Ginger-Sesame Noodles for Dinner

I recently found The Vegan(ish) Experiment again, which somehow I lost track of a few months ago. She has some amazing recipes that I plan to make in the next week (black bean and millet burgers? Chickpea piccata patties? I'm SO there), but last night I wanted to start with a slight modification of her ginger-sesame noodle salad. This was so delicious that the children all had at least seconds. Music Man made the pasta while I napped and didn't salt the water, so I needed to salt the final dish a bit for my liking. I also added a little Thai chili sauce at the end because I like that sweet heat thing. :)

Ingredients:

1-2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and chopped into a few big pieces
4 t. tamari (or 5-6 t. soy sauce)
4 T. apple cider vinegar
4 T. sesame oil
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/4-1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 box whole wheat spaghetti, cooked according to package instructions
2 bell pepper julienned into ~1/4-inch strips
2 carrots (I grated mine because they're too hard for the baby to chew)
1 onion, sliced thinly
3 cloves garlic
2 c. cauliflower steamed (recipe called for broccoli, but I was out)
2 c. fresh or frozen peas
2 T. sesame seeds, toasted*

Heather's Variation:
1. Mince the ginger using a food processor or high-speed blender, scraping the sides as necessary
2. Add the next five ingredients and blend until fully emulsified.
3. Saute' veggies in a bit of olive oil, add garlic for the last few minutes. This is a LOT of veggies that filled my smallish wok.
4. Pour sauce over veggies and let simmer a few minutes.
5. Pour veggies with sauce into your pasta pot and serve. Give your family seconds and even THIRDS so there's barely enough for your Music Man to take for lunch the next day. :)


Original Directions:

1. Mince the ginger using a food processor, scraping the sides as necessary
2. Add the next five ingredients and blend until fully emulsified.
3. Combine all of the other ingredients in a large container, add dressing, seal, and shake until well-tossed.
4. Chill in the fridge for at least a couple of hours.

*I put the sesame seeds into a dry pan and shook it over a high burner until they started to brown and become fragrant.