A while back, my friend Larry, gave me a wonderful, two hour, astrological chart and reading. I've always wondered about some of the background influences in my life, because Cancer is so up front. Dwayne and I are both Cancers and we are both a foodie, homey, nurture-fest. I learned a lot about myself that day and became more patient with some of my less favorite impulses. Larry is very knowledgeable and compassionate - A good friend to have on the A-Team.
Because we both have many talents, we made it a trade and he didn't want to cash in his trade right away. He said he'd think of something, and he did. He celebrated his 60th birthday yesterday and will have a big party today. He called in my trade chip for party foods and I'm delighted! There will be a barbecue and lots of good fun. We are expected to have a high temp of 101 today, so some cold foods are in order!
Last night I made four salads - macaroni, potato, three bean and this soba salad. This morning, I have braved the oven and have a sour-cream raisin pie and fresh peach pie in the oven. Larry grew up in Pennsylvania and requested an old fashioned raisin pie, which is sometimes known as Funeral Pie in Mennonite or Amish communities. Here is the recipe I used. I haven't tried it yet, but all the reviews are happy ones.
Larry, his wife Soleil and I all belong to a drum circle that meets twice a month. It is a lovely meeting of the minds and we always start with a pot luck. The first time I made this salad, it was, as usual, the result of my poking around the house to see what I could put together for one of our pot lucks. As luck would have it, it came out splendidly swell and Larry and Soleil added it to their list of requests for his birthday party. Their request offered me the opportunity to pay attention to what I was doing and write it down for sharing.
Soba Salad
2 bundles of soba noodles
1 cup celery, sliced thin on a diagonal
1 cup carrot, shredded long on a mandoline or spiralized
1/2 of a large red bell pepper, sliced thin
2 green onions, sliced thin
1 cup cucumber, sliced thin on a diagonal then cut into strips
1 tbsp. sesame seeds
1/2 cups toasted cashews
cilantro to garnish
1/2 to 3/4 cup Sesame Dressing (recipe below)
Place a large pot of water on the stove to heat. Meanwhile, slice all the veggies and make the dressing. When the water boils, add the soba, stir and cook for 3 minutes. Do not over cook. Drain and rinse the soba and add to the veggies. Add the dressing and sesame seeds and toss. Just before serving, toss in the cashews and cilantro to taste.
p.s. I forgot to add the sesame seeds before I took the pictures. They were all added before the party!
Sesame Dressing
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup canola oil
3 tbsp. sugar
3 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
2 tbsp. seasoned rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Place all ingredients in a tight-sealing jar and shake. This makes enough for this salad, plus leftovers for another use.
Yum yum YUMMMMMMM!!
ReplyDeleteThank you!