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Appetites and Adventures

Spinach Shiitake Miso Soup

By

Forever Lazy

 

Ah, how I wish I could be.

Ok, maybe not lazy… but free of work.  If I didn’t have to work, I’d still cook, workout, and travel.  I’ve come to terms with the fact I’m not happy unless my hair is on fire.

And I’d still want one of these:

 

It’s like a Snuggie.  But better.  The Forever Lazy even has snaps in the back for easy bathroom access.

The only thing that would make this more perfect would be if it had feet.

 

They’re buy one get one free right now – just $29.95 for 2!  Who wants to go in on a pair with me?*  It’s 22 degrees… my snuggie is ON right now.  (I’m not kidding, I have a Georgia Tech Snuggie).

*Forever Lazy did NOT ask me to promote the stroke of genius.  I do wish they’d send me a freebie to review!

 ____________________________________________________________________________________

This has become Miso week.

 

With my throat feeling scratchy and the onset of cold weather, warm soup was my dinner craving.  Eying the miso paste (a.k.a. my new love), I decided to try a miso soup.

 

Miso has many health benefits:

  • Loaded with amino acids
  • Aids in digestion
  • Good source of Vitamin B
  • Reduces breast cancer risk
  • High in antioxidants

 

Not to mention it’s delicious.  How is it that I’ve never used miso before?!

This soup came together quickly and the different garnish options added a lot of fun flavors.

 

A couple of tips:

  • Add the first 2 tablespoons of miso and taste to see if you need the third – the strength of the flavor varies depending on the brand a color (lighter = sweeter)
  • Mix it in a small bowl with some of the hot broth before adding to the pot – this eliminates clumps 
  • Don’t skip the garnishes – they make the dish more flavorful and they’re fun to decorate with
  • Get creative!  You can add anything to the base – kelp, daikon, tamarind, wakame (seaweed), shrimp… to name a few!

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Spinach Shiitake Miso Soup

  • 3 oz soba noodles
  • 4 C water
  • 1 C shiitake mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 in piece fresh ginger, minced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 6 oz tofu, cut into small cubes
  • 2 T miso
  • 2 C fresh spinach
  • Garnishes: green onion, carrots, cilantro, sriracha
  • S+P, to taste

 

Cook soba noodles according to package instructions.  Drain, run cold water over the noodles to stop them from cooking, and set aside.

In a pot, add water, ginger, garlic and mushrooms and bring to boil.  Lower heat, just high enough to maintain temperature. 

Spoon a bit of the hot water into a small bowl.  Stir in miso to that it dissolves evenly.  Add back to pot and stir to combine.  Taste, and then add more miso a bit at a time as needed.  Let simmer for a few minutes.

Add tofu, stirring to combine.  Remove from heat and add in spinach leaves, allowing to sit 2-3 mins until tender.  Taste and season with pepper and sea salt as needed.

Garnish with chopped green onion, julienned carrots, fresh cilantro, and sriracha.

Note: “Traditional” recipes use dashi (a Japanese broth containing dried kelp, sardines, and/or skipjack tuna) rather than water as the broth base.  I didn’t have any on hand, but I’m sure it would be fantastic.

Makes 4 side dishes 2 main.

***

Need some healthy baking tips to start the year off right?  Check out my guest post over at My Naturally Frugal Family!

Do you have a Snuggie?  How about a Forever Lazy?

Have you worked with miso before?

 

Comments

  1. Oh how I wish I could be free of work and studying! I would have so much more time for the fun stuff too 😀

    I have never tried miso (that I know of). I also don’t have a snuggie or a forever lazy. Hah! I’m more of a traditional blanket kind of girl. Besides blankets fit two much easier 😉

    Not sure how long you’ve had it but I just noticed your new header and I love it!

  2. This looks gorgeous! 🙂 What a perfectly warming, delicious, and filling cup.
    And I am kind of undecided whether to laugh or bow in respect to the back-flap. Hmmm.

