Soba Noodles and Kale with Avocado Miso Sauce

Most days of my Alaskan life I am craving something in the category of Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, Lao, etc, etc, etc. Why? I don't have an answer besides the fact that these cultures make amazingly delicious dishes. Enter: Soba Noodles and Kale with Avocado Miso Sauce.

A compromise of all those great flavors, this dish also whispers, "I'm comfort food. Eat me!" It's lying of course. No one will believe that it is typical "comfort food." Let's be honest...it's healthy food try to masquerade as comfort food. And it's doing a good job. This dish is creamy, salty, and buttery.

Perhaps the best part of all though? It's super fast and incredibly easy to whip up. Oh and, P.S. check out the links in the ingredient list to learn what science says about it!

Soba Noodles and Kale with Avocado Miso Sauce

Inspired by A House in the Hills

Serves 4 foodies

• 12 oz. soba noodles
• 1 ripe avocado
• 1 garlic clove (or 2 if you really like a garlicky bite...like myself)
• 1 Tbsp. coconut oil
• 1/4 cup red miso (or white or yellow)
• juice from half a lime
• 1 cup water (varying to personal taste)
• 1 bunch of kale
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 green onion stalks, sliced thinly
• sesame seeds for garnish

[gallery type="rectangular" ids="238,236,235"]

Put a large pot of water on to boil and add a sprinkle of salt. In the meantime, gather the avocado, garlic, coconut oil, miso, lime juice and water. More or less water can be used depending on the desired thickness of the sauce. Place all those little friends into a blender and give 'em a good whirl about, until the sauce is smooth, silky and creamy. Now, ignore that beautiful sauce for a just a few minutes.

The water might be boiling now, but wait to put in the noodles. Soba noodles don't need very long to boil and they can turn belligerent and all mushy pretty quickly if overcooked.

Turning now to the beautiful kale, rip off the leaves around the stalk, nobody ever wants the stalk part. Poor stalk. Tear the leaves into small bits and place them into a strainer or even better yet, a salad spinner. Wash, dry and set aside. Next, chop (or tear if you're lazy like me) the cilantro and cut the green onions.

Okay, now's a good time boil up those soba noodles. They only need about 5-7 minutes, so don't overdo it! Mushy soba noodles are the pits, so check on them after 5 minutes. Once they are boiled to perfection, drain and rinse them with cold water. Remember that pretty green sauce? Combine it with the noodles and the kale. Take off any finger and/or wrist jewelry and really get in there with your hands to mix it up (make sure to wash up good first though!) Don't be scared, your hands are the best kitchen utensils you have. It's a little known fact.

Separate noodle mixture into four bowls. Sprinkle each bowl with it's one quarter of the cilantro and green onions (don't be greedy!) and give each dish a pinch of sesame seeds. Want to be all Mr. Fancy Pants? Top it off with a drizzle of sesame seed oil.

Yum.

A Recipe for Turks and Caicos

I've been wanting to make this recipe (or one similar) for a long time, so when my in-laws decided to was time to whip it up, you bet I was onboard! The only downside is this recipe takes three months to make, but, it doesn't have to! You can let it steep as long as you like. It could even be ready by tomorrow! This is a warm, comforting, relaxing goodtime recipe. It's infused with a heavy dose of tropical paradise and sprinkled with laughter. It's full of sandy toes, sea turtles, snorkeling, good food and sunbathing, just what a pale ass honkey like myself needs. The best part is I get to share it with such wonderful company!

A Recipe for Turks and Caicos

Inspired by Wanderlust

Makes 1 wonderful vacation

For this recipe you will need:

• 12 days off from work
• 1 dog-sitter
• 2 humans
• 2 (minimum) really good books
• 12 bottles (minimum) of vegan sunscreen, depending on your skin's aversion to the sun
• 2 carry-ons
• 2 suitcases
• 8 flights round trip
• 22 hours of flying time
• 1 beachfront villa
• 1 Turks and Caicos island
• 11 days of pure, tropical joy

The days off might be the hardest to find, but I bet if you look hard enough you find 'em. Tell your boss that you'll pack him/her in your suitcase. That usually works. Next round up a dog-sitter, this could be even more difficult to find depending on your situation .Combine remaining ingredients until you find peace and happiness. Let it relax for as long as you can, keeping the mixture warm and sandy. I like to make this recipe (or an adaption of it) as often as financially possible, to help keep my sanity.

