Ginger Sesame Noodle Salad

Okay. I've made this several times now, and let me say this:

People LOVE this salad. At barbecues, at picnics, at home, at the office. You will be very popular if you show up with a ton of it for a party. This is an awesome salad that lasts for several days, travels well, and makes an excellent chilled lunch. The veggies stay crunchy and the flavor improves the more it sits. I've seen similar recipes for "Asian"-inspired noodle salads, but for mine, I prefer to leave out things like cucumbers or bean sprouts, and add things I like such as extra firm tofu (it does a great job of soaking up all the other flavors)!

To make this recipe vegan, simply replace the spaghetti with a vegan (no egg) version, leave out the oyster sauce, and increase the other liquids to make up the difference. If you can find a vegan oyster sauce substitute, even better. These days, it's all about that umami flavor! When it comes to this salad, it's easy to change it up to suit your personal tastes. You do you, boo.


Ingredients:

Salad:

10 ounces whole wheat spaghetti
1 package extra firm tofu, diced into bite-sized pieces
1 cup grated or julienned carrots (pre-shredded from the store is helpful)
4-5 scallions/green onions, finely sliced
½ cup julienned sweet red or orange bell peppers
half bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 head napa cabbage, sliced with thick core removed
1/2 head purple cabbage, sliced with thick core removed
1/2 bunch kale, leaves torn off the stalks and shredded
2 to 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
3 tbsp sesame seeds

Dressing:

1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup oyster sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1/3 cup brown sugar
2-3 tbsp grated fresh ginger


Boil a large pot of water, add a small handful of kosher salt. Boil spaghetti 8 minutes and drain. You can use whole wheat, vegan, gluten free or whatever kind of spaghetti you like in order to fit your needs and they should all work fine.

Slice, julienne and chop all salad ingredients. Place sliced red cabbage, napa cabbage, kale, carrots, green onions, sweet peppers, cilantro, garlic, peanuts, tofu and sesame seeds into the largest bowl you can find.

Make the dressing. Whisk together olive oil, soy sauce, oyster sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, sesame oil, and fresh grated ginger into a medium-sized bowl. Grab handfuls of pasta and drench into the dressing, then place into the large bowl of veggies. This step allows all of the noodles to separate more easily for tossing the whole salad together. Continue this step until all of the pasta is wet, separated and thrown into the mixing bowl. Pour the rest of the dressing into the mix and use your hands to toss the salad thoroughly.

Store in tupperware containers and chill at least 2-3 hours. Salad can last for 3-4 days and will taste better the longer it sits. Makes a lot!

The Most PERFECT Thin & Chewy Gingerbread Cookies!

I am really picky about my gingerbread cookies, and after a bit of trial and error, I can confidently say that these are the BEST gingerbread cookies I've ever made. They're not thick, dry, or bready, nor are they gingersnaps with crunch. These are thin, delightfully moist and chewy, and just the teeniest bit crisp around the edges. You can choose to either roll these in sugar before baking them, or glaze and decorate them after they've cooled. This dough also works for gingerbread men (or other cookie cutter shapes), if you feel like taking the time to roll it out with a rolling pin. This time I decided I was fine with regular circle shapes.

I opted to use a good amount of ginger in this to give it an extra punch. Dry ground ginger is fine, but you can also do a combination of dry ground, fresh ground, or crystalized ginger pieces. The best part about these bad boys is that the molasses in them lets them stay incredibly moist for days! These cookies are great for when the temperature outside starts dropping, and as an added bonus, they make your house smell AMAZING! I am so excited to add this recipe to my collection. I hope you give them a shot. Enjoy!



Ingredients:

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp ground ginger
OR ½ tbsp ground ginger and 1 tbsp chopped crystalized ginger
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp salt
¾ cup butter (1 ½ sticks), softened/room-temperature
¾ cup white sugar
¼ cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1 ½ tbsp milk
¼ cup molasses

Icing (optional but recommended!):

1 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp corn syrup
2 tbsp water
crystal sprinkles (optional)


1. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and salt.

2. In another large bowl, mix softened butter into sugar until uniformly blended together. Add the egg and mix thoroughly, then mix in the milk and molasses.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Gradually stir the dry mixture into the wet mixture until fully combined.

4. Shape heaping teaspoons of the dough into balls the size of a walnut or ping pong ball. If you are skipping icing and sprinkles later, you can use this time to roll each ball in sugar first (either regular white sugar or chunkier, raw turbinado sugar will do). Space dough balls 2 inches apart on a lightly greased cookie sheet, and use the heel of your palm to flatten the ball somewhat. They will flatten out a little more as they bake, but will not be flat enough if you don't give it a little pre-squish with your palm first. Alternatively, the dough can be chilled, rolled out flat with a rolling pin, and then cut into fun shapes.

5. Bake at 350 F for 9-10 minutes, then remove from oven and allow to cool completely.

6. Optional: Make the icing.

Mix together water and corn syrup, then add powdered sugar and mix thoroughly until a uniform icing has formed with no lumps. Scoop the icing into one corner of a plastic sandwich bag and cut the smallest bit of the corner with scissors, making sure to create a very small opening to better control the icing. Decorate the cooled cookies with the icing any way you like, and optionally, add sprinkles while the icing is still wet. The icing should dry within a few hours to be hard and shiny.

Makes approximately 28 insanely delicious cookies!