sesame – Well Dined

25
Feb
2016

Try The World – Japan; Zaru Soba

It’s time for another Try The World review (see my first here)! In my Japan box, I had: Otafuku Foods okonomiyaki kit; Aoi Tea blueberry match tea; House Foods ginger paste; Takaokaya seaweed snack; Akagi soba noodles; Kasugai gummy candies; and Morinaga milk caramels. I thought that those butter coconut cookies came in the box, but I actually must have picked them up at the Asian grocery store. So, ignore those (but really don’t, cuz they are super awesome and yummy).

The caramels are are firm and not super sweet, I like them a lot. I haven’t tried the tea, gummies, or okonomiyaki kit yet; but I used the rest to make Zaru Soba.

Zaru Soba is a cold soba dish usually made in the summer (whatever, don’t judge me). The noodles are cooked, then rinsed, chilled, and drained. Normally, you would serve them on a woven bamboo mat that lets the extra water drain out; but I don’t have those! So I dried them on paper towels.

The noodles are topped with seaweed and sesame seeds just before serving, and dipped in a sauce made of dashi, soy, mirin, sake, sugar, and ginger paste. Wasabi and scallions are served on the side and mixed into the sauce to taste. (more…)

14
Apr
2014

Miso Butter Four Ways

categories: Recipes

This innocent looking container holds a magic ingredient that will take your food to the next level. What is it? Miso butter. Two ingredients – miso and butter – combine to make a perfect substance. So simple, but so good. You could just slap this on some toast and call it a day. But if you want to get a little more creative, I have a bunch of ideas for you.

First up – scallops seared in miso butter. That’s it, it’s that easy. I served these with my other miso obsession – miso creamed kale.

Next – broiled salmon topped with miso butter, served with miso butter glazed baby carrots and coconut-miso barley.

Moving away from seafood for a bit, I made this coconut chicken recipe and replaced the regular butter with miso butter. It made it so much better than the original, which I was already a fan of. I also used cherry preserves in the sauce because that’s what I had, but apricot or peach would work better. I made a side salad with romaine, sliced radishes, blanched green beans, and a carrot-ginger dressing to go with it.

Lastly, we have a stir-fry made with miso butter. Fast, easy, and delicious. The salmon was broiled with a store-bought red miso and yuzu glaze. I’d say it wasn’t any better than the salmon topped with the miso butter.

Best of all? All these meals are healthy and low-carb. Most of them are grain-free! What would you do with your miso butter? (more…)

07
Apr
2014

Lentil and Chickpea Salad with Feta and Tahini

categories: Recipes

I’ve been pretty lazy about blogging this past week, so I’m bringing you another vegetarian lunch with Melissa back to back with the last one. I know that you don’t mind, though, because our lunches are AWESOME. This one, in my opinion, is one of the best we have done recently. Lentils, chickpeas, raw onion, and feta with tahini, sesame, and herbs. So good, so satisfying, creamy and crunchy, nutty and sharp, it’s everything. And so, so healthy. Let’s also take a second to appreciate how gorgeous Melissa’s platter is. She has the best dishware!

The only thing that takes time in this recipe is cooking the lentils, but they are pretty hands off and you can do them ahead of time and keep them in the fridge til you need them. This recipe has you cook them with sage and garlic to infuse the lentils with flavor – I love it.

While the lentils are cooking, toss red onion with olive oil, lemon juice, feta, and herbs. I was a little unsure about this at first – so much raw red onion? But it became my favorite part of the dish. The lemon juice kind of cures the onions as they sit and mellows them out. They become sharp, crunchy bits of awesomeness in the salad. Also, feta – I love feta. I especially love Mt Vikos Traditional Sheep and Goat feta. I swear they are not sponsoring me, but they really should (hint, hint) because I use their feta all the time. (more…)

13
Feb
2013

Spiced Carrot Soup with Crispy Chickpeas and Tahini

categories: Recipes

I don’t know about you, but I am not a huge fan of raw carrots. Warm spiced carrot soup with tahini on a cold day, though? Yeah, I’m a big fan of that.

This is another dish brought to you by my vegetarian lunches with Melissa at Smells Like Brownies. She pulled together a couple of recipes to come up with this one.

Carrots, onion, garlic, coriander, and cumin all go into the pot with vegetable stock. (more…)

Tag: sesame