Noodle Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing

Do you remember the first time you had peanut butter? Peanut butter wasn't much of a thing in Finland when I was growing up (understatement), so I do. I was a slow convert to the peanut butter straight up, not mixed with anything school (and I still don't get the PBJ sandwich, but then I don't want jelly anywhere near my sandwiches anyway), but used in spicy sauces (and peanut butter cookies, but that's a bit different) it has a more instant appeal, adding this smooth and creamy depth to, er, whatever you're mixing it with.

A noodle salad with carrots, bell pepper and scallions, in this case. The sauce is really the star of this thing, fabulously spicy and satisfying, so obviously you could, and should, play around with the amount and type of vegetables. (I did make it again later on with chicken, and that was lovely too, and for a more nutritionally balanced vegetarian option, mung sprouts would be lovely.) I chose to mix in just half of the dressing before serving, so everyone could add more to their plates according to taste.

Noodle Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing
adapted from Bon Appétit, Oct 2004, serves 3

75 ml (1/3 cup) peanut butter
4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 fresh red chili pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp soft brown sugar
1½ tbsp ginger, minced
about 50 ml vegetable (or chicken) stock, or enough to make the above a fairly runny sauce

150 g rice noodles
3 medium carrots, julienned
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1 bunch scallions, julienned

(I find julienning things therapeutic. If you don't, this dish is going to be a lot less fun to prepare.)

Combine the ingredients for the sauce in a food processor and blend until smooth. (I find that you need to chop the chili really finely for this to work at all, but your mileage may vary.)

Bring a pot of water to the boil and throw in the carrots and bell pepper. Add the rice noodles, take off the heat and let stand for however long it says on the package. (3 minutes in this case, which was just perfect for the veggies.) Drain and run under cold water, then drain well again. Mix in the scallions and enough sauce to make it nice and slick. Serve as is or cold, with more sauce on the side.

Recipe after the jump!

Ansjovis- och lökpasta (Sprat & Onion Pasta)

As before, there's a writeup and recipe in English if you scroll down.

Tidigare i veckan skrev jag ett inlägg om nåt som jag kanske mot lite bättre vetande ville kalla "frestelse" - främst för att det är roligare att tala om "temptation" än om "casserole" som låter direkt mos(s)igt. Nå, oberoende fick jag till min stora förvåning reda på att det vi på svenska (och finska, måste man väl därmed anta) kallar ansjovis inte alls är anchovies på engelska, utan sprats. (Anchovies är sardeller.)

Nu har jag en längre tid kockat främst från engelska recept, ganska ofta från sådana som innehåller "anchovies" ty det blir gott och pikant tycker jag. Fast jag alltså gjort helt fel hela tiden. Efter att ha återhämtat mig från chocken insåg jag såklart att detta i praktiken utökar min lista på favoritrecept avsevärt, eftersom man ju såklart måste testa allting också på det avsedda viset.

Sen hade min närbutik inga sardeller alls, så då fick jag nöja mig med det gamla vanliga ändå. Lite snopet, såklart, men å andra sidan kan jag då lägga in det här receptet i Jespers ansjovistävling. Så värst originellt eller nyskapande är det ju inte, men tycker man om karamelliserad lök (vilket jag gör) så blir det här en mumsig och enkel (om än inte så snabb) pastarätt.

I övrigt är det på riktigt bästa ansjovisreceptet gubbröra, men det har jag aldrig gjort själv, bara glufsat i mig mammas och mormors.



In English: having detailed my problems with the "my anchovies aren't anchovies but sprats" conundrum earlier this week, here is a recipe that would probably work just as well with either fish. Not fast, and not very elegant (a broader pasta would do the trick but I didn't have any), but if you like caramelized onions (and I do), this makes for a very pleasant lunch.

Ansjovis- och lökpasta
för två-tre personer

3 stora lökar
en slurk olivolja
8 små ansjovisfileer (hälften av en 80g burk)
5 soltorkade tomater
(en slurk vin eller sherry)
lite persilja
peppar
pasta (själv har jag en konstig med fullkornsspagetti, men man tager såklart vad man haver lust för)

Skiva löken fint och fräs den mjuk i en ordentlig slurk olja (använder jag oljedränkta tomater så tar jag av den) på relativt hög värme. När löken börjar ta färg sänks värmen och stekningen fortsätts (under omrörning) tills den är helt igenom gyllenbrun.

Tärna den soltorkade tomaten och ansjovisen fint och blanda dem med löken, eventuellt också med en slurk vin eller sherry. Koka i några minuter, smaka av med peppar och blanda i persiljan.

Blanda med den färdigkokta pastan i kastrullen och servera genast, med parmesan om du inte är Fiskpasta Utan Ost!!!-purist.

Sprat & Onion Pasta
serves 2-3
3 large onions
a tbsp or two of olive oil
8 small sprat filets (or anchovies, about 40 g drained fish)
5 sun-dried tomatoes
(a few tbsp of wine or sherry)
a few tbsp of fresh parsley
pepper to taste
pasta

Slice the onion thinly and soften on moderate heat in the oil (if I'm using oil-stored tomatoes, I use oil from the jar). Once it starts getting a bit of color, lower the heat, cover, and keep frying, stirring every now and then, until the onion is a deep golden brown color.

Chop the sprats and tomatoes finely and add to the onions, possibly with a splosh of wine or sherry. Keep frying for a few minutes, then toss in the parsley and season with freshly groud black pepper. Mix with the pasta and serve immediately, with parmesan if you don't disapprove of the cheese-and-fish combo.

Recipe after the jump!

Pasta with Asparagus and Shrimp

Depending on where you live, you may already be sick to death of asparagus, but over here I've just barely started finding decent ones. And I always knew that the first batch would go to this, a recipe my mom came upon sometime last year.

I've always found boiling asparagus to be incredibly tricky - the timing between just right and eeww, mushy has always been a problem - especially as you need to time whatever goes with it accordingly. Grilling and roasting is somehow less fussy, and in this recipe the asparagus is actually fried in a bit of butter until tender (and maybe a bit browned, yum), then mixed with parmesan, shrimp and a creamy lobster sauce.



The lobster fond I use (and that the recipe called for) is a bought concentrate (Touch of Taste, anyone?), but I'm sure if you're the kind of person who makes his/her own stock, shrimp/lobster/crayfish stock would work even better. Just beware that the amount called for here is undiluted concentrate and adjust accordingly.

Pasta with Asparagus and Shrimp
originally from Hufvudstadsbladet, I've upped the wine a bit and reduced the lobster fond
1 pound (500 g) shrimp (or however much unpeeled shrimp it takes to make one pound, er, shrimp)
2 pounds (1 kg) fresh green asparagus
2 tbsp butter
1 cup (250 ml) grated parmesan
1.5 cup (350 ml) crème fraîche (I used low-fat, but make sure it's a type that doesn't separate when heated)
½ cup (120 ml) dry white wine
3 tbsp concentrated lobster fond/stock
pinch of cayenne
flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Cut the asparagus into slanted slices, about half-inch long. Brown the butter slightly and fry the asparagus for a few minutes, stirring constantly. Set aside and stir in the grated parmesan.

In a separate pan, bring the crème fraîche, lobster fond and wine to a boil and let simmer gently for five minutes. Season with cayenne, mix in the shrimp. Keep on the stove just until the shrimp's heated through, then mix with the asparagus and parsley and serve immediately with pasta.

Serves 3-4.

Recipe after the jump!