Cold noodle dishes have always been a favorite of mine, especially during the summer when it is blazing hot. Dressings and sauces made with light miso are always so tasty. I enjoy its mild and slightly sweet flavor. This is such an easy meal to throw together if you are short on time. You can make it in advance, just leave the dressing out until you are ready to serve it.
Hakubaku dried ramen is a good choice if you can find it. Otherwise use your favorite ramen or substitute it with thin spaghetti.
With just a handful of ingredients, you can quickly put together a satisfying lunch. The Fresno pepper adds a little bit of heat, and a beautiful firecracker red color.
The miso dressing is also excellent tossed with crispy greens such as iceberg lettuce, watercress, red and green cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, and radishes.
For its ease and flavor, this has become a new favorite dish of mine no matter what time of the year it may be.
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons grapeseed or canola oil
8 ounces dry ramen
roasted sesame seeds for serving
cilantro sprigs for serving (optional)
Preparation
Heat water for ramen in a large pot. Meanwhile, cut Fresno chile in half lengthwise (I use disposable gloves when handling chile peppers). Remove the ribs and seeds (leave ribs in for spicier flavor). Slice into strips and finely chop.
Cut cucumbers in half lengthwise, then slice crosswise into ¼-inch thick half-moons. Thinly slice green onions.
Cut ½ lime into wedges for serving. Juice the other half along with the second lime into a small dish, until you have 2 tablespoons.
Whisk together 2 tablespoons lime juice, miso, sesame oil, brown sugar and garlic in a small bowl until smooth. Slowly whisk in grapeseed oil until dressing is smooth and thick. Whisk in water 1 tablespoon at a time until dressing is the consistancy of heavy cream (1½ - 2 tablespoons). Set aside.
Cook ramen according to package instructions. Rinse under cold water and drain thoroughly, shaking off any excess water (excess water will dilute the dressing). Transfer noodles to a large bowl and toss with the sauce. Add chile, cucumbers, and green onions. Toss again. Divide noodles among shallow bowls. Top with roasted sesame seeds, sprigs of cilantro if using, and lime wedges.
If you’re looking for a tasty summer dish that isn’t time consuming, this tuna udon salad should be at the top of your list. Besides being absolutely delicious, it is a beautiful bowl filled with udon noodles, rich and flavorful tuna in olive oil, crisp cucumbers, radishes and watercress. Feel free to come up with your own version using different vegetables such as shredded iceberg lettuce or red cabbage, julienned carrots, bean sprouts and so on. Ever since I spotted this recipe on Carolyn’s Food Gal blog I knew it was something I would thoroughly enjoy. I tweaked the recipe a bit by omitting the wakame which I have never been a big fan of, but use it if you fancy it.
Be sure to use a good canned tuna in olive oil for this dish. Tuna in olive oil is silky, tender and so flavorful. I recently read an article in Cook’s Illustrated that rated canned tuna in olive oil. Ortiz took top honors as did Tonnino (6.7 ounce jar). But these brands may be difficult to find. However, they also recommended a few brands that are more widely available; Starkist Selects solid yellowfin tuna in extra virgin olive and Wild Planet albacore in extra virgin olive oil.
I sliced the vegetables very thin so they melded nicely with the silky noodles and buttery tuna. Placing the sliced radishes in an ice water bath for a few minutes helps to crisp them up.
There are so many miso options these days, I always have a few tubs of them on hand. I am quite fond of Cold Mountain’s mellow white miso. It lends the perfect flavor to many dishes, including the dressing for this recipe.
The dressing for this tuna noodle salad is very simple to make. Whisk the ingredients in a bowl and you’re all set. The dressing would also be excellent for any crunchy salad such as iceberg lettuce, cucumbers, carrots, red and green cabbage.
6 ounces dried udon noodles (Hakubaku is a good choice)
1 small Japanese cucumber, thinly sliced
1 medium red radish, thinly sliced and soaked in an ice water bath for 10 minutes
handful of watercress, chopped (optional)
2 green onions, thinly sliced
nori, cut into thin strips
1 can tuna in olive oil, drained slightly (I used Ortiz)
1 teaspoon furikake or roasted sesame seeds
Dressing:
2 tablespoons roasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
1 tablespoon mirin
1 tablespoon soy sauce (Kikkoman recommended)
2 tablespoons mellow miso paste
Preparation
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the udon noodles and cook according to package instructions. Pour the noodles into a colander and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. Drain very well. Set aside.
In a small bowl whisk together all of the dressing ingredients. Set aside.
Transfer the drained noodles to large bowl (it's best if the noodles are free of any water to ensure the dressing doesn't get diluted). Add some of the dressing to the noodles, tossing to coat them thoroughly. Divide the noodles among 2 bowls (shallow rather than deep). Arrange the cucumbers, radishes, watercress, green onions and nori around the perimeter of each bowl. Place the tuna in the center of the bowls, sprinkle with furikake or sesame seeds. Serve extra dressing on the side.
