Peanut Sesame Soba

Soba luxuriously coated in a nutty, savory sauce... truly slurp-worthy noodles. They're good either cold or warm, and during the heat wave that's bearing down on us currently, I really enjoy nibbling on a chilled portion of these right out of the fridge. I don't add too much greenery to my noodle dishes, but feel free to add ribbons of cabbage or sliced cucumbers to up the refreshing crunch factor.

Peanut Sesame Soba
Makes 2-3 servings

*2 bundles of soba
*3 tablespoons peanut butter

*3 tablespoons Chinese sesame paste
*1 tablespoon soy sauce

*A small nubbin of ginger, peeled and chopped

*2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
*1 teaspoon rice vinegar
*2 teaspoons hot chili sesame oil (or use regular sesame oil + a bit of chili oil)
*A squeeze of honey

*Hot water (about 1/4-1/3 cup)
*1 scallion, thinly sliced

*A small handful of cilantro, chopped
*Toasted sesame seeds and crushed peanuts

Put the soba on to boil for about 5ish minutes. Blend the peanut butter, sesame paste, soy, ginger, garlic, vinegar, sesame oil and honey together in a small food processor with a bit of hot water, and continue adding hot water to thin out the sauce to desired consistency.  Drain, rinse, and re-drain the soba, and then add dollops of the sauce and toss until the soba is dressed to your liking. Garnish with scallion, cilantro, sesame seeds and peanuts.