Thai Sesame Peanut Noodles

Once again I altered a recipe from melskitchencafe.com. All of the recipes I've tried of hers Nick and I have really liked. It is fairly simple and I had pretty much all the ingredients on hand (although I do cook a lot). I made some adjustments to the original recipe by changing the cooking method of the chicken and adding broccoli and more carrots (gotta get those veggies in! :)) I also use whole wheat spaghetti noodles.  Usually I don't like the texture of whole wheat pasta but the whole wheat spaghetti tastes great especially when used in this dish (my husband had no idea because the peanut sauce is brown anyway)!

INGREDIENTS
1/2 c sesame seeds
1/2 c chunky or smooth peanut butter
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 c rice vinegar
1/2 c soy sauce
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (add more if you want it spicier)
1/2 c light brown sugar
8-10 frozen chicken tenders
1 box spaghetti noodles
2 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
4 green onions, sliced
2 medium carrots, grated/shredded
1 bunch broccoli

DIRECTIONS
Chicken:
Place a large piece of foil on a baking sheet. Put frozen chicken tenders on foil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Fold foil to enclose chicken.  Cