These kinds of meals define my daily repertoire: fast, easy, healthy meals. Almost all of my dinners are fast, because I don’t make anything that takes more than 30-40 minutes, maximum. And, most of them are healthy. And all are easy… because we eat a lot of soups (dump and stir) and stir fries (dump and stir… fry).

But these Edamame Teriyaki Noodles are special. They take (honestly!) 15-20 minutes to prepare. In terms of technique, they are extremely easy to pull together — if you can boil water, you can make this dish. And in terms of health, this is a meal that I’d call “accidentally vegan” — I didn’t set out to make a vegan dish, and you wouldn’t notice right away that this meal doesn’t include any animal products. But it sure doesn’t! It’s based on plants, whole grains, and the lovely roasted flavor of edamame.

This is another dish adapted from Mark Bittman’s The Food Matters Cookbook — can you tell that it’s a favorite? I’ve modified his method and substituted my new favorite vegetable — bok choy! — for his suggestion, which was asparagus. I don’t do asparagus in my stir fries — tried that, gagged on the bitter stringiness, and never went there again. Asparagus was made to be roasted or steamed. Not stir fried. Besides, asparagus is out of season, and for $1/lb., I can get lovely, leafy bok choy. What’s not to like?

By the way… I promise that this dish is satisfying and hearty, even though it is “accidentally vegan.” Edamame and soba are both extremely filling, and you won’t make it through more than one bowl of this in a sitting. However, I do have to let you know that after I made this for the first time, I did catch Sean hunched over the refrigerator… horking down salami, straight out of the package.

There are no words.

Edamame Teriyaki Noodles with Bok Choy

Serves 3-4

Adapted from The Food Matters Cookbook

• 1 – 1 1/2 lb. bok choy, chopped, stems separated from leaves
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup scallions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon ginger, minced
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 8 oz soba noodles (whole wheat pasta will work too)
• 2 cups shelled edamame, fresh or frozen
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup mirin, or 2 tablespoons honey mixed with 2 tablespoons water

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. If you’re using frozen edamame, add it to the pot when the water boils. After two minutes, add the soba noodles. Let the noodle cook until soft but not mushy, around another 3 minutes (so that the frozen edamame gets 5 minutes in the water, and the noodles get 3). Reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid, then drain the noodles and edamame.

Meanwhile, put a large skillet over high heat, and add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the bok choy stems and stir fry for one minute. Add ginger and garlic, stir until aromatic, then add bok choy leaves and scallions. Stir fry until the veggies are softened — you can leave them as crispy as you like, it’s a matter of taste.

When you the vegetables are tastefully soft, add the noodles, edamame, soy sauce, mirin, and enough of the reserved cooking water to keep the pan moist (about a 1/2 cup). Gently break up the noodles and work them into the bok choy, combining well, moistening the pan as necessary with the reserved water. Taste and adjust — you may prefer to add more mirin or soy sauce.

Divide into individual bowls and serve hot, spooning any leftover broth over your noodles.

Stir fry is one of my favorite things to make for dinner – if you can’t tell that already by the copious amount of stir fry recipes already on this site! I love that you can add whatever you want – including a ton of vegetables – and it will pretty much end up OK, once you have a few basics down. It’s fast, it’s versatile – and even if you are using a recipe, it rarely ends up tasting the same way!

To be honest, though, I am almost cringing at the idea of using the words “stir fry” to describe this dish. As much as I love to stir fry my way to dinner, the actual phrase “stir fry” conjures up a lot of memorable tastes for me… and they’re not always good tastes. If you’ve been to college – or a hospital – recently, you may know what I’m talking about. For whatever reason, mass food production companies have gotten a hold of the stir fry idea and latched onto it as something easily reproduced and served to 1,000 people a day.

They are SO wrong. If you’ve ever eaten stir fry out of a lunch line or a hospital tray, you know that the vegetables are mushy, the meat is chewy, and the whole thing is covered in a horrific, generic sauce that masks its mangy taste with too much added sugar.

This is not that stir fry.

This Miso Chicken Stir Fry is flavorful, with a sweetness that comes naturally from the carrots – which, by the way, keep their natural crunch. The tangy daikon radish blends into the salty, savory miso to create a sauce with complexity and depth. The mushrooms add a chewy texture, and the chicken, because it gets plenty of moisture from the vegetables, is tender and nicely steamed.