Last summer we had an incredibly large tomato harvest from just two Early Girl plants. The fruit kept coming and soon they were piled high in baskets on our dining table. Having made fresh sauce and freezing it on many occasions, our freezer was already maxed out with other foods with little room for more. I was very happy to come across a water bath safe canned tomato sauce recipe. This recipe is adapted from Jami Boys of An Oregon Cottage. It is a great recipe and we are so happy to have found it.
Roasting the tomatoes gives the sauce a wonderful flavor and gorgeous color. And being able to keep the jars shelf stable for 18 months is absolutely the way to go. We regularly send care packages with homemade jams, peppers and pickles to our children. We have increased our product selection with this terrific sauce.
Early Girls are amazing tomatoes. They are juicy, meaty, and have a particularly deep red color.
This time we also harvested and used these beautiful Katana beefsteak tomatoes.
The halved and seeded tomatoes are placed in a pan with a bit of olive oil, dash of balsamic vinegar, onions, garlic, dried herbs and seasoning (salt & pepper) and roasted for about 40 minutes.
I recommend using meaty tomatoes for a luscious, thick sauce. If the tomatoes are more on the watery side, you may end up with mostly tomato skins once they have roasted.
The onions and herbs smell divine as the tomatoes roast.
The fastest and easiest way to remove the tomato skins is with a food mill. Place a large pot under the food mill and process the tomatoes in batches. If you don’t have a food mill, pinch off the skins then pulse the tomatoes a few times in a food processor. Try to keep the sauce a little on the chunky side. If you process the tomatoes too much, you will end up having to reduce the sauce quite a bit as it will be much thinner.
10 pounds meaty tomatoes (I used what we had growing in our garden; Early Girl and Katana)
1½ cups diced onions
2 - 3 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 - 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar (optional)
3 teaspoons canning salt (or fine sea salt)
2½ teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
citric acid (essential for canning safety): ¼ teaspoon per 16 ounce (pint) jar, ⅛ teaspoon per 8 ounce (1/2 pint) jar
Preparation
Special equipment: Water bath canner, pint and/or half pint jars, lids and rings, 2 large roasting pans 14x10-inches, food mill for removing tomato skins, food processor or immersion blender.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Have 2 large 14x10-inch baking pans ready.
Halving all ingredients to work in two batches, divide olive oil, balsamic vinegar, onions, garlic, dry herbs, salt and pepper between the two pans.
Wash tomatoes and remove the cores. Cut each tomato in half, or if very large, cut into fourths. Gently squeeze the tomatoes to remove as many of the seeds as possible. Place seeded tomatoes cut side down on top of the ingredients in the prepared pans.
Roast for 35-40 minutes, until most of the skins are a bit puffed and browned. Remove pans from the oven and let cool a bit. Transfer the tomatoes in batches to your food mill with a large pot underneath collecting the tomatoes and their juices. Using the large hole disk, process the tomatoes so the skins are left behind. Continue with all of the roasted tomatoes. Be sure to add all of the remaining pan juices and solids as well.
You may keep the sauce chunky or pulse a few times with a food processor or an immersion blender to get to your desired consistency. If you do not have a food mill, pinch off the skins once the tomatoes are cool enough and pulse tomatoes in a food processor (just a few times for a nice thick sauce). Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more dried herbs or salt if needed. If the sauce is very thick, you may not need to reduce it. If you prefer a thicker sauce, bring sauce to a boil over medium-high heat, then lower the heat and simmer until sauce thickens. This could take anywhere from 20 - 45 minutes depending upon the type of tomatoes used. The tomato sauce must be hot before ladling into the jars.
Prepare a water bath canner, wash jars and lids. Place clean jars into canner and bring to a simmer. Important safety step: Once jars are hot, remove all jars from the canner and add citric acid to each jar before continuing. Ladle hot tomato sauce into the hot jars one at a time, leaving ½-inch headspace.
Wipe rims, attach lids and secure rings just finger tight. Place all jars back into the canner. Cover and bring to a boil. Once water is boiling process for 35 minutes. At the end of 35 minutes, turn off heat and let jars sit for 5 more minutes. Then remove jars to a cooling rack or towel-lined surface and let cool for 24 hours. Remove rings, check seals, label and store for 18 months. (The newer version of lids are good for 18 months). ***Do not replace dried herbs with fresh herbs. Using fresh herbs will change the pH (acidity)
These meatballs are moist and tender thanks to the addition of cottage cheese. I use a lactose free brand of cottage cheese as I am lactose intolerant. Thankfully, there are many lactose free options available these days, which means dishes that were formally off limits for those of us who cannot tolerate regular dairy products are now on our menus.
Lactaid or Green Valley Creamery offers lactose free cottage cheese. Of course you may use regular cottage cheese if you do not have lactose intolerance.
Fresh Italian parsley and marjoram add a wonderful flavor to these meatballs. Marjoram is one of my favorite herbs. If you are not familiar with it, give it a try! I’m sure it will become a favorite of yours too.
The meatballs are fried in a bit of olive oil until they are nicely browned on all sides. I like the texture and flavor the meatballs have when pan fried in a skillet. Serve them with your favorite sauce and pasta.
