Foodie Friday: Spicy Peanut Butter Noodles in a Box Recipe

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As I mentioned, my husband and I held a pop-up art gallery event this summer we’ve dubbed Art + Cocktails Truro. We showcased 96 works of art from about 30 different artists throughout our home on Cape Cod. Last week I posted an array of paintings and next week I will show you a sampling of the photography we exhibited.

Today, however, is Foodie Friday and we’re going to talk about a spicy peanut butter noodle recipe.

Peanut Butter Noodles In Chinese Take Out Containers

Photo by Samara Vise for StyleCarrot

In a moment of insanity I decided I wouldn’t need a caterer for the event.I figured I would spend the two days prior whipping up the food myself. After all, I had catered parties in my 20s. Ha. The guest list got out of hand and soon I had 90 RSVPs. I frantically called around and got two different gourmet take-out places to provide tuna tartare on rice crackers, filet mignon crostini, and two kinds of chicken skewers.

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Photo by Samara Vise for StyleCarrot

I could take care of the rest. The rest consisting mainly crostini bar fixings, cheese boards, marinated olives, herbed nuts, and such.

How to Create a Crostini Bar

Photo by Samara Vise for StyleCarrot

I needed one substantial dish though. Aiming for an Instagrammable, Pinterest-worthy event (after all I am a blogger), early on I ordered mini Chinese take-out containers made from Kraft paper and bamboo sporks. I settled on filling them with spicy sesame noodles.

Spicy Peanut Butter Noodles In Chinese Take Out Containers

Photo by Samara Vise for StyleCarrot

My son and I broke out the lobster pot. He boiled ten packages of spaghetti in two batches while I concentrated on not blowing up the blender with the peanut butter. I did a mash up of a few different spicy peanut butter noodle recipes I pulled from Pinterest pics, based on what seemed easiest and tastiest. The resulting recipe went something like this:

Spicy Peanut Butter Noodles in Chinese Takeout Boxes

Noodles
1 box of spaghetti

Sauce
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 tablespoon ginger, minced
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 tablespoon sesame oil
4 tablespoons soy sauce
4 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons Sriracha
2 tablespoons honey

Garnish
Matchstick carrots
Red bell pepper
Cilantro

Boil noodles, rinse, drain. Make sure they’re not all clumpy. Mix the sauce ingredients in a blender. Pour sauce over noodles. Use clean hands to mix together. Set up your boxes, add noodles to each. Top with garnishes. You could also use cucumber, scallion, chopped peanuts, and sesame seeds. Stick a fork in it. Serve on a tray.

Big thanks to photographers Samara Vise for mixing the noodles and Michael J. Lee for garnishing.

Get the Look: 25 Bar Cabinets, Classic and Contemporary

A million years ago, we offloaded our television in the living room, leaving an extra roomy could-be bar cabinet free and clear. It soon became a convenient space, given its boxy shape, to store art we weren’t displaying, extra picture frames, and overflow throw pillows. A television has since taken up residence again with a new DVD player, specifically for me to watch movies (since I don’t know how to work the main TV with its fifty-buttoned five remotes), or currently, Friday Night Lights (OMG, Tim Riggins).

I had the best intentions; I imagined transforming the newly vacant slot, complete with pull-out shelf, into a stylish home bar cabinet for my husband. I thought about it a lot, knowing it would make a much appreciated birthday gift. But no follow through from me. Instead, liquor bottles remain relegated to the upper cabinet of the pantry, with some of the more attractive specimens on display atop the would-be bar cabinet in a teal lacquer bar tray, provided by the lovely ladies at an agency for Absolut. (You can see my bar tray styling post here.)

So, woe is my husband’s home bar situation. Jon Draper he shall never be. But if you have room in your living room, you could set up a stylish home bar in one of these 25 bar cabinets chosen from a dozen of my favorite sources for modern and classic furnishings, including some partner sites. Imagine tucking one of these bar cabinets into an unused corner, complete with a shiny cocktail shaker, sleek drinkware, and stripey paper straws.

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S H O P P I N G 

Shop StyleCarrot partners & others for bar cabinets.

