Sesame-Peanut Noodles & Ahi Tuna

Last night, we had Sesame-Peanut Noodles and Ahi Tuna. It was seriously the best meal ever...

Sesame-Peanut Noodles
(from "The Food You Want to Eat" by Ted Allen)

Ingredients:
Kosher Salt
1/4 C Sesame Seeds
1/4 C Peanut Butter (I used natural)
1/4 C Toasted Sesame Oil
1/3 C Roasted Peanuts, Cashews, whatever nuts you have (I used toasted cashews)
1/3 C Low-Sodium Soy Sauce
1 T Red Wine Vinegar
1 T Mirin
2 Garlic Cloves
1/4 tsp. Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1 English Cucumber
1 pkg. Buckwheat Soba Noodles
1/4 C Chopped Fresh Cilantro
1/4 tsp. Black Pepper
3 Scallions, sliced on an angle 1/4 inch thick

Directions:
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

2. Meanwhile, toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until they turn golden brown, about 5 minutes.

3. In a food processor (I used a blender), combine the peanut butter, sesame oil, peanuts (I used cashews), soy sauce, vinegar, mirin, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Process to a puree. Stir in half the toasted sesame seeds.

4. Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with a spoon; discard the seeds. Slice the cucumber halves crosswise about 1/4 inch thick; set aside.

5. When the water comes to a boil, add the noodles and cook until tender, 4-5 minutes. Drain very well, shaking the colander until it stops dripping, and dump into a bowl. Add the peanut mixture, cilantro, and black pepper, and toss to coat. Turn out onto a large platter. Arrange the cucumber slices around the edge of the platter, sprinkle the scallions on top, and arrange the remaining sesame seeds on last. Serve warm or at room temperature.


Ahi Tuna

For the ahi tuna, we simply put some soy sauce on it, coated it with toasted sesame seeds and grilled on each side for approximately 3 minutes. DELICIOUS!

Asian Trout & Pea Vine Salad

I get weekly sale flyer e-mails and sometimes browse through them to find any exciting ingredients to plan a meal around. Today, I discovered Pea Shoots-they were on sale for $3.49 a package. I've never had them but they sounded interesting so I looked around online for a recipe. I found a recipe from the Washington State University Cooperative Extension (can't find the link now) that sounded really good. The best thing about these pea shoots is the nutritional content-they are extremely nutritious and full of antioxidants! They were delicious! They don't taste like much at first but then you get a bit of a fresh pea taste. So good-I will definitely be having these again.

Then, I had to figure out what to pair them up with. There was also a deal on trout-I LOVE trout. It was $5.99 a pound which I figured was a pretty good deal. I ended up getting a pound and a half and it was way more than enough for us. I looked for a recipe and found a perfect match, Asian Trout, on www.allrecipes.com

What a fabulous meal!

Pea Vine Salad

Ingredients:
1 package Pea Vines, rinsed
1/4 lb. Snow Peas
2 T Light Soy Sauce (I used Tamari)
2 T Rice Vinegar
2 tsp. Toasted Sesame Oil
1 tsp. Sugar
1/4 tsp. Hot Chili Oil

Directions:
Wilt the pea vines; drain on paper towels. Fluff and separate the leaves as much as possible.
Cut the snow peas on the diagonal into thirds. Place in boiling water for 1 minute. Drain, rinse with cold water and pat dry. Whisk together liquids and sugar. Toss the pea vines with the dressing.

This recipe also called for toasted sesame seeds, but I forgot them! This salad is incredible.

Asian Trout

Ingredients:
4 Boneless Trout Filets
2 tsp. Soy Sauce (I used Tamari)
1 tsp. White Sugar
1 tsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. Minced Garlic
1 tsp. Minced Ginger
4 Large Green Onions, chopped
Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:
Rub trout fillets with soy sauce. Season with salt, pepper and sugar; set aside.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic, ginger and green onions; cook and stir until golden brown. Add trout fillets and cook until browned and crispy, about 3 minutes. Turn fillets over, and continue cooking until the fish flakes easily with a fork, about 3 minutes more. DELICIOUS!

Calamari Fra Diavolo

Whenever my husband & I visit one of our favorite Italian restaurants, he always orders this dish. So, yesterday while I was doing some meal planning (let's see how long that lasts!) I decided to search for the recipe. This recipe is from http://www.nedine.com/Recipe/Entrees/Seafood/Calamarifradiavolo/Calamarifradiavolo.html



I had never cooked with calamari before, so was a bit nervous, but I'm happy to say it came out great! My husband was very surprised and very happy!



Calamari Fra Diavolo

Ingredients:

1 pound Calamari, tubes and tentacles, sliced

1 tsp. Dried Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

3 T Olive Oil

1 Medium Onion, chopped (I used a red onion)

8 oz. Diced Tomatoes

1 C Dry White Wine

1/4 C Capers, rinsed

5 oz. Kalamata Olives, sliced

3 Garlic Cloves, minced

1/4 tsp. Oregano

3 T Fresh Basil, Chopped

Directions:

Toss the squid in a medium bowl with red pepper flakes. Heat the 3 T oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the squid and saute for about a minute, toss, and continue cooking until just cooked through, about 1 or 2 minutes. Transfer the squid to a large plate; set aside. Add the onion to the same skillet and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juices, wine, garlic, oregano, capers and olives. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, about 10 minutes.
Return the squid and any accumulated juices to the tomato mixture; toss to coat, and cook for about a minute so the flavors meld together. Stir in the basil. Season with more salt, to taste and serve over a bed of linguine.

I served this alongside some garlic bread-yum!