And, because I’m married to a Korean man but secretly (erm, not very secretly anymore) hate rice, the soba noodles tie all the ingredients together with their soft texture and subtle, nutty flavor.

Like any good stir fry, it comes together in under 30 minutes and makes fantastic take-to-work leftovers. Oh, and it uses up that pesky miso paste and the soba noodles you have sitting in your pantry from when you made my Miso Soup with Tofu, Bok Choy, and Soba.

You’re welcome.

Miso Chicken Stir Fry

Adapted from The Food Matters Cookbook

Serves 4

• 8 oz soba noodles
• 2 cups dried shitakes (or other dried mushroom)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs, cut into chunks
• Black pepper
• 2 tablespoons minced ginger
• 8 oz. carrots, julienned
• 12 oz. daikon radish, shredded (use the largest holes on a box grater, it’ll take 60 seconds)
• ½ cup miso
• ½ cup chopped scallions
• 1-2 teaspoons rice vinegar (to taste)
• 1-2 teaspoons sesame oil (to taste)

Rehydrate the mushrooms by pouring boiling water over them and letting them sit for 5-10 minutes while you prepare the rest of the meal.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the noodles in the boiling water until they’re tender but not mushy, about 3 minutes. Drain, reserving some of the cooking liquid.

Put the oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken. Pepper it lightly, then add the ginger. Let sit for one minute. Then stir fry until it’s no longer pink, 3-5 minutes.

Add carrots and stir fry for another couple minutes, then add shredded daikon radish and stir to combine well. Let the mixture cook for another 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, letting the moisture from the daikon cook out. Drain and squeeze the moisture out of the mushrooms, then add them and stir to combine.

Turn the heat down to medium-low. Whisk the miso with about ½ cup of the reserved pasta water, then pour it over the carrot mixture. Toss in the noodles, and toss to combine. I find that tongs are the best for this job, since you want to combine the noodles with the carrots, chicken, and daikon without smashing or breaking the soba noodles. As needed, use the rest of the reserved pasta water to moisten the pan and noodles. Add the scallions, then stir in the rice vinegar and sesame oil to taste. Divide into bowls, and serve.

You know what I like about this Miso Soup with Tofu, Bok Choy and Soba? I like that I didn’t pay $15 for it at a restaurant. I like that it was warming, satisfying, and didn’t depend on meat for its bulk. I like that it was so easy that I’ve already made it twice. This week. (Yep, it was that good.)

And you know what else? I like that this Miso Soup with Tofu, Bok Choy and Soba is going to inspire you to go buy ingredients that you didn’t think you would ever own. Like miso, tofu, bok choy, and yes… soba noodles.

Ok, so I guess this is me addressing my non-Japanese readers. (Seriously – I have exactly 1.5 Japanese readers… that I know about.  There may be others.)

Anyway, to my non-Japanese readers (there should be about 73.5 of you, on average): this is important. You can make miso soup at home.

And.

If you make miso soup at home, you can add all kinds of delicious wholesomeness, such as… you guessed it… tofu, bok choy, and soba noodles.

Let me come right out and say that this was not my own idea. I took it from Mark Bittman’s fantastic Food Matters Cookbook. I loved the idea of adding nutrition and flavor in the form of gorgeous, green bok choy and nutty, buckwheat soba noodles. The tofu was my idea (although it’s obviously a traditional one). When I first made the soup without it, as Bittman recommends, it lacked the bulk needed to make this a whole meal. With all of the add-ins, this meal is bursting with flavor, contrasting textures, and soupy comfort.

To make it a little easier for you to try Miso Soup with Tofu, Bok Choy, and Soba, I have some tips:

• Buying miso: You’ll notice that it’s sometimes labeled with a color (red, white, etc.). Any color will do for this soup. The darker the miso, the more flavorful.
• Cooking with miso: Miso should be heated slowly (that’s why you don’t just dump it into the boiling soup here). If you heat it too quickly, you’ll cook the flavor out of it.
• Buying soba noodles: Soba noodles come dried, typically in small bundles of about 4 oz. each (see picture). I bought the Korean kind (Memil guksu, or 메밀국수), because while we were debating over brands, Sean spotted a Korean brand and the discussion was over. “When in doubt, support the Motherland.” If your motherland is Texas, or Stockholm, or, you know, Tokyo, you can buy whatever kind you feel does the best job representing. Or just buy the bag labeled “Soba”.
• Bok Choy: We use what is sometimes labeled “Baby Bok Choy” or “Shanghai Bok Choy,” which is slightly smaller, greener, and more tender that the large, white bok choy. Again, either one will do.
• Buying tofu: Soft tofu is for soups (buy this). Firm tofu is for frying (do not buy this… right now). Silken tofu is for… something else. Don’t buy this either. But please, do leave a comment if you know what it’s for…

