March Recipe of the Month!
Perfect Ginger Noodle Pasta
Get ready for some oh so yummy ginger noodles! I used this Minimalist Baker’s recipe as inspiration, but I was missing so many ingredients I just winged it and made a DELISH, plant-rich, nutrient-rich dinner that got two thumbs up from the fam. First, and almost always, if you don’t have all the ingredients, substitute! The vegetables I used were the ones I had in my fridge. But you could use whatever veggies you have on hand: bell peppers, onions, green beans, any greens, cabbage, peas….I love a good noodle dish…almost too much. I could eat pasta every day, but pasta is not a great weight loss food (even the “better for you” pastas like whole wheat are ok but calorie dense). One of the tricks I use is to use less pasta and use veggies cut like spaghetti to give it a fuller pasta feel. Here I used my mandolin like this one to noodle the zucchini and a julienne peeler like this one to cut the carrots. (Usually I would just dirty one tool but I had two kids helping prep today!)Big tip: When you are using fresh zucchini noodles don’t cook them! Trust me. If you cook them they cook super fast and get squishy and bleh. The heat from the other ingredients added to the noodles cooks them a little and they are the perfect texture.https://minimalistbaker.com/vegan-ginger-sesame-noodles-with-crispy-tofu/
Ingredients
Sauce
- 1/3 Cup Soy Sauce
- 3 Tbsp Avocado Oil
- 2 Tbsp Sesame Oil
- 2 Tbsp Maple Syrup
- 2 Tbsp Grated Ginger
- 1 Tbsp Chili Sauce
- 1 Tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
Tofu and Veggies
- 2 14 oz package Extra Firm Tofu
- 3 oz Mushrooms- Sliced I used portobello
- 3 Zucchinis julienned
- 3 Carrots julienned
- 1 lb Baby Bok Choy cut lengthwise into quarters
- 1 bunch Green Onions
Noodles
- 16 oz Buckwheat and Brown Soba Rice Noodles You can use whatever long, skinny noodles you like, cooked according to the package!
Instructions
- Put tofu into a press or wrap it in a paper towel followed by a dish towel and place something heavy on top while you prep the other ingredients.
- Preheat oven to 425F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk together all sauce ingredients.
- Slice mushrooms, place in a bowl and toss with ¼ cup of the sauce and let sit.
- Crumble tofu into pieces about ½ inch and toss with ½ cup of sauce (set aside the last ½ cup of sauce).
- Spread tofu on the baking sheet in a single layer making sure that it is as spread out as possible and place in the oven. Cook for 35 minutes tossing halfway through.
- While the tofu is baking, prep all of the veggies. In a skillet over medium heat, cook 1 tsp of avocado oil, saute mushrooms and bok choy.
- Cook pasta according to package directions so that it is ready at about the same time the tofu comes out of the oven.
- Putting it all together: Place raw zucchini noodles in a serving dish. Add noodles and remaining sauce and toss. Top with veggies, crispy tofu and sliced green onions. Enjoy!
Dena DePiazza is a National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach and is certified as a Certified Pain Management Coach. She is your personal advocate for living an energized and passionate life. She works with clients to help them create healthy lives in a way that is flexible, fun, and free of denial and unsustainable discipline. By working together, you can discover lifestyle choices that best support you. Dena helps you learn to make gradual, lifelong changes that will enable you to reach your current and future health goals.
with a Bachelor’s Degree in Nutritional Sciences. She is a Certified Personal Trainer and Certified Nutrition Coach through the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM).
Nadia enjoys providing the guidance and support people need to achieve good health and considers herself their biggest cheerleader when they decide to make their health a priority. As a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, Nadia works with clients one on one to help them optimize their health through holistic health practices. She helps reduce the symptoms of chronic illness through nutrition and lifestyle practices, but is not limited to helping anyone who wants to learn how to make better choices. She teaches clients basic kitchen skills, how to read labels and will even do grocery tours. As a personal trainer, Nadia works with clients of all levels, ages and in various settings. She has taught group fitness classes and worked with clients one on one. She emphasizes the importance of staying injury free and building strength to move about their day without pain.
Karissa originally attended Westmont College in beautiful Santa Barbara, and began her B.S. in Psychology, then transferred to Montreat College, in the Appalachian hills of North Carolina, graduating Cum Laude with a B.S. in Music Therapy, and a double minor in Psychology and Music Business.
