Tom Ka Gai

Tom Ka Gai is my favorite food of all time. It's a coconut milk based thai soup that is sweet and spicy and amazing. Usually there is chicken or shrimp in this soup, and almost always fish sauce, so after crossing over to the dark side I had to figure out how to make this one for myself. Luckily, with a trip to the Asian grocery store, this one is pretty simple.

Ingredients: for the spice blend...
1 small lime (zest and juice)
1 inch (or 2T) fresh ground ginger
1 t coriander
1 t cumin
2 large cloves of garlic
1 t salt
1 t red pepper flakes (or more if you like spicy soup)
2 stalks lemongrass
for the rest...
8 ounces chopped shitake mushrooms
1/2 sweet onion, diced
2 T olive oil
2 - 14 oz cans of lite coconut milk
1 T veggie fish sauce (most Asian markets sell this alongside regular fish sauce)
1 T veggie broth powder (or you could add a cup of strong, good quality veggie broth)
2+ T of chopped fresh cilantro
To make this really easy, I toss the lime juice and zest through the red pepper flake into a food processor with a few tablespoons of water and pulverize that into a spice paste. Then, heat the olive oil in a heavy bottom stock pot over medium high heat, cook the onion until it's translucent, add the shitakes, cook about 10 more minutes until the mushrooms are wilted and have released their juices. Add the spice blend and cook for 5 more minutes. Then add both cans of coconut milk and the veggie broth powder and fish sauce. Stir to blend and reduce heat to medium low.

The last thing you want to do is take the stalks of lemongrass, peel away the tough outer leaves and then bruise (either by pressing down on the whiteish stalk with a spoon or fork, or literally picking up and bending with your hands, a la one of those glow sticks you bend and crack to release the glowing juices inside before heading out to the club circa 1994). Put your bruised lemongrass stalks in the mix.
Cook for 30 minutes or more if you'd like. Taste to see if it's salty enough for you and spicy enough for you. Before serving, remove the lemongrass stalks (or leave 'em in there, just don't scoop them into your bowl).
Top each bowl with 1 T of more of chopped cilantro. I also usually squeeze just a little more fresh lime juice over the top of each bowl.

Udon Noodles with Spicy Peanut Sauce

Udon noodles may seem really exotic, but you can pick them up at your local grocer . I prefer the cool Asian grocery on the other side of town, it may smell like canned fish and pork buns, but they sell cheap nail polish and fresh tofu (and udon noodles).

Ingredients:
1 package of fresh or frozen Udon noodles
2 scallions
handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
1/4 c peanut butter (natural, not the stuff with added sugar, though if that is all you have, just leave our or reduce the agave syrup)
2 T tahini (or a bit more peanut butter)
1 T rice vinegar (or white vinegar)
1 T fresh ginger (or 1 t powdered)
1 t thai chili garlic sauce (or a clove of fresh garlic, minced, and 1 t red chili flake)
1/3 c hot water
1 t salt
1 t cumin
1 T agave syrup (or maple syrup, or sugar if you have to)

1. Blend peanut butter through agave until smooooooth and creamy.
2. Heat over medium until warm and thick
3. Pour over Udon noodles (no cooking necessary unless they were frozen, in which case, stick 'em in a pot of boiling water for 3 minutes)
4. Garnish with chopped chives and lots of fresh cilantro.

Raw(ish) Pad Thai

Okay, this isn't entirely raw, but it's damn close. It gives you all of the benefits of lots of fresh, raw veggies, but with the spicy, tasty punch of pad thai (thanks to a nearly-raw sauce that takes seconds to whip up!)
Pad Thai Base (aka, the noodles):
2 zucchinis (sometimes I sub cucumbers)
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 yellow bell pepper
1/2 small red onion
2-3 green onions
2 carrots
1/2 head of cabbage (I like savoy best)
Spiral slice or julienne or very thinly slice all veggies to make a noodle-like bowl of beautiful goodness.
Sauce:
1/2 c natural peanut butter
3 T soy sauce or tamari
3 T maple syrup (or agave, or a combo)
3 medjool dates (pited and soaked for a bit)
2 T rice vinegar
1 T fresh crushed ginger
juice from a small lemon
juice from a small lime
1 t thai chili garlic sauce (or red pepper flake, about 1/2 t, and some crushed garlic)
Combine all ingredients in a high-speed blender (or Magic Bullet) until super creamy.
Toss all veggies with the sauce in a large bowl and then serve with the following:
Optional additions (that are super tasty!)
Cilantro
Lime wedges
Chopped peanuts or almonds
Bean sprouts