Tag: peanuts

Cold Peanutty Pasta

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Peanutty Pasta (5)

I love getting my little chef into the kitchen for each month’s recipe from High Five magazine, and this month featured a perfect summer pasta, meant to be eaten cold or at room temperature. The recipe was a great chance to hone skills including whisking and chopping with a butter knife. Plus, we got to use neat ingredients like fresh ginger root! Here’s my chef, excited to start.

Peanutty Pasta (1)

Adults, cook 8 ounces spaghetti according to package directions. Reserve about 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain the remaining pasta water and rinse the spaghetti well with cold water. Set aside.

Meanwhile, have your little chef help you combine the following in a bowl:

1/2 cup chunky peanut butter

2 tablespoons tahini

1 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon sugar

Peanutty Pasta (2)

Add about 6 tablespoons reserved pasta water to the mixture, and whisk until combined. If the sauce is still thick, add another tablespoon or two of the water.

Travis was so excited to try his hand at a butter knife for the next step. I cut a cucumber into rounds, and let him cut each round into quarters.

Peanutty Pasta (3)

In a large bowl, combine the cooked pasta, chopped cucumbers, 1/2 cup chopped peanuts, and the peanut sauce, tossing well to coat.

Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Note: To make the recipe nut-free, simply omit the chopped peanuts and use all tahini in place of the chunky peanut butter.

Peanutty Pasta (4)

 

Chilled Peanut Noodles with Tofu

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Peanut Noodles with Tofu (1)

Here’s the third in a series of recipes I featured with a simple tofu-and-bell-pepper preparation. We gave it an Asian spin for a final night of leftovers!

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 2 red bell peppers, thinly sliced
  • 1 (14-ounce) package firm tofu, cubed
  • 1/2 lime
  • 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
  • Rice noodles
  • Chopped peanuts
  • Cilantro (optional)
  1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, cumin, and chili powder; saute for 5 minutes. Add the bell pepper and saute for an additional 6 minutes, until the peppers are soft; transfer the mixture to a bowl.
  2. Heat the remaining tablespoon oil in the pan. Add the tofu and cook for a final 6 minutes. Return the bell pepper mixture to the pan, along with the juice from 1/2 a lime, and the soy sauce.
  3. Meanwhile, cook rice noodles according to package directions. Rinse under cold water and set aside.

For each preschooler-sized portion, I served 1/2 cup rice noodles with 1/2 cup tofu mixture. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts and cilantro to taste for serving.

Peanut Noodles with Tofu (2)