PASTA****Noodle Salad with Spicy Peanut Butter Dressing

By Unblond1

This was good for both. It's a nice make ahead. I put shrimp in it but it would handle chicken as well.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons low-salt chicken broth
• 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 3/4 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon oriental sesame oil
• 1/2 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 4 ounces linguine, broken in half
• 1/2 large orange bell pepper, cut into matchstick-size strips
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions
• 10 spears asparagus, cut on the diagonal and lightly steamed, or equivalent amount of raw broccoli
• 1 small carrot, julienned
• 1 stalk celery, julienned
• 4 oz. Cooked shrimp, chicken or other protein of choice
• 2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tbsp. chopped salted peanuts
• lime wedges to serve, optional
• I didn't use the cilantro or the peanuts and topped it with crispy fried shallots/onions and a sprinkle of Gomasio instead.

Preparation

Step 1

Combine first 8 ingredients in small jar; shake well to blend. Set dressing aside.

Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta; transfer pasta to medium bowl and toss sith dressing while still warm. Add remaining ingredients, season salad with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with cilantro and peanuts and serve.