In general, I suggest that you go to your local Asian market for these ingredient. Larger supermarkets will have these items, but you may pay a higher price point for them. For example, as much as I love me some Trader Joe’s, they wanted to charge me $10 for the amount of bok choy I needed in this recipe. My local Asian market charged me $1.16. Yep.

Don’t know where your local Asian market is? Google. Yelp. You can do this.

Don’t know what you’re going to do with those leftover miso, bok choy, and soba noodles? Stay tuned! A recipe is coming next week that will help you with that.

Miso Soup with Tofu, Bok Choy and Soba

Adapted from Mark Bittman’s Food Matters Cookbook

Serves 4-6

• 8 oz. soba noodles (any whole grain noodle would do)
• ½ cup any kind of miso
• 1 lb. bok choy (baby or regular), stems separated and roughly chopped, leaves rolled and cut into ribbons
• 1 package (16-18 oz) soft tofu, cubed
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds (preferably toasted)
• 1/3 cup scallions, finely chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it generously. Add the soba and cook until tender but not mushy, 3-4 minutes. Reserve 2 cups cooking liquid, then drain and rinse the noodles with cold water. Put 1 quart plus 3 cups of clean water and set it to boil again (no salt this time).

While the water boils, whisk the miso into the reserved cooking liquid until smooth.

When the water boils, add the bok choy stems to the pot and let cook for around a minute. Add the leafy ribbons and heat so that the soup continues to steadily bubble and the greens wilt, another 3-5 minutes. Add the tofu and let cook for another 3-5 minutes, or until the soup returns to a slow simmer and the tofu is heated.

Turn the heat down to low, add the miso mixture as well as the noodles, and heat just long enough to bring everything to an even, warm temperature, only a minute or two. Add the sesame seeds, scallions, and black pepper then immediately turn off the heat. Ladle into bowls and serve.

In my (mostly) Swedish family, Christmas is a meat-heavy affair. I suppose that is the American/European way – every special occasion is marked with a large chunk of meat. Thanksgiving has its turkey, Christmas has its ham, and so on.

In my family, however, Thanksgiving has its two turkeys, and Christmas has its ham… and its meatballs.

Why, yes, we do eat meat with a side of meat. Is that not normal?

In any case, after the holidays, when many people are thinking about cutting down on fat, sugar, etc., I began to think about cutting down on meat, and adding more vegetable-based meals into the mix. In fact, when I rattled off our weekly meal plan to Sean at the start of last week (stir-fried bean sprouts in orange sauce, homemade miso soup with bok choy, tofu scramble with greens…), he called it “veggie detox week” – and he was right.

Sean, fitting into my family's Thanksgiving tradition (that's turkey #2 of 2).

One of my go-to, lots-of-veggies meals is this vegetable bolognese, the brainchild of Caroline from A Cozy Kitchen. I love the way that this meal is so hearty, and seemingly rich, but in actuality is chock-full of delicious vegetables! The first time I made it, I had some leftover chicken sausage that I threw in the pot (you might see it in the pictures)… but it didn’t really add anything spectacular. The veggies are the star of this show!

I’ve made this vegetable bolognese a couple times, and adjusted the recipe each time – like all great comfort-food recipes, it’s very flexible. In my version, I’ve added much more tomato flavor, a little spice, and also added in my favorite secret sauce ingredient – vegetable stock (the same one that makes this soup so delicious!). This sauce has all the flavor and herbed goodness of a meat sauce, but meat is definitely optional.

Caroline recommends using a food processor to blend the garlic, onions, carrots, and bell pepper. I haven’t done it this way – I imagine that it gives the sauce a more smooth, even consistency and may blend the taste of the vegetables more. To be honest, I really can’t be bothered to pull out the processor, and I’ve been 100% happy with the texture I’ve been able to achieve just using my knife and cutting board.