½ cup lactose free cottage cheese (drained if very wet, chopped if very large curds)
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 pound lean ground beef (I use ground sirloin)
2 tablespoons olive oil for frying
Julienned fresh basil (optional)
Grated Parmesan (optional)
Preparation
Place the panko in a small bowl and moisten them with enough milk to cover the crumbs. Give them a quick stir, then let them sit for 10 minutes to soften. Gently squeeze out the excess moisture.
Place ground beef in a large bowl. Break it apart gently with two forks. Mix in panko, onion, garlic, herbs, egg, cottage cheese, salt and pepper. Mix gently with two forks until all of the ingredients are evenly incorporated.
Roll meatballs into 24 golf ball sized balls.
Heat oil on medium heat in a wide deep-sided skillet until shimmering. I use my Anolon 12" x 3" skillet. Fry all of the meatballs at once or in batches if your pan is smaller. Turn them to brown on each side, about 7 minutes total. They are done when they reach 165 degrees.
Serve with your favorite pasta and sauce. Top with julienned fresh basil and parmesan cheese (I use lactose free Boar's Head brand).
This year we planted two Early Girl tomato seedlings in the garden and were they ever a great surprise. They produced more than 100 pounds of gorgeous, sweet fruit. Though the plants are looking rather scraggly after several months, they are still bearing fruit. These tomatoes are deep red in color, meaty, have very few seeds and a tiny stem that’s not woody when you cut into the fruit. They are the perfect tomato. Unlike the Big Beef tomatoes that we usually grow, the Early Girls are small in size. My friend Hano and her sister Charlotte eat them as if they were apples!
With all of these tomatoes ripening faster than we knew what to do with them, I wanted to whip up something delicious that would show off their exceptional flavor. This was the perfect recipe. It is a raw sauce so there’s no cooking involved and everything goes into one bowl. This really is the way to showcase your homegrown tomatoes. The original recipe that I wrote down nearly 10 years ago comes from Deborah Mele. It’s one of my favorite summer meals.
This dish requires the best tomatoes you can find. If you don’t grow your own, check out your local farmer’s markets. The tomatoes that are sold at supermarket chains in our area just won’t do. Heirloom tomatoes would work if you can find them.
You may use kalamata olives or a mix of olives. I added a few castelvetrano olives along with the kalamatas.
I love that this recipe can be thrown together in 20 minutes. All you need is a good, sharp knife to chop up all the ingredients.
My favorite way to serve the tomato sauce is on thin capellini noodles or on toasted sourdough bread.
Toast the bread until it’s nice and crisp. Then spoon the tomatoes over the top and let it sit for a minute so that it soaks up all of that delicious sauce.
12 seedless kalamata olives, or a mix of olives, diced
1½ tablespoons drained capers
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley
½ teaspoon finely chopped oregano
¼ cup finely chopped fresh basil
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste
capellini or sourdough bread
grated parmesan (optional)
Preparation
Combine tomatoes, onion, olives, capers, garlic, parsley, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes if using. Stir in red wine vinegar and olive oil. I normally don't add any salt since the olives and capers are salty. Add a few grinds of black pepper and salt to taste.
Mix well, cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for a few hours. Serve over capellini pasta or thinly sliced and toasted sourdough bread. Scatter grated parmesan cheese over the top. Leftovers keep well in the refrigerator for another day.
These stuffed shells are my new favorite pasta dish. It has many flavors in common with lasagne bolognese. Yet unlike bolognese sauce that simmers for a several hours, this meat sauce is ready in less than 30 minutes and is equally delicious. Another time saver is to use a good store-bought pasta sauce such as Rao’s Basil Tomato Sauce. Because it is particularly tasty, I stock up when it is on sale.
Barilla makes beautiful pasta shells that are just the right size for this recipe. Check the box for broken pieces before purchasing it. If the box shows signs of being damaged, the shells may be fractured and once cooked can fall apart and be unusable.
Ground sirloin is the perfect choice for the meat sauce. It is flavorful yet lean. However if you are unable to find ground sirloin, lean ground beef is a fine substitute.
I use cottage cheese in the recipe however you may substitute ricotta. The cottage cheese is light and mild in flavor but adds a creaminess without adding too many calories. I love how it melds together with the meat sauce and becomes a luxurious filling.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 9x13" casserole dish.
In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté onion in olive oil until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté for another minute. Add the ground sirloin and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until meat is no longer pink. Season with ¾ teaspoons kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add fresh parsley, dried oregano and marjoram. Stir to combine. Remove from the heat and mix in 1¼ cups of Rao's sauce. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until ready to use. Spread the remaining Rao's sauce in the casserole dish.
Cook shells in boiling, salted water for 10 minutes or until al dente. Rinse under cold water to stop the cooking, drain on paper towels.
Combine cottage cheese, ¾ cup yogurt cheese, and all of the cheddar cheese in a large bowl. Mix in beaten egg. Add beef mixture to the bowl, stir to combine well. Spoon the filling into the pasta shells and arrange over the sauce. Sprinkle the remaining 1¼ cups yogurt cheese over the shells. Bake for 30 minutes or until the filling is thoroughly heated and the cheese is melted and bubbly.
