Soba Salad

__________________________________________________

            FOOD FUNNY
__________________________________________________

Thanks to lifetime subscriber Terra Andromeda for this look at some
startling statistics:

1. More than 98 percent of convicted felons are bread users.

2. Fully HALF of all children who grow up in bread-consuming
households score below average on standardized tests.

3. In the 18th century, when virtually all bread was baked in the
home, the average life expectancy was less than 50 years; infant
mortality rates were unacceptably high; many women died in childbirth;
and diseases such as typhoid, yellow fever, and influenza ravaged
whole nations.

4. More than 90 percent of violent crimes are committed within 24
hours of eating bread.

5. Bread has been proven to be addictive. Subjects deprived of bread
and given only water begged for bread after as little as two days.

6. Bread is often a "gateway" food item, leading the user to "harder"
items such as butter, jelly, peanut butter, and even cold cuts.

7. Bread has been proven to absorb water. Since the human body is
more than 90 percent water, it follows that eating bread could lead to
your body being taken over by this absorptive food product, turning
you into a soggy, gooey bread-pudding person.

8. Newborn babies can choke on bread.

9. Bread is baked at temperatures as high as 400 degrees Fahrenheit!
That kind of heat can kill an adult in less than one minute.

10. Most bread eaters are utterly unable to distinguish between
significant scientific fact and meaningless statistical babbling.

__________________________________________________

            TODAY'S RECIPE
__________________________________________________

In Asia, noodles are often eaten chilled or at room temperature as
with this classic Japanese preparation. Soba are Japanese noodles
made from buckwheat flour, and if they are unavailable in your area
(look in the Asian section of your supermarket), any noodle can be
used instead.

Soba Salad

2 packages (5 oz, 140 g each) soba noodles
1 carrot, cut into 2-inch (5 cm) match sticks
4 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in warm
water for 20 minutes, stems removed, thinly sliced
1 scallions, cut into 2-inch (5 cm) match sticks
1 small cucumber, halved, seeded, and cut into 2-inch
(5 cm) match sticks
1/4 cup (60 ml) daikon or radishes, cut into match sticks

For the dressing:
4 Tbs (60 ml) peanut oil
3 Tbs (45 ml) lemon juice
3 Tbs (45 ml) soy sauce
1 Tbs (15 ml) sesame oil
2 tsp (10 ml) grated fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Cook the noodles and carrot in boiling salted water according to the
package directions for the noodles. Drain and rinse with cold water.
Toss with the remaining vegetables in a large serving bowl. Whisk
together the ingredients for the dressing and pour over the noodles.
Toss until thoroughly blended. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Serves 4 to 6.
Received on Tue Apr 6 18:07:00 2004