HEARTh and HOME – Better for You Ramen Miso and Green Onions

October is the half-way point for the fall semester at most colleges and universities. Students are in the midst of studying hard for midterms and midnight snacks become meals. For this fall semester, here are two healthful variations on the college dorm room classic ramen noodles.

Ramen is traditionally a Japanese soup that consists of Chinese-style wheat noodles served in broth that is flavored with soy sauce or miso. Common ingredients include pork, eggs, dried seaweed and green onions. For these recipes, both of our ramens are plant-based and gluten-free. The Varsity Vegetable Ramen does not have noodles with spaghetti squash fulfilling that role.

Both soups are flavored with gluten-free miso and feature green onions. Miso is made of fermented soybeans. It is packed with essential minerals and is a good source of B vitamins, folic acid, as well as vitamins E and K. As a fermented food, it provides healthful probiotics. Green onions are rich in vitamins K, C and A which increase bone health, fight heart disease and boost immunity. They also provide a significant amount of dietary fiber and folate.

Varsity Vegetable Ramen

32 ounces vegetable broth

4 cups water

4 tablespoons light miso paste

2 green onions, chopped

1/3 cup white onion, chopped

2 watermelon radishes, chopped

1 bell pepper, chopped

2 mini sweet peppers, sliced

1 small zucchini, chopped

2-6 dried red chilis

1 tablespoon minced garlic

¼-pound oyster mushrooms

1/3 of a head of cabbage, chopped

¼ cup cilantro, chopped

1 cup heirloom carrots, julienned

½ roasted spaghetti squash (see below)
Salt to taste

Boil water, broth and miso. Add all of the ingredients except the spaghetti squash and mushrooms. Turn to low heat and simmer until radishes are tender (about 30 minutes.)

Place about one cup of spaghetti squash “noodles” into soup bowl. Ladle soup over top. Garnish with mushrooms. Serve immediately.

Roasted Spaghetti Squash

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Slice spaghetti squash lengthwise and scoop out seeds. (Seeds may be set aside and roasted like pumpkin seeds for a snack packed with plant-based protein.) Drizzle each half with about one tablespoon grapeseed oil and sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper. Set on roasting pan with cut-side down. Roast for 35 minutes until it separates into pasta-like strands with a fork. Store leftover squash in airtight container in refrigerator.

Midterm Miso

32 ounces vegetable broth

2 tablespoons dark miso paste

2 tablespoons Huy Fong chili
garlic sauce

2 green onions, chopped

½ cup corn kernels

½ cup edamame (soybeans)

8 oz rice vermicelli

8 ounces extra firm tofu,
cut in ¼ inch cubes

Salt to taste

Bring vegetable broth, miso paste and chili garlic sauce to a boil. Stir in chopped green onion, corn and edamame. Turn down the heat and add rice vermicelli. Let simmer for six to eight minutes or until noodles are soft. Add in tofu cubes and serve immediately.

Janae Jeanserves as editor, social media manager and podcast co-host for Conscious Community Magazine. She enjoys improvising in the kitchen and creating recipes with her loved ones and is very grateful for their suggestions, feedback and assistance. Visit www.perennialmusicandarts.com and www.janaejean.com for updates, articles and more.