1 Italian Bar Cabinet, $7,450 at 1st Dibs.

2 Miranda Cabinet by Bellini Modern Living, $1,616 at AllModern

3 Mid-Century Modern Wood & Brass Bar Cabinet, $750 at Chairish.

4 Anna Green Lacquer Bar Cabinet, $3,598 at ShopTen25

5 Elixir Mini Bar, $299 at CB2.

6 Solomon Acacia Bar Cabinet by Arteriors, $3,792 at AllModern.  

7 Victuals Cherry Bar Cabinet, $2,499 at Crate & Barrel. 

8 Ayers Bar Cabinet, $1,546.77 at AllModern

9 Soft Modern Bar Cabinet, $135 at AllModern.

10 Orient Express Bar, $1,449.95 at Wayfair.

11 Claude Walnut Bar, $2,095 at Jonathan Adler

12 Peralta Wine Bar Cabinet, $454.51 at Wayfair.

13 One Fifth Trunk Bar by Ralph Lauren, $14,385 at Bloomingdale’s. 

14 Green Lacquered Mid-Century Modern Bar, $1,455 at Chairish

15 Ino Bar Cabinet by Giorgetti at Switch Modern.

16 Delphine Mirrored Bar, $2,995 at Jonathan Adler

17 Crawford Hollywood Regency Bar Cabinet, $4,950 at ShopTen25.  

18 Lawson Bar, $2,470.50 at Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams.

19 Cosmopolitan Mirrored Strips Bar Cabinet, $577.48 at AllModern.

20 Rutherford Demilune Bar Cabinet by Safavieh,$257.86 at AllModern.

21 Zoe Hospitality Cabinet, $724 at AllModern.

22 Swig Mini Bar, $429 at CB2.

23 Clive Bar Cabinet, $2,499 at Crate & Barrel.

24 Baron Deco Bar Cabinet, $799 at West Elm.

25 Edvard and Tove Kindt-Larsen Walnut Bar Cabinet, $20,000 at 1st Dibs

•            •           •

Marimekko Holiday Gift Guide: For the Entertainer

This is a three-part holiday gift guide series sponsored by Marimekko, one of my favorite home design companies.

S H O P P I N G

1 Räsymatto Oilcloth Placemat, $24
Durable and easy to clean, it’s not  just the pattern that makes this perfect for young families.  It’s made of 100 percent cotton and phthalate-free PVC coating.

2 Räsymatto Teapot, $87
Sami Ruotsalainen designed this teapot as part of the Oiva dinnerware collection. The clean lines and serene character are inspired by Japanese design. The handle is natural wood and there’s a porcelain tea strainer inside.

3 Socks Rolled Down Glass Pitcher, $89
Sukat Makkaralla, which means “socks rolled down” in Finnish, is a collection of glassware designed by Anu Penttinen. The size and shape works for flowers too.

4 Lumimarja Dinner Plate, $27
Sami Ruotsalainen designed this subtle wintry pattern for Marimekko, which is a new addition to the brand’s pattern line.

5 Kippis Tea Towel Set, $36
Pretty linen-cotteon blend towels are great stocking stuffers, because really, who splurges on these for her own kitchen?

6 Vattenblank Plywood Tray, $82
Trays are made of fabric that has been pressed into birch plywood and laminated. The bright design shows off plain white dishes to perfection.

7 Socks Rolled Down Dessert Bowl, $49
Serving dessert is extra sweet on a pedestal. Anu Penttinen designed this whimsically named collection.

8  Irrbloss Mug, $49
Sami Ruotsalainen designed this mug as part of the Oiva dinnerware collection, using Astrid Sylwan’s abstract Irrbloss pattern.

9 Kuukuna Apron, $49
This new veggie print is super cute, and the dark color will hide your mess. Plus, it has handy deep pockets.

10 Vanhakaupunki Small Bowl, $20
This new design was also designed by Sami Ruotsalainen . The red, gold, and burgundy palette makes it perfect for breakfast on Christmas morning.

11 Lappuliisa Oven Mitt, $24
Makes baking more fun.

12 Socks Rolled Down Tumbler, $39/pair
These distinctive glasses are hand-blown and handmade of solid stained soda-lime glass with colors that run inside the glass, not just on the surface.

13 Oiva Serving Pot, $65
Not just for the table, this piece is practical too, since they’re dishwasher, freezer and microwave safe.

14 Siirtolapuutarha Plate, $35
Maija Louekari created this pattern for the forms in the collection so that each piece tells a different part of the story. 

15 Siirtolapuutarha Espresso Cup & Plate, $35
This set is the newest addition to the Oiva tableware collection. In addition to this Räsymatto (means “rag rug” in Finnish) pattern, designed by Maija Louekari, it comes in solid white.

16 Oiva Pitcher, $52
The silhouette of this pitcher, made of hard, glazed porcelain like the rest of the line, is beautiful enough to display it full time.