Spelt Noodles With Sugar Snap Peas

Nothing like a bowl of cool noodles when it is scorching hot outside. I used organic spelt to make this dish. Spelt is also known as farro and is a species of wheat. It has been around since medieval times. Spelt requires less pesticide to grow and there has been recent movement by organic farmers to make this ancient grain popular again. It is not gluten free, actually it is high in gluten, protein, fiber and has a lovely nutty flavour to it. I have yet to cook whole spelt but definately liked the noodles.

This salad is pretty straightforward to make and can be made ahead and served cold. I have used light soy sauce in this recipe. If you are using the regular soy sauce, it would be a good idea to reduce the amount by 1 tablespoon. You could always add more soy sauce but you can"t take any out!

Spelt Noodles With Sugar Snap Peas
Noodles:
2 cups snow peas
4 oz organic spelt udon noodles

Dressing:
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tb light soy sauce
1 tb rice vinegar
1/2 tb honey
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp each dark and lightly sesame seeds - lightly toasted

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and boil noodles according to instructions on the package.
Meanwhile blanch cleaned and washed snow peas. I like my vegetables crunchy, so I blanched it for one minute and set in a bowl of cold water ( with some ice cubes in it to stop the cooking process).

Once the noodles are cooked, drain and wash it in cold water. Set aside to drain.
Mix all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl and pour over the drained noodles. Drain the blanched sugar snap peas and add it to the bowl of noodles as well. I sprinkled some chopped cilantro over the noodles right before I served it. Makes 4 servings.