Courgette and Carrot Noodles with Shitake Mushrooms

I was introduced to zucchini noodles whilst studying raw food at the fabulous Five Elements in Bali four years ago. On a recent trip to the UK I saw zucchini noodles on a supermarket shelf, how far we have come!

Benefit: acting just like noodles these are gluten free, grain free, supporting healthy gut function. Zucchini’s are high in fibre and have a low sugar impact so are very supportive for those on gut clearing programmes. Mixing with carrots adds beta carotene, colour and also different texture.

There are many spiralisers on the market now from handy peeler size to counter top spiralisers with different blades. Encourage your children to spiralise, its such a great way to increase vegetable intake both raw or cooked, there are no rules – spiralise any vegetable!

Ingredients

For the salad:

1 courgette spiralised
1 carrot spiralised
handful shitake mushrooms, chop finely and leave to marinate in 1 dsp of tamari
sesame seeds, to sprinkle over salad
handful of spring onions

Option to add 100% buckwheat noodles: I add a portion of cooked buckwheat noodles, cooked according to the instructions then rested on iced water to keep from breaking as you assemble the salad. Another option and a lower glycemic impact would be to use kelp noodles rich in minerals and not upsetting the gut microbiome by adding a starch load.

For the dressing:

rind of 1 orange
1/2 – 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (depending on how thick you like the dressing)
2 tbsp dark miso paste
1 tbsp tamari
1 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 cup olive oil
¼ cup sesame seeds
1 tsp grated ginger
good sea salt and pepper to taste

Whisk all the ingredients together and check seasoning. Dressing will keep in a glass jar for 2 weeks in a fridge.