Pasta salad became the rage sometime back in the 1970s, though it was little more than macaroni with cheese, onions, peppers and mayonnaise. If you were lucky, the cook may have added some ranch dressing to really kick up the flavors.
Since that time, thank goodness, pasta salads have evolved with new flavors and textures. But one thing has not changed: They are welcome side dishes for spring to help lighten up your menus and give a change from the heavy dishes you may have enjoyed for the past few months.
(READ MORE: Here's how to make pasta salad without using a recipe)
This is a pasta salad that I've been making now for several years. It's from Kikkoman, the makers of, in my opinion, the best soy sauce on the market. I love the fact that it uses ramen noodles and snow peas with some carrots and green onions for a little color and with a sauce of peanut butter, white vinegar, soy sauce and seasonings. That's it, following the KISS philosophy — keep it simple, stupid — while highlighting flavors that are delicious paired with any protein, from seafood to beef pork or chicken.
This makes an excellent choice for a vegetarian dinner, but it's also a nice cold side dish that's a change of pace from all those mayonnaise-based pasta salads.
Spicy Noodle Salad
3 packages dry ramen noodle soup
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 ounces fresh snow peas, trimmed and julienned (frozen and thawed is OK, too)
1 small carrot, shredded
3 tablespoons chopped green onions and tops
Peanut Dressing:
2 tablespoons soy sauce (preferably Kikkoman)
2 tablespoons peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon fresh minced ginger
1/8-¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
In a large pot, bring 2 quarts water to a boil. Break noodle blocks into fourths; discard soup packets or save for stock. Cook noodles for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, then drain and rinse under cold water; drain thoroughly. Place noodles in a large serving bowl, and toss with oil.
Place snow peas in separate bowl, and pour more boiling water over them. Let stand for 30 minutes, then drain thoroughly. Add snow peas, carrots and green onions to noodles. Cover and refrigerate until chilled.
Meanwhile, prepare dressing: Gradually blend soy sauce and peanut butter in small bowl. Stir in vinegar and oil. Add sugar, ginger and cayenne papper. Mix until well blended.
When noodles are chilled, pour dressing over them and toss to coat all ingredients well. Makes 4-6 servings.
A SIP OF TENNESSEE
The annual Sip TN Chattanooga Wine Festival is back this year, scheduled Saturday at First Horizon Pavilion from noon to 4 p.m. The annual event features wines, hard ciders and meads from many local wineries across the state of Tennessee. The wineries that will be sampling and selling their products are Holly Ridge Winery, Beans Creek Winery, Century Farm Winery, Savannah Bee Mead, Mountain Valley Winery, Mill Bridge Hard Cider Co., Hillside Winery, Apple Barn Hard Cider Co., Apple Barn Winery, Tsali Notch Vineyard, Cellar 53 Winery, DelMonaco Winery and Paris Winery. More than 100 wines will be available to sample.
A ticket to this event will grant attendees wine tastings from all the wineries, a souvenir wine glass, a six-bottle wine tote bag and the ability to buy wines directly from the wineries. In addition, there will be nearly two dozen local artisans from Chattanooga Market for shopping and sipping, live music performances and two local food trucks. For anyone looking to appreciate the festival without indulging in any alcoholic beverages, a designated-driver ticket option is available.Tickets are $53, while the limited, designated driver ticket costs $13. Even better, the proceeds from the event stay local, benefiting Tennessee agriculture and small businesses.
To purchase tickets in advance – always a good idea – visit siptn.com/chattanooga.
GO GREEK THIS SPRING
Go online and place your orders now for the spring Greek bake sale scheduled for March 29 at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church. The sale is most always a sellout, so if you get your orders in early, you can take home treats and sweets for Easter, Mother's Day, graduation parties and other special events happening in weeks and months to come.
(READ MORE: Chattanooga church's bake sale sets table with Greek treats for Easter, Mother's Day)
If you've been to the sale before, you know what to expect. For first-timers, you'll find baklava, spanikopita, finikia, tiropitas and much more, plus some new items. They include lemon kok, a sponge cake filled with a lemon-flavored pastry cream and covered with lemon curd — perfect for spring; as well as beef phyllo appetizers, which are sold as frozen, uncooked phyllo stuffed with a spiced beef mixture. And don't forget a tray of pastichio, a pasta dish. Pop it in the oven for dinner right away or put it in the freezer to pull out when you need to feed a crowd.
(READ MORE: Let's eat: Skillet spinach pie)
The church hall, at 722 Glenwood Ave., will be open 8 a.m.-1 p.m. that Friday for the purchase of additional baked goods. The cooks also will be serving hot food items, such as spanikopita and tiropita pockets, hot pieces of pastichio and loukoumades (Greek doughnuts) that customers can enjoy with a cup of coffee.
To place orders, go online to annunciationgreek.org and follow the Bake Sale 2024 link.
PRECIOUS PINEAPPLES
Craving a little pineapple? There's now a way to literally fulfill that wish: a new pineapple weighing less than 2 pounds. The fruit is part of Fresh Del Monte's Precious Honeyglow line and designed to reduce food waste by giving U.S. consumers more sizing options. The option is available exclusively through Melissa's Produce, the nation's largest distributor of specialty produce.
Grown at specialty farms in Costa Rica, Honeyglow pineapples are left to mature and ripen naturally on the plant for a few extra days, resulting in a sweeter taste than traditional pineapples. Precious Honeyglow is the most compact pineapple in the company's history, weighing between 1.5 and 2 pounds, about half the average weight of a full-size traditional fresh pineapple.
"Our new Precious Honeyglow delivers everything that people love about Del Monte Honeyglow pineapples, such as its extra sweet taste and distinct color, in a compact single-serving size," said Melissa Mackay, Fresh Del Monte's vice president of marketing, North America.
According to a Del Monte news release, single-person households are on the rise in the U.S, with more than 28% of American households now occupied by a single person, the second largest proportion of the population. The shrinking size of U.S. households is contributing to greater food waste due to spoilage, which according to the USDA's Economic Research Service, results in 133 billion pounds of food wasted annually, at a value of approximately $161 billion. Internal surveys conducted by Fresh Del Monte show that single-person households are significantly less likely than multiple-person households to prefer full-size whole pineapples, specifically to avoid wasting fruit.
Contact Anne Braly at abraly@timesfreepress.com.
