Spicy Soba Noodles With Shiitake and Cabbage

I discovered this recipe on SmittenKitchen and also on Epicurious a little while ago, and ever since, it has intrigued me. After holding out for a while (my dad insisted that "the combination of flavors just don't go"), I ran him down. And boy, I have been wanting to post it for ever, but I have been so incredibly busy. Anyway, this recipe is fantastic, in my opinion. It is incredibly versatile- you can add any vegetable you'd like, and it will still be delicious. It has just the right amount of flavor, a perfect amount of mushrooms in every bite, and it's irresistibly moist. With a perfect crunch to top it off. 

 

Spicy Soba Noodles With Shiitake and Cabbage

From epicurious.com

For sauce

1/3 cup water

1/3 cup soy sauce

2 to 3 teaspoons Korean hot-pepper paste (sometimes labeled "gochujang")

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

For noodles

3 tablespoons sesame seeds

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tablespoons finely chopped peeled ginger

1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic

1o oz fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced

1 1/4 pound Napa cabbage, thinly sliced (8 cups)

6 scallions

8 to 9 ounces soba (buckwheat noodles)

1 cup frozen shelled edamame

*Tip from SmittenKitchen blog....add a splash of sesame oil (I added it to the sauce)

Stir together all sauce ingredients until brown sugar is dissolved, then set aside. 

Toast sesame seeds in a dry 12- inch heavy skillet (not nonstick) over medium heat, stirring, until pale golden, then transfer to a small bowl.

Heat oil in skillet over medium- high heat until it shimmers, then sauté ginger and garlic, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds, Add shiitakes and sauté, stirring frequently, until tender and starting to brown, about 6 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, then add cabbage and most of scallions (reserve about a tablespoon for garnish) and cook, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is crisp-tender, about 6 minutes. Add sauce and simmer 2 minutes.

While cabbage is cooking, cook soba and edamame together in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (2 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water) until noodles are just tender, about 6 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse under cool water to stop cooking and remove excess starch, then drain well again. Transfer to a large bowl and toss with sesame seeds and vegetable mixture. Serve sprinkled with reserved scallions.

Cooks' note: If you aren't able to find Korean hot-pepper paste, substitute 3/4 teaspoon Chinese chile paste and reduce the amount of soy sauce to 1/4 cup. 

Whole Wheat Cranberry Scones

devil's food cake

My sister's birthday just passed and for it, she wanted chocolate cake. "Any type, as long as it tastes good." I got this recipe from the magnolia bakery cookbook and it made a gigantic 3 layer cake with tons of icing. It was quite the labor of love. 

But mostly just labor. 

Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes

This was my first ever batch of vegan cupcakes, fresh from my new vegan cookbook (just something to mix it up a little).  I thought I would keep it simple with the golden vanilla, which turned out to be quite tasty. Even without the icing they have a great amount of flavor, and they have the same 'cupcakey' texture normal ones do. They taste just like regular cupcakes- and better than most. I made a batch of twelve last night and there are only a few left this morning :) Enjoy 

Golden Vanilla Cupcakes (yields 12 cupcakes)

from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World

1 cup soy milk

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1 and 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup canola oil

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line muffin pan with cupcake liners. 

2. Whisk the soy milk and vinegar in a measuring cup, set aside a few minutes to get good and curdled. 

3. Beat together the soy milk mixture, oil, sugar, vanilla and almond extracts in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and mix until no large lumps remain. 

4. Fill cupcake liners two- thirds full and bake for 20-22 minutes until done. 

5. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely before frosting. 

Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup nonhydrogenated shortening

1/2 cup nonhydrogenated margarine

3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 cup plain soy milk

Beat the shortening and margarine together until well combined and fluffy. Add sugar and beat for about 3 more minutes. Add the vanilla and soy milk, beat for another 5-7 minutes until fluffy. 

Blueberry Pie

I'm Emily, and my blog is about trying new recipes and being creative in the kitchen! Hopefully, I can show people that food doesn't have to be made expensively to taste good, and that sometimes the simpler recipes are the better ones.

Yesterday was one of the few times I didn't have school, an overwhelming amount of work, or anything to do. At all. So you see, this decision had to be made extremely carefully. Nothing too sweet that would leave me feeling [very] guilty for hours to come, and nothing too savory to the point where I would find myself poking around the fridge at 11 o'clock looking for something sweeter. I eventually concluded that blueberry pie was the winner. 

After anxiously waiting hours for it to cool off in the fridge (and a restless attempt in the freezer), it was, at last, ready. I ended up scooping some of the juice out because it had overflowed. But boy was it good.