Three months can't go by soon enough!

What vacations have you been on recently?

This is from our last tropical recipe, Oahu Hawaii.

Thai Coconut Curry with Kelp Noodles

This is a unique dish. Crunchy and creamy, it's Thai-ishly delicious! It has all the ingredients for a darn good Thai dinner. Coconut milk, lemongrass, basil, cilantro, red curry, lime juice, and mungbeans. The gang's all here!

I wouldn't call kelp noodles a staple in our house. They're pretty spendy up here in The Last Frontier. These little translucent strands of goodness are chewy and almost crunchy if not soaked prior to use. They take on pretty much any flavor, like tofu would, and alone are completely flavorless. You know those tofu shirataki noodles, the ones that smell all rotten fishy? Ick. Not the kelp noodles, nope. Surprisingly enough though...you'd think if either one would smell it would definitely be the kelp noodles, but they don't. Yay!

When I do splurge on them, I like to make something fun. Something bold, and something super delicious. Enter, Thai Coconut Curry with Kelp Noodles. I like to top mine with pan fried tempeh, fresh mung beans, and chopped cilantro, but you can top yours with whatever you want! This recipe has all the ingredients for a darn good Thai-a-licious dinner. Coconut milk, lemongrass, basil, cilantro, red curry, lime juice, mung beans...yum! All that's missing is the fish sauce, but since we're vegan, we won't be missing it.

Inspired by The Spunky Coconut

Serves 2

Thai Coconut Curry with Kelp Noodles

• For the Noodles
• 12 oz. package of kelp noodles
• 1 Tbsp. lime juice

• For the Sauce
• 1/2 cup full-fat canned coconut milk (shake it up real good first, store the remainder in fridge for smoothies!)
• 1 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 1/2 Tbsp. red curry paste
• 1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. erythritol or sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp. lime juice
• 1/2 Tbsp. lemongrass paste or chopped
• 1/2 Tbsp. chopped basil leaves
• 1/4 tsp. onion powder
• 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp. ground coriander
• 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/8 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/8 tsp. chili powder
• small sprinkle of chipotle chili powder or cayenne pepper

• For the Topping
• half a block of chopped tempeh
• 1 tsp. coconut oil
• 1/2 cup mung beans
• cilantro for garnishing

Rinse those kelp noodles and give them a good drain. Place them in a medium size bowl and bathe them in lukewarm water. Add the lime juice and massage them for a couple minutes. A bath and a massage...dang, I wanna be a kelp noodle! Let them soak for 20 minutes or so while preparing the sauce. If lime juice won't volunteer itself, go ahead and use lemon juice instead. What a rude lime. Don't omit the juice though, as the acid is important to help the noodles relax a little bit. And don't forget to massage a bit...spoil those little kelp noodles!

[gallery type="square" ids="177,178"]

Add all the sauce ingredients into a small saucepan and whisk to combine, over low heat. Don't allow it bubble.

Slice the tempeh into small, thin bricks about the length of a thumb. Pour about 1 Tbsp. of prepared sauce into small frying pan along with coconut oil. Saute until tempeh is starts browning, about 5-10 minutes.

Now that those pampered kelp noodles have had their day in the sun, drain them well and add the sauce to the bowl in which they were soaking and mix them up! Divide the sauced kelp into two bowls (or one if you're feeling especially ravenous), and top with the cooked tempeh, mung beans and chopped cilantro. Roasted garlic crunchies or some siracha would also be a great addition. The longer the curry sits, the better it gets, so go ahead and put it in a timeout if you want.