PSA

the next time you make tacos, add a few tablespoons of dill relish to the meat mixture near the end of it's cooking time. just trust me. do it.

peanut sesame noodles

last night, some friends came over and we had an impromptu dinner and movie night. i made my own version of this. it's a keeper! i had almost everything on hand, including some leftover rotisserie chicken that dear amanda so expertly shredded. here's my version!

for the peanut sauce:
in a blender, combine and blend until smooth:

1/2 cup natural (no sugar added) peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons chopped peeled fresh ginger (i used pureed ginger from a tube)
1 tbsp fresh garlic, pressed
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Asian sesame oil
2 tbsp agave nectar
1 tbsp sriracha hot pepper sauce

1 lb spaghetti or linguine, broken into thirds and cooked in heavily salted water
1 rotisserie chicken, picked over and shredded

cook the pasta until al dente. drain and rinse well with cold water. add chicken and pour sauce over. toss well. serve cold or at room temp.

asian chicken spinach pasta salad

...can anyone suggest a more interesting name? anyway, this salad is delicious, filling, and healthy. you cook the pasta the night before, and marinate it with the shredded rotisserie chicken in one batch of the dressing. then right before serving, dress the salad with another batch of the dressing and toss with the salad/chicken. adapted from this recipe at nobiggie, which is a great blog i just discovered.

the dressing: make two batches of this, keep one in the fridge until the next day

1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup red wine vinegar (i think rice wine vinegar would be good too)
1/3 cup sesame oil (YUM! this makes it spectacular, IMO)
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2 tsp (or more) freshly grated ginger

combine batch #1 in a medium bowl and whisk thoroughly. combine batch #2 and stick in the fridge. make sure you taste and adjust your seasonings!

the salad, pt. 1: prepare the night before

1 box bowtie pasta
breast meat of 1 rotisserie chicken, shredded

the salad, pt. 2:

1 bag spinach
1 small bag snow peas
1 can mandarin oranges, drained
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 bunch green onions, chopped

assemble! :

cook the pasta until al dente- mine was just right at around 7 minutes in the water. drain and rinse well. combine in a large zip top bag with the shredded chicken and one batch of the dressing. marinate in the fridge over night.

the next day, combine all your fresh ingredients in a large bowl and add the pasta/chicken mixture. toss with your second batch of dressing.