Five Easy Pieces II

Part two of Five Easy Pieces - but can I keep up the pace until I am through?  It's easy on the weekends, and especially when I've got kitty-watch detail both days (I took them in to the vet for their annual vaccinations which means staying home to watch them for a few hours afterwards - one at a time).

Today for lunch was another easy-peasy "salad".  Also taken from the NYTimes Minimalist Mark Bittman, this recipe is a peanut sauce intended to be tossed with cold noodles.  Here are most of the assembled ingredients:

Here is the recipe:

87. Cold not-sesame noodles: Combine about a half-cup peanut butter with a tablespoon soy sauce and enough coconut milk to make the mixture creamy (about a half cup), along with garlic and chili flakes in a blender or food processor. Toss sauce with cooked and cooled noodles, a load of mint, Thai basil, and/or cilantro, and lime juice. Shredded cucumber and carrots optional.

I used chili oil from the Asian food aisle as I could not find chili flakes anywhere.  Trust me, this oil will get the point across.  I wish I had bought carrots.  I've got cilantro for the topping.

The verdict:  VERY creamy sauce.  The coconut milk really helps to un-stick the peanut butter.  That said, the peanut butter was still clearly very dominant even with the other strong ingredients.  I think it could use a tad more chili oil and soy sauce.  The cilantro was a nice touch.  I have enough leftovers for at least 3 other meals I would say.

Here are photos of my kitties who keep me on the straight and narrow:

(NUMBER TWELVE in 2010)