Green Garlic and Soba Noodles, The Joy Of

The soba noodle intrigues me — it's a visual and tactile experience.

I'd been looking for an opportunity for in-home experimentation, and happened across a crispy tofu, green garlic and soba noodle recipe from NYT's Martha Rose Shulman.

I enjoy finding recipes and bringing them to life. In general, people like to eat too. So it wasn't hard to find an eager audience on a Tuesday evening.

This dish was easy enough to prepare if you can do a bit of chopping. The key, as with many Asian dishes is to cook fast over high heat and served promptly.

Soba is served!

Here are a few points —  most subjective — from this amateur gastronome:

• The recipe- NYT notes that if you can't locate soba noodles you can use brown rice or another hearty grain. I'd go to lengths to get the soba. Order them online if you must — they're essential to this dish.
• Grape Seed Oil- Required to "wok" the tofu.
• Wok- There's just no substitute for high-temp cooking.
• Seasonal Green Garlic- it's here and gone in a flash — get going! The bulbs can be pink or purple hued.
• Garlic Flavor- Subtle, earthy,  even a bit buttery.
• Reviews? Rave!

I'd like to send Martha Rose a big bouquet of green garlic for sharing this special recipe!

Now, who'd like to sample more soba recipes?

Moving? Go, But Pack Only Good Energy

Do I really need this?

Before I moved across the country, I had the pleasure of meeting @TheLisaDShow. An emigre from TX, she has candidly chronicled the experience of being in a new locale with family in tow.

She is celebrating the 1 year anniversary of the move, and you can view it here. She's a darn good blogger, and Evanston is lucky to have her. I especially like items #11 through #19. @TheLisaDShow, will you permit me to piggyback and add a few points of my own?

First, I am not my belongings and my belongings aren't me. It's a long story but I gotta have my stuff until I don't. Surprise, there is plenty of stuff in SF, and I need little of it. Shelter, warmth, a nosh, and wifi make the top four.

Second, leverage the undiscovered path. It will lead you to a vibrant sense of being. I won't go as far as to suggest I'm there yet. There is no recreating the life you had, but there is a new one waiting to be had. Again, not there yet, but I think it'll be pretty awesome.

Third, life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans. I'll ruin this if I elaborate, so enough said.

Fourth, if something isn't working, do something else. Anything is better than nothing. This relates to LisaD's point about jobs finding those who 'seek' or 'make' them. If you put a little positive energy into the universe, it will return the favor.

Fifth, create a little demand and you'll be in demand. This follows from point #4 I think.

Sixth, chill out and be yourself. Back to that positive energy thing.

Seventh, always move forward. That's right, learn from the past for the present and the future. The journey ahead is always way more interesting.

What else?