Some more noodlin'

This pic goes to Bee & Jai of Jugalbandi for Click!

Details:
Camera: Nikon D70
Lens: Nikon AF 28-105mm

It has been a while since I cooked noodles of any kind - some sort of (bad) record given how much I love wheat in general - noodles, pasta, rotis, upma ... mmm! They all make me quite happy :) Everytime I read about diets, especially those carb-phobic ones like Atkins and South Beach - I cringe in pain. How can life exist without wheat? I could live without rice, but without wheat?! I would probably shrivel and die, my cells would wilt in despair. Hmm ... I'm getting a little insecure now - maybe I should be making some rotis right away so I know that tomorrow will be a wheat day! :)

So, why am I on this triticum eulogy? It all started when I realized last night that I hadn't Clicked yet. Eeek! One of the coolest events of the food blogosphere and I hadn't gotten in on yet. I decided cook and click and eat wheat - could life get any better? :)

(Noodles cobweb - should this be a Click submission?)

I had just returned from a successful PCC trip, armed with a fabulous brussel sprouts tree - don't you love those? It is such a cathartic experience plucking those sprouts off the branch. I'm a cabbage freak, so I can easily get excited about these mini-cabbage-like vegetables. After poking through a few cookbooks, I hit jackpot with this simple, yet elegant brussel sprouts stir-fry recipe from an all-time favorite The Complete Encyclopedia of Vegetables and Vegetarian Cooking - not a great vegan cookbook, but definitely close to the Moosewood and Field of Greens cookbooks in terms of diversity of recipes.

I upped the zing in the recipe by adding quite a bit of ginger, used onions instead of leeks and added spicy marinated tofu to rework this recipe with noodles.

Noodles dressed up with Brussel Sprouts Stir Fry
and ginger, almonds and onions too!

Servings: 4

8 oz Whole wheat egg noodles
12-14 brussel sprouts - cut into 1/3" wide slices
1 small red onion - sliced long
a handful of slivered almonds
1.5" ginger
1 T peanut oil
salt
8 oz extra firm tofu

Marinade:
1 T sambal oelek (I made this, but you can get it at any asian store)
2 T soy sauce
1 T rice vinegar
1/2 t safflower oil

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Mix the marinade in a baking pan (maybe a loaf pan).
Dice up the tofu and soak the bits in the marinade.
Stick the baking pan in the oven for about 12-15 minutes (the tofu should start browning about now).
Cook the noodles per instructions - typically 4-5 minutes in water heated to a roiling boil.
Heat the peanut oil in a wok and saute the onions and almonds.
Add the minced ginger and saute for another 2-3 minutes.
Now add the brussel sprouts and saute for a few more minutes.
Add about 2/3 cup of water or vegetable stock - I just used the water left from cooking the noodles - starchy, but good!
Cook partially covered with occasional stirring for about 6-8 minutes.
Add a dash of soy sauce, salt to taste and some red pepper flakes.
Add the tofu and saute for another minute.
Take off the stove and toss the veggies with the noodles before serving.

Opinion?

*really* good.

A few years ago, I took on the challenge of trying to cook brussel sprouts for a couple of brussel-haters. Well, I succeeded - they ate what I cooked and liked it to boot, but always insisted that I had taken the BS flavor out of it - I had reworked the sprouts to act as mere carriers for the spices, which is what made them eat it all :)

Well, this time - the brussel sprouts kept their identity. And yet, they tasted good. And gladly danced with the noodles! But I guess the litmus test would be when I make it for the Pupp - guess I'll have an update on this post sometime soon :)