One last thing – when you make this, or any other recipe using tomato paste, remember that you can freeze the rest of the tomato paste in a freezer safe ziplock bag. No more wasted half-full cans of tomato paste!

Vegetable Bolognese

Adapted from A Cozy Kitchen

Serves 4

• 12-16 oz. short pasta – I used penne
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 1-2 cups of peeled and diced carrots (about 3 small – medium)
• 1 small onion, peeled and diced
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• Red pepper flakes, to taste
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 8 oz assorted mushrooms, stemmed and chopped
(I used baby bellas)
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes
• 1 8 oz can of tomato sauce (the plain canned kind, not a jar of marinara…)
• ½  cup red wine
• 1 ½ cups vegetable broth
• ¼ cup Parmesan, shredded or grated

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta.

Place the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the diced vegetables, garlic, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper and cook until tender, about 6 minutes.

Add the tomato paste, stir the pot to combine, and let the tomato paste dissolve without disturbing the pan too much (it’s good if the tomato paste forms a kind of crust around the vegetables – this lets the tomato flavor develop). Add the mushrooms and continue cooking until the mushrooms are softened, about 5 minutes.

Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, vegetable broth, and red wine. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and let the mixture simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, about 20 minutes.

Toss the pasta with the sauce, sprinkle with parmesan and serve.

This delicious, simple soup is another Korean recipe with a myriad of awkward English spellings — but don’t let that deter you. Its clear, mild broth (gook) with chewy rice cakes (dduk), comforting dumplings (mandoo), and silky eggs is ideal for the cold winter weather we’ve been having lately.

This recipe is also timely because Dduk Gook  is the traditional Korean dish for New Years. Sean and I made this soup for my family on New Years’ Eve — but if you’ve missed your chance, just wait until the lunar New Year, traditionally celebrated in most of East Asia, which this year falls on February 3rd.

The broth is a typical Korean anchovy broth, which may sound fishy at first (heh heh), but it’s really quite mild – much smoother and tastier that the salty chicken broth you might be used to getting from a certain red can. Not being Korean myself, I have a hard time using the dried anchovies that dduk gook calls for – I swear those little guys are staring me down – so I have Sean pull together the broth ingredients before he leaves for work in the morning.

Because the broth is so mild, you may want to dip your dduk and mandoo into a dipping sauce, or even spoon a little sauce into your bowl to season the soup itself. Sean is the designated dipping sauce maker in our house – below is his special recipe. Simple ground pepper (white pepper is great) is also a wonderful, low-sodium condiment for this soup.

This is such a delightful soup in texture and taste, with each simple ingredient perfectly complimenting the others. And for such a comforting meal, it is done quickly and with minimal effort — boil some broth, dump in the rice cakes (and, in our case, dumplings)  – and you’re done! Perhaps the best part comes while adding beaten eggs to the boiling broth. Ever wondered how the ribbony eggs in Egg Drop Soup are achieved? Wonder no more, and read on.

Dduk (Mandoo) Gook – Rice Cake Soup with Dumplings

Serves 4-6; adapted from Quick and Easy Korean Cooking, and my in-laws

For broth:

• ½ cup dried anchovies
• 3 quarts water
• 1 onion, peeled and quartered
• 3-4 inch piece of daikon or white radish
• 30 grams of dried kelp

If desired, place anchovies in a large tea strainer. Combine all ingredients in a large stockpot, cover, and boil 20-25 minutes, adding water as needed to recover from evaporation. Taste for desired strength; strain out anchovies, onion, radish, and kelp.

For Dduk Mandoo Gook:

• Anchovy broth (above), or equivalent amount (2.5 – 3 quarts) beef broth
• 1 lb. frozen korean dumplings (mandoo; pork or beef are best)
• 16 oz. rice cakes (dduk; look for flat ovals, as pictured)
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 2 green onions, sliced
• Pepper, to taste

Bring stock to a boil; add dumplings and rice cakes and cook until both are soft. The dumplings will rise to the top of the broth when they are done. Don’t get overzealous and cook it too long — depending on their quality, both the dumplings and/or the rice cakes may fall apart under heavy boiling.

Slowly add the beaten eggs into the boiling water without stirring — now sit back and marvel at your ability to create egg drop soup. Add in the scallions, stir once, and turn off the heat. Top with freshly ground pepper, and serve your Dduk Gook with the dipping sauce (below) on the side.