  6. Absolutely beautiful. Miso is one of my faborite soups and it definitely has some great helath benefits. I want one of those snuggles. Have a great day!

  7. The Forever Lazy reminds me of the one piece zip up pajamas from my childhood! Love it! I do have a snuggie (a leopard print one). I won it playing White Elephant one year. 🙂

    And I’ve never cooked with miso before but love ordering it when we’re out for sushi!

  8. A couple years ago, a vendor that I worked with sent me a Snuggie with the name of his company on it for Christmas. I opened it and wore it through the office! I still have it somewhere.

  9. That soup is SERIOUSLY making my mouth water! LOVE it! And I’m digging the Forever Lazy. There is just something wrong with the Snuggies’ cone hat thing-y. I’m just sayin!

  11. Personally I find miso too salty for me, although I love its depth of flavour, so nope I haven’t worked with it before! But I see so many great recipes being done with it though. 🙂 Thanks for this recipe – I loooove spinach and shiitake, and I guess I wouldn’t mind giving miso a try.

    • From what I read it depends on the miso. The lighter varieties are less salty/more sweet. I used a light, but want to try the darker to see the difference.

  12. I love miso – I put it in a lot of sauces and have made miso soup once (which is wierd, why only once?). I love the flavors and the saltiness – delicious. Miso + Vitamin C is my cold remedy combo — and they work!

    I don’t have a snuggie, but I love that you have a GT one. UGA snuggies are cooler, of course, but we can’t all be perfect. 😉

  15. Hey I got one for Christmas. It’s so comfy. Katherine saw PJs like this for adults at TJ Maxx. You know the ones with the trap doors. OK, and I am joking about getting one of these as a gift I ran out and bought one myself! Ha, seriously great looking soup.

    • LOL! Why would I NOT be surprised if you did get one for yourself? I expect your next cocktail post to include a pic of you in the outfit sipping something boozy by the fire.

  16. Bahaha those forever lazy commercials always make me die laughing! I think snuggies have competition 😉
    Thanks for sharing the recipe!

  17. Mmmm I love miso soup!! I’ve never bought miso to make myself though. Stop inspiring me or my kitchen is going to be full or more things than I can handle! 😀 PS I have a snuggie too. Boyman gave it to me Christmas 2009 and I didnt take it off for like three weeks. Have you heard about the snuggie bar crawl in ATL??? LETS GO!!!

  18. Oh man that soup looks so good! I love miso, I always lick the spoon after I scoop some out to use. I would totally wear that Forever Lazy if I were single. Nothing like unsnapping the buttflap on your wife’s adult jammies to ruin the mood, I won’t do that to him. 😉

  22. Um if you ever end up in a forever lazy I’m going to request a photo. Please and thank you. Also this soup looks and sounds fantastic. I’m headed out to our favorite ramen joint tonight but this is on the must make list for sure!

    • Not to worry – there will be MULTIPLE photos if I get one.

      Funny… I almost used ramen noodles instead of soba in this, but the “good” angel won out and I went with soba for the nutritional content. Not that they were bad – I loved the combo.

    • Thank you! I’m a fan of “eating the rainbow.”

      I think they make Snuggies for just about every major school. I found mine at CVS, but I’m sure you can google for one. 🙂

  25. Hahhahaahah I am totally loving the adult onsies, even if they don’t have feet! We have two Snuggies (both given as gifts) and a bizarre knock-off Snuggie that you snap yourself into (a reject gift given to me by my roommate rather than her throwing it out… I use it as a dog blanket, lol!).

    • You know they make dog Snuggies, right? I have to say that miiiiight be taking it a bit far. 🙂

  27. I have used miso, and I love it! And oddly enough, I just made my first dashi last night. I’m vegetarian so I skipped the fish and subbed in shitakes and it was really easy, and really good. Recipe should be on my blog later today!

    This looks delicious, and I’m always looking for another excuse for miso.

    Sadly, I also own two dogs, each of whom have a dog Snuggie.

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