The Worms Crawl In: Summer Soba Noodles

Happy Halloween Week!  We're in full Halloween mode over here.  On Friday night, DH kicked off the weekend by watching Mama.  I started watching it with him, but it was too sad for me.  I didn't get too far into it before crying and going to bed.


On Saturday morning, we did some pumpkin carving.

The original plan was for Thatbaby to put stickers on his pumpkin, but once he saw our carving tools, he wanted to carve a face on his pumpkin.

We ended up watching Paranorman during our carving.  Thatbaby wasn't entirely interested, but Thatboy and I really enjoyed it.  The plot was the same as a grownup horror film - a witch who was put to death casts a spell which raises the dead from the graves every year.  It was dark, it was scary, it was sad - I cried.  I cried a lot.  I cried enough that Thatbaby made fun of me.

I call it a pumpkin carving success.

We ended up eating out Saturday night (more on that tomorrow) but earlier in the week we had a very Halloween-y meal, a bowl full of worms (or soba noodles).  With slivers of tempeh and egg, woven between brown noodles, this bowl kind of looks like something that crawled out of grave.  But it sure doesn't taste like it.  Thatbaby went nuts over the tempeh, eating all of his and then asking for mine.  Thatboy and I like the earthy buckwheat of the soba noodles.  And everyone was a fan of the sweet dressing.

Summer Soba Noodles (from Japanese Home Cooking, as seen on Cate's World Kitchen)

8 ounces tempeh, thinly sliced

1/4 + 3 tbsp soy sauce

2 tsp freshly grated ginger

2 eggs

salt and pepper

3 tbsp sugar

3 tbsp water

2 tbsp rice vinegar

1 1/2 tsp sesame oil

2 bundles soba noodles (about 6 ounces total)

1. Prepare the tempeh: mix the 3 Tbsp soy sauce and ginger, then evenly coat the tempeh slices, cover, and chill for about 4 hours. 
2. Place tempeh in a greased baking dish and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Let cool, then cut into matchsticks.
3. Prepare the eggs: Beat well with a pinch each sugar, salt, and pepper. Heat a small nonstick pan over medium, add the eggs, and cook until set, then flip to cook through. Remove to cool, then cut into thin slices.
4. Prepare the dressing: mix the remaining soy sauce, water, rice vinegar, and sesame oil.
5. Boil the noodles just until tender, then drain and rinse with cold water. Arrange on 2 plates, then pour some of the dressing over the noodles. Arrange the egg and tempeh on the plate.