Sean’s Special Dipping Sauce

Makes about four servings

• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons gochukaru (or other hot chile powder/flakes)
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
• 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1-2 small green onion, very thinly sliced

Mix all together, split into individual bowls, and serve!

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The amount of happiness that the change of seasons brings me is… absurd. Truly. Spring makes me leap for happiness. Summer — what a joy! Even the change to winter — as bitterly cold and depressing as it can be in Chicago — is saved because CHRISTMAS comes right at the beginning of winter.

But fall definitely holds a special place in my heart. This probably stems from my dorky roots as that girl who was actually excited for school to start. But this fall, through the reflection that’s seized me during this hugely nostalgic phase, I think I’ve discovered another reason for the obsession. Throughout my life, the fall season — aside from bringing the VERY EXCITING beginning of the school year — has also brought incredible challenges. And with these challenges, I’ve invariably grown and changed. This means that fall is a mile-marking season for me.

Fall 2007: Junior year at GU. Intense internship + a full load of classes = me being incredibly stressed and experiencing frequent emotional freak-outs. Learned that I grow the most when I’m put in situations entirely out of my control, allowing me to accept with joy that I’m NOT in control, but that God is. Experienced how He is more than able to handle the stress of every day, and miraculously provides ways for me to manage when I’m at the absolute end of my rope.

Fall 2008: Should have been my Senior year. Should have been my semester to intern in Mexico City. Should have been a lot of things, but my pesky intestine exploded. Don’t you hate it when that happens? Learned that life takes unexpected turns for unexpected reasons. That there’s joy in the unexpected challenge, because then you get to experience the unexpected provision — in my case, through a great job that felt more like a hobby, precious time at home with my precious family, and yep… getting engaged. To a somewhat long-lost love. Aww.

Fall 2009: Marriage. ‘Nuff said. Learned that I can’t control the tide of my life through being really, super good and claiming I therefore DESERVE good things. Learned that getting resentful about life being hard is a slippery slope, and that I really, really desire to cling to God through the disappointment rather than blame Him for it. Got to experience the joyful re-establishment of my intimacy with God, which just really makes me grateful.

So what about fall 2010? Yet to be seen. I’m not yet courageous enough to ask for the challenge just so I can get to the learning. But when one — or, most likely, both — of these show up this fall, I’ll be sure to let you know!

And… what does this have to do with the soup? Well, not much… except that it’s a fall-themed soup! It’s a pity that these photos turned out so poorly, because it’s a truly rockin flavor combination. You can’t go wrong with spicy chicken sausage, sweet and smoky roasted sweet potatoes, and comfortingly chewy potato gnocchi. This is truly a winning soup! Try it… and try counting your blessings, whether or not they are fall-related. I’ve found it helpful

Gnocchi, Sausage, and Roasted Sweet Potato Soup

Serves 6

Adapted from Cooking Light

• 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
• Dash of brown sugar and paprika
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 2  (4.5-ounce) link spicy Italian chicken sausages (I used the Trader Joe’s version — highly recommended!)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4-5 cups vegetable broth (again, I used the TJ’s version, which I highly recommend. Broth is important… make your own, or invest.)
• 1  (14 1/2-ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes, undrained
• 1 (16 ounce) package dried gnocchi (I used whole wheat)
• 1 cup (packed) fresh spinach leaves
• 1/2  cup  (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400. Toss sweet potato, 1 tablespoon olive oil, paprika, and brown sugar together in a small baking dish. Roast 15-20 minutes, or until soft, stirring once at around 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat remaining olive oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onions, cook until beginning to soften (about 3-5 minutes), then add sausage. Cok sausage until it’s beginning to brown, then add garlic.

When garlic is fragrant, add tomatoes and vegetable broth; bring to a boil and then let it simmer for 5 minutes. When the sweet potatoes are done, throw them in the pot as well.

Add the gnocchi and a splash of water if necessary (taste the broth — is it too strong or thick? The gnocchi will soak up some liquid, so be mindful. I tossed in 1/2 cup of water to even it out). Let the soup simmer for another 2-3 minutes, or until the gnocchi float to the top of the pot. Stir in the spinach. Serve in bowls topped evenly with the cheese.

Hello world! It’s been a while.

Early this morning, I got a letter from a very, very dear friend of mine. She mentioned how much she loves my blog — the cooking, the little life updates, the photos — and I have to say, I got that warm/fuzzy feeling. And then I realized: I HAVE to keep blogging. If Beth is reading (even if ONLY Beth is reading), then I must write! I must photograph! I must cook!

