How about a soba noodle?

Okay, okay. So this is my third post today. I have two great reasons for this. First, I have so many pictures and recipes that I have been wanting to post about and today seemed like a good day to do it. Second, I need to work out and I am putting it off.

But really, this recipe is awesome, and if you like ginger and lemon you are going to love it!

My normal routine is to plan out my menu and go grocery shopping on Monday. I usually plan out meals Monday-Friday and assume that there will be leftovers for us to eat over the weekend. That way we spend less on groceries and there is less waste. However, sometimes there are no leftovers and by Sunday I have to scrounge to try to make a meal out of the random ingredients left in my cupboards and fridge. Last Sunday the randomness consisted of leftover ginger root, spinach and shrooms that were about to go bad, and soba noodles.

This is going off topic... but have any of you ever tried soba noodles? They are made out of buckwheat. Many people think buckwheat is a grain, but it is actually a fruit seed related to rhubarb and sorrel making it naturally gluten free and quite nutritious. Soba noodles are traditionally from Japan and commonly served either chilled with a dipping sauce or served in a hot broth. I have been wanting to try these for awhile and was able to pick some up a few weeks ago.

I searched the internet, and found something on Simply Recipes for a lemon ginger sauce with mushrooms and soba noodles. I won't post the recipe on my page, because I still am learning proper food blogging etiquette and I don't know what the protocol is for posting a recipe that I didn't create or change drastically. But you can click here to get the recipe.

I didn't have any butter or fresh herbs so I left those out, and I added some leftover chicken and 2 cups of chopped spinach. Let me tell you, the sauce is out of this world, and I am having a love affair with those soba noodles. The lemon and ginger really shone through, and the bold flavors paired so well with the earthiness of the buckwheat. We ate it as a chilled salad, and I thought it was even better the next day. So if you do attempt this recipe, try to make it a few hours ahead of time or even the day before to let the flavors fuse together.