Rainbow Soba Noodles

I ended my evening run at Whole Foods last night and was intending to just pick up a salad from the salad bar for dinner. Once there, however, I realized I had no plans for lunches this week and given my client's penchant for 11am - 1pm meetings it is difficult to grab something out. I decided to come up with a simple, minimal prep recipe on the spot that would pack well for the office. I had a package of soba noodles at home and decided to just pick up some pre-cut veggies to make an easy noodle stir fry. This dish came together in under 20 minutes and is delicious as a cold (and colorful!) salad for lunch.


Ingredients:

2 tbps safflower oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 package of soba noodles
1 cup of diced peppers
1 cup of defrosted shelled edamame
1/2 head of mixed cabbage leaves, shredded


2 tablespoons of peanut butter
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
1/4 cup of vegetable broth
1 tablespoon of honey
2 tsp of sriracha

Directions:

Cook soba noodles according to package directions, about 6 minutes. Drain and run under cold water.

Heat oil in wok. Add garlic and cook until fragrant (around 30 seconds). Add cabbage and stir fry until slightly wilted, around 2 minutes. Add peppers and edamame and cook until heated through. Add cooked noodles.

Meanwhile heat peanut butter, soy sauce, vegetable broth, honey, sriracha and cook until incorporated.

Add sauce to vegetables and noodles and serve.

Pasta with Roasted Vegetables & Basil

This bright and colorful pasta loaded with fresh vegetables makes for a quick, satisfying dinner. Leftovers became a pasta salad for lunches during the work week.

(makes around 4 large servings)

Ingredients:
1 small eggplant
1 zucchini
1 red pepper
2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 tsp salt
8 oz whole wheat pasta
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp pepperinco (or hot pepper) oil (or more, depending on spice preference)
1 handful of basil, roughly chopped.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425'.

Line a baking sheet with tinfoil. Peel and chop all vegetables into small, 1 inch cubes. Toss vegetables with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 tsp of salt. Roast for 20 minutes, or until vegetables are cooked through.

Meanwhile, heat remaining two tablespoons of olive oil with the hot pepper oil in a large frying pan. Add the garlic cloves and simmer in the oil until cloves have turned brown. Remove garlic cloves. Prepare pasta according to directions.

Add pasta to the oil mixture as well as the roasted vegetables. Toss to incorporate thoroughly and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Add the chopped basil and serve.