Friday Night Soba Salad

In recent weeks, I've gotten used to my Monday and Friday rest days. One thing I notice from watching what I eat so closely is my ability to respond to my body when I'm tired. I listen to my body when it needs an active recovery day versus pushing another hard workout (which ultimately means a quick burn out). And I *definitely* make sure that I rest on designated rest days. At most, I'll do some yoga but most days, I'm happy doing nothing :)

One thing I'd really like to do on Fridays when we don't have anything planned is to try out a new recipe for dinner. Maybe I'll start a series called 'New Recipe Fridays'! Of course, this is ridiculous since almost everything I'm cooking these days is new :)

This past Friday, I tried out another recipe from catesworldkitchen.com  - Soba Salad with Sesame Miso Dressing. The family loved it!

Soba Salad with Sesame Miso Dressing - (Source: catesworldkitchen.com)

Ingredients

Salad
• 8 ounces soba noodles
• 1 lb extra firm tofu, pressed, drained, and cut into bite-sized cubes
• 1 tbsp grapeseed or canola oil
• 2 cups thinly sliced red cabbage
• 2 carrots, thinly sliced
• 1 portabello mushroom, thinly sliced
• 1 small head broccoli, cut into florets
• 1 avocado, diced
Dressing
• 2 tbsp white miso
• 4 tbsp warm water
• 1 tbsp agave
• 1 tsp sesame oil

Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the tofu and cook for a few minutes on each side, until golden brown. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
2. Add the mushrooms to the pan and saute until soft. Add to the tofu.
3. Heat a large pot of water and cook the soba according to package directions. Drain and rinse well under lots of cold running water. Place in a large bowl.
4. Blanch the broccoli florets by submerging them in boiling water for 1 minute, then transferring them to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain well.
5. Add the tofu, mushrooms, broccoli, carrots, cabbage, and avocado to the bowl with the noodles.
6. To make the dressing, whisk the ingredients together until smooth. Pour as much as desired over the salad and toss well.