“But,” (ask all the legions of other readers out there) “Why do you have to write just for Beth? What makes Beth so special? Who died and made her blog queen?”

Because, dear readers… Beth is living in Mongolia. If your Beth was living in Mongolia and using her precious internet time on your blog, you would blog too!

And… she did mention in her email that she laughs at my jokes. Now, that’s worth writing for! I’m gonna blog like it’s my job.

To Beth (and others who think we dropped off the face of the earth in early May): There’s been a lot going on in the Park household this summer. Seriously, we’ve had all manner of life events: graduations, weddings, funerals, births. I gained a brother-in-law, lost a grandmother… and then gained a niece.  It’s been all kinds of crazy, and in a way, I’m happy that it’s drawing to a close. Life events are draining, and leave me craving comfort, peace, and simple carbohydrates. It’s the carbs that I am here to share with you today.

Well actually.. this isn’t all that carbo-licious. In fact… I don’t actually think that buckwheat is a simple carb. It’s probably complex. But anyway, the point is that in the background of this stream of major life events, I’ve also been learning how to cook Korean food. This has been a really fun process, aided a TON by the fantastic book Quick and Easy Korean Cooking by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee. I stumbled across this book in Barnes one day and it’s been a Korean cooking Bible to me ever since. It’s no dissertation on the origins and development of Korean cuisine, but that’s fine by me. It’s easy to follow, beautiful, and extremely useful. Something that’s important to me in a cookbook is that the majority of the recipes in the book are ones I want to make — and keep on making. Seems obvious, but how many cookbooks have you read that actually talk in-depth about recipe selection? Well, I’m here to say that this is a book that you will WANT to cook out of. Often.

(But only if you like Korean food.)

(Right.)

(Beth, are you laughing?)

So the first recipe I’m bringing you out of this book (it’s ok, the recipe is already on the internet) is for Bibim Naengmyeon, or Spicy Buckwheat Noodles. It’s a cold noodle dish that is extremely spicy but also tangy and garlicy — like a spicy pasta salad, if we’re thinking Western here. If you didn’t grow up with naengmyon, the texture is something you may have to grow to love, but you WILL grow to love it. It’s very refreshing — perfect for those end of summer evenings that we’re running out of so quickly!

Spicy Buckwheat Noodles

(Bibim Naengmyeon)

Serves 4

From Quick and Easy Korean Cooking by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee. (Go buy this book!)

• 2 pounds Korean buckwheat noodles (you can use soba noodles, if you must)
• 1 small cucumber, julienned
• 2 large eggs, hard-boiled, peeled, and halved

Sauce:

• 4 tablespoons Korean chile paste (gochujang)
• 4 tablespoons white, cider, or rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the noodles, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes — be careful not to overcook them, they should stay chewy. Rinse under cold water to chill the noodles and then drain.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients. When the noodles are cool, pour the sauce on top. Mix thoroughly – this is best done with your hands (wear plastic gloves, gochujang burns, stains, and smells).

Divide the noodles equally among 4 bowls. Top each bowl with some cucumber and half of an egg.

Enjoy… I’ll be back soon(ish) with some REAL simple carbs!

I’m not sure what to say about this, except that it was a really, really good idea. (Ok, also, I’m sorry that the pictures don’t do it justice… but I’m hoping you’ll focus on what a GREAT idea this pizza was. Promise me you’ll at least try…?)

I’d say I was sorry for tooting my own horn, except that my goat cheese, caramelized onions, and prosciutto creation is merely a very obvious hybrid of this pizza, which I ate at a friend’s house, and this one, which I saw on one of my favorite food blogs. I think it’s appropriate to break this down into its component parts (I am an analytical thinker, after all):

1. Goat cheese. Sharp, creamy cheese… underused on pizzas. A little goes a long way, and that makes me feel like it’s healthier. Right? Because you use less cheese overall? … Right?
2. Caramelized onions. The best part of adding onions caramelized in brown sugar to your pizza is that they actually become so tender and juicy that they become the sauce. You’ll notice there is no sauce on this pizza — that’s why. The sweet juices of the onion become the sauce… and if you’re a fan of sweet/salty combinations, this is good news. Which brings us to the…
3. Prosciutto. The salty part of our sweet and salty perfection. This is the most tender, flavorful pizza option there is out there. Why don’t we use this more? Giordano’s, are you listening?
4. Lemons. Yeah, I snuck thinly sliced lemons onto half of this pizza, and we loved it! It’s a strange ingredient, and totally optional… but you should try lemons here at least once. The rind bakes up in the oven and becomes tender and delicious. It’s truly unique.

