hot day, cold dinner

We're eating dinner outside again! We've had two days in a row of nearly 90 degrees! Phew! Because it's still May, the evening air cools down quickly. It's wonderful to have a breezy meal at the picnic table, rather than in a hot kitchen. Sometimes I'll prepare dinner in the morning, so that I'm not stuck at the stove at 5pm. This is the same salad I served to my printing class for lunch on the barn deck. A one bowl meal my entire family is excited about! I've been making variations of it since I managed a vegan restaurant in Marin County (California) 17 years ago. Did I just say 17? Is that possible!? Well, I guess I can honestly tell you that it's tried and true!

Cold Miso Noodles with Asparagus

Ingredients

• soba (buckwheat) or udon noodles
• favorite vegetable in season (tonight we had asparagus from a farm down the road)
• cubes of baked tofu
• carrot matchsticks
• mung bean sprouts
• chopped green onions (or chives)
• miso cream sauce- recipe follows

Make

• Prepare noodles according to package directions. Add fave vegetable in the last minute of boiling to blanch it. Drain and run under cold water to prevent overcooking.
• Add all other ingredients and pour on miso cream to taste.

Miso Cream Sauce
Blend on high speed:

• 4 heaping tablespoons white miso
  
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons rice vingar
• zest of fresh ginger and a clove of garlic
  
• 1 1/2 cups water

any leftover sauce can be diluted with a little more vinegar and used to dress salad greens.

I'll be back on Tuesday (Monday is Memorial day in the states)... hope your weekend is all that you want and need it to be!