Thai Salad with Creamy Cilantro Peanut Dressing

Friends don't let friends eat crappy food. I'm so lucky to have some dear friends who appreciate recipes that don't involve cream-of-anything or massive amounts of heavy cream. I'll admit, there was a time when I thought it tasted good (okay, I still think some of those things taste good), but when I indulge I'd much rather it were on a baked good-like the cheesecake posted below. This recipe that my friend Courtney found is so fresh and delicious. We enjoyed it for dinner and I ate it for lunch as long as it would last- even when I was out of bell peppers and bean sprouts and only down to greens, carrots, and a bit of dressing. I can't wait to make it again and again.


Ingredients

Salad
1/4 lbs whole wheat angel hair pasta
3 cups finely shredded green cabbage
2 cups finely shredded romaine lettuce
1 cup shredded carrot
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 cup shelled edamame beans (find in the frozen foods section)
2 cups bean sprouts
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/3 cup chopped raw peanuts

Creamy Cilantro Peanut Dressing
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup all-natural smooth peanut butter
1 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil
1/2-3/4 cup canola oil
juice of 1 lime + lime zest
3 Tbsp. tamari, or soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 Tbsp. fresh ginger
2 Tbsp. honey
1 teaspoon or small piece of dried chipotle pepper (a small piece of canned chipotle in adobe may be substituted) * I didn't have this on hand, but want to try it next time, I did a dash of chili powder
1 ½ cups fresh cilantro leaves (about 1/2 bunch)
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
green onion, to taste



Directions
1.Cook the whole wheat angel hair pasta until al dente. Combine the pasta, cabbage, lettuce, carrot, red pepper, and edamame in a large bowl. Toss with Creamy Cilantro Peanut Dressing.

2. To prepare dressing, combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend well. Make sure that it is smooth and creamy. Store in the refrigerator for 7-10 days. Makes 1 ¼ cups.
3. To serve, on a large platter or individual dishes, plate the salad and top with bean sprouts, cilantro leaves, and peanuts. Serves 4-6.

Note: Since I knew Siena wouldn't eat salad for dinner, I make a little extra angel hair pasta and then just topped it with some of the dressing. It was a great alternative that didn't requite any extra work to  make it part of a toddler-friendly dinner.

slightly adapted from My Green Diet  via Posh Ganache