For me, there is nothing more comforting than pizza for dinner, and with a recipe like this, you can get there in under 30 minutes. It also feels a lot brighter and lighter than other styles of pizza — we thanked the lemons and arugula for that — so we’ll be making this all summer long. Because we haven’t mastered pizza dough yet, we used Trader Joe’s refrigerated whole wheat pizza dough for a super simple crust. Use whatever dough you like — shortcuts acceptable

Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onions, and Prosciutto Pizza

Adapted from use real butter and The Pioneer Woman Cooks

• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, sliced thin
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 batch of pizza dough
• flour and salt, for sprinkling
• 4 oz prosciutto, cut into bite-sized strips
• olive oil
• fresh arugula
• 4 oz goat cheese, crumbled
• 1 lemon, sliced thin and quartered or cut into 6ths (we used a meyer lemon)

Preheat the oven to 500°F with pizza stone or thin baking sheet on the bottom rack.

Heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil in a wide sauté pan on medium-high heat. Add the onions and sauté for one minute. Add brown sugar. Continue to sauté for 10-15 minutes until the onions are soft, sweet, and brownish. Remove from heat.

If you’re using a foil-covered baking sheet for your pizza (like us), rub a little olive oil on a large piece of foil and then sprinkle some flour over it before dropping the dough on the surface. Sprinkle some olive oil on the dough and stretch or roll it out to desired size and thickness.

Sprinkle some salt on the dough and then distribute the toppings: arugula, caramelized onions, goat cheese, prosciutto, and lemon slices. Slide the foil and flatbread onto the stone or baking sheet that you have preheated in the oven (just take the sheet out of the oven, slide the foil with the pizza on top and toss it back into the oven) and bake for 15 minutes or until desired doneness.

After a glut of desserts, I have a couple of great dinner ideas coming up to share with you all! I’m pretty darn excited about it — not only to save my reputation (I get a lot of this: “yeah, I was talking to so-and-so about your blog, and, I know that they don’t know you, but they think you bake a lot. A LOT. Like, woah…”) — but also because dinner ideas are hard to come by! I don’t think there will ever be a time in my life when I will ever reach my quota of tasty, quick, cheap, and healthy home dinners.

Although I love to bake, I think that making dinner is when the real kitchen therapy happens. There is nothing like coming home after a terrible day at work and actually creating something nourishing, comforting, and interesting. I don’t know about you, but my usual workday isn’t full of that kind of creative-yet-practical process Luckily, cooking gives me an outlet for both the creative side as well as the part of my personality that has a need to just… fill needs. You know? At least one time a day, I solve a very practical challenge: the dinner challenge.

(Of course, there are just as many times in a week that I come home and say… “You want dinner? Feed yourself!” I’m hoping that staying philosophical about the whole thing may help that little problem…)

The perfect bite!

This particular dinner idea is a real gem, people! Sean and I have already had it twice, and I’m not stopping there. The ingredients are few, easy to find, and inexpensive. It’s also vegetarian, not that you’d notice if you were eating it — another plus in the budget, health, and environment categories. The whole thing is so comforting and yet light-tasting — we’ll be eating this all throughout the summer. And it’s so quick — chop an onion, some garlic, squeeze a few tomatoes (no, really… see the directions!) , and you’re in business.

I know it looks like Mickey Mouse... but it's delicious!

Shakshuka (Eggs Poached in Spicy Tomato Sauce)
Adapted from smitten kitchen, who adapted it from Saveur

Serves 4 to 6

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 5 Anaheim chiles or 3 jalapeños. Deb recommends stemming, seeding, and chopping them — I say, if you’re using jalapeños, leave the seeds in at least two of the peppers, and chop.
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, crushed then sliced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, undrained
• Kosher salt, to taste
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• Warm pitas, for serving

Put tomatoes and their liquid into a medium bowl and crush with your hands. Heat oil in a wide (12-inch) skillet over medium-high heat. Add chiles and onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden brown, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, cumin, and paprika, and cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is soft and fragrant, about 2 more minutes.

