesame-Lime Dressing
Ingredients
For the noodles
- 8 ounce package buckwheat soba noodles
- 6 ounces asparagus, chopped into 1 inch pieces, tough ends discarded
- 4 ounces raw snap peas, sliced into halves
- 1-2 green onions, thinly sliced
- small handful cilantro leaves
- small handful roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
- sesame seeds, to garnish
For the dressing
- Freshly squeezed lime juice from 2-3 limes (you want about 5-6 tablespoons)
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1 small clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp tamari sauce
- 3 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- Salt
Directions
- Cook the noodles to al dente per package instructions. Drain, rinse in cool water, and set aside.
- Meanwhile, bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Prepare an ice-water bath. Place asparagus in boiling water and cook until tender, about 3 minutes. Drain and immediately transfer asparagus to ice-water bath until cool; drain and set aside.
- Make dressing: Place lime juice, ginger, garlic, sugar, and tamari in a large bowl. Whisk in sesame oil until well blended. Taste and season with salt.
- Add noodles and other salad ingredients to the dressing, toss well, garnish with cilantro, peanuts, and sesame seeds, and serve. Serves four.
