SPRING VEG BOX NOODLE SALAD

Healthy Lunch at Work Series: Part 3

Spring is here and here's another Noodle Salad recipe! I'm gathering from social media and previous posts that these Healthy Lunch at Work Series recipes are wildly popular with you, so thought I would share my latest noodle salad creation. This is simply a variation of my Warm Asian Noodle Salad with a few different ingredients (ie. basically the vegetables I received in my Abel & Cole veg box this week: carrots, leeks and kale), but essentially it's the same principle:

Bain-Marie's Noodle Salad Formula

Brown Rice/Buckwheat Noodles + Fresh Veg + Avocado + Asian Dressing + Mixed Seeds/Nuts

Whilst I was eating this lunch, one of my colleagues walking by me actually stopped me mid-conversation (very politely, of course) to ask me where I bought my lunch from because it looked so delicious and she wanted to get the same thing. This was the most awesome thing to be interrupted for! I cheerily proceeded to tell her I'd actually just whipped this up in our office kitchen in under 10 minutes and would be happy to show her how. Happy days! :)

Feel free to experiment with your favourite veg. It's such a fun, delicious, nutritious and comforting lunch! In this version, I have included Shiitake mushrooms (always on my desk in dried form), chopped kale, leeks and julienned carrots. I prefer Julienning carrots into beautiful long spaghetti-like strips, much nicer texture, flavour and appearance than simply slicing them in small discs. However, this does require having a Julienne Peeler. If you don't have one I highly suggest buying one, as it is such an amazing and inexpensive kitchen tool that will revolutionise what you can do with vegetables, especially courgettes and carrots. I may have to get another one just for work... the things I will be able to have for lunch now... oh wow getting very excited about a whole new world of possibilities!

I've been having a different version almost every day this week, depending on what veg I grab from the fridge in the morning. A few evenings ago, I grated too much beetroot for a salad I was making that night, so I popped the extra grated beetroot in a tupperware and threw it in my noodle salad the next day along with some greens and mushrooms (I was so hungry that day I didn't manage to take a photo). But I promise it was very pretty and pink; I will share it with you next time.

Until then, happy Noodle Salad making and please share your creations with me via Email, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter using #bainmarieblog. Always fabulous to see what you real foodies are creating!

Veg Box Noodle Salad

Serves 1

Prep time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 pack of organic buckwheat or brown rice noodles
• 1/2 medium avocado, cubed
• handful of fresh greens (I used kale today), finely chopped
• 1/2 carrot, julienned
• 1/2 leek, sliced
• 2-3 dried Asian mushrooms, soaked and sliced (you can also use fresh shiitake mushrooms)
• fresh herbs (optional)

Dressing:

• juice of quarter lemon or 1 tb of apple cider vinegar
• 1 tb of sesame oil
• 1 tb of olive oil
• 1 tb tamari
• 1 tsp of miso

Extra Fun Toppings:

• mixed seeds
• cashew chunks
• chilli flakes

Instructions:
1. Soak the Asian mushrooms in a mug of boiling water gills facing down half an hour before you start doing anything else, this allows them to soak up the moisture and plump up nicely, ready to be sliced.

2. After half an hour, drain the water and slice the mushrooms thinly.

3. Place a portion of noodles in a rectangular tupper ware and cover with boiling water. Add kale, carrots, mushrooms and leeks into the boiling water and make sure it is all immersed in hot water. Microwave for 2 minutes or until noodles are cooked to your liking, I like them quite al dente not mushy.

4. Whilst noodles are cooking, cube the avocado and prepare the dressing by mixing all ingredients in a small bowl.

5. Remove tupperware from microwave and drain noodles and veg. Place noodles and veg in a bowl and add avocado.

6. Drizzle with the dressing.

7. Sprinkle with chilli flakes, mixed seeds and cashews.

8. Enjoy!