Add crushed tomatoes and their liquid to skillet along with 1/2 cup water, reduce heat to medium, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened slightly, about 15 minutes. Season sauce with salt.

Crack eggs over sauce so that eggs are evenly distributed across sauce’s surface. Cover skillet and cook until yolks are just set, about 5-7 minutes. Using a spoon, baste the whites of the eggs with tomato mixture, being careful not to disturb the yolk. Cook until whites are cooked through and yolks are still runny (if you don’t like runny yolks, cover again and cook longer until your yolk is the desired consistency). Sprinkle with feta and parsley and serve with pitas, for scooping.

I can’t believe we are on post 3 out of 4 of our Puerto Rican series, courtesy of my good friend Courtney! I’ll be back later this week with another incredible no-bake dessert recipe, but for now, enjoy our second-to-last Puerto Rican installment!

One of the most common snack foods that you can find in Puerto Rico are fritura, which basically means fried food.  It is everywhere, sold out of stores, little shacks on the beach, tents on the side of the road and trucks in a plaza.  They usually sell sorullos (little cornmeal sticks filled with cheese), empanadillas (a fried dough pocket filled with some sort of meat), alcapurrias (a fried dough made of plantains and other root vegetables filled with meat) and bacalaitos (fried cod fish).  As you can see from this list, one of the favorite cooking methods of Puerto Ricans is frying, almost every typical Puerto Rican dish will either have some part of the main dish fried or a fried side dish, this makes for delicious food, but is not so great for your waist line.  So when I was thinking about making empanadillas, I looked for a baked version, since it is better for our bodies, and the thought of a big pan of hot oil kind of scares me.

Empanadillas are pretty easy to make, and they are versatile because you can make the same dough and use however many different fillings you want.  I chose to make chicken ones and sweet ones filled with white cheese and guava paste.  The recipe I found for the dough is really simple, but you can always go to the freezer section of the grocery store and buy premade dough that is already cut out into perfect little circles for you.  I know that Goya makes them and I hear they are pretty good.

The chicken recipe I made up myself with some guidance from my co-worker Denise, she is a great cook and we both love food (it is a common topic of discussion among us).  The chicken recipe uses an ingredient called sofrito, which is the base of all Puerto Rican cooking.  It is used in almost all Puerto Rican dishes and many mothers and grandmothers make their own from scratch.  It is a paste made from garlic, cilantro, onion, pepper, and ají dulce (a small sweet pepper).  You can find this in most grocery stores in the jar, which is what I used.

For an improvement note: when making these I did not roll the dough out thin enough, the fillings turned out great, but the dough on the edges was too thick, so when you make yours, make sure to roll out the dough nice and thin into a circle, cause you want to taste more of the filling than the dough.

These empanadillas are great as a snack, appetizer or a meal.  Feel free to experiment and add different fillings, be creative, and you can make yourself your own little unique delicious pocket!  ¡Buen Provecho!

Empanadillas

To make the dough:

• 3 cups flour
• tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 cup olive oil + some extra for coating
• 1 cup warm water

Sift all dry ingredients together and add to a bowl. Mix oil and water together and add to dry ingredients and mix until dough forms.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap for 15 minutes.

Divide the dough into 12-16 pieces then roll into 4 inch circles. Separate each circle with wax paper and store them in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use them.

To make the chicken filling:

• 1 large chicken breast cut into small pieces
• 4 tbs adobo
• ½ onion minced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• ¼ cup sofrito

Coat the chicken with the adobo to season it.  Then add the chicken, onion and sofrito to a hot skillet coated with cooking spray and cook until the chicken is halfway done.  Add the garlic and continue to cook until chicken is done.  Set aside and let cool.

Cheese and Guava filling:

• Mozzarella cheese (or any other kind of cheese you like)
• Guava paste

Cut the cheese and guava paste into strips.  The amount of cheese and guava is up to you and depends on how many emapanadillas you are going to make.

To assemble:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Fill each dough circle with about 2 tbs of chicken or about 2 slices each of cheese and guava paste.  Fold the dough over the mixture so that it forms a half moon shape.   Seal the edges by pressing around the curve with a fork.  Place the empanadillas on a baking sheet lined with foil and sprayed with cooking spray.  Brush only the chicken ones with some olive oil to give them a crispy and savory crust.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the dough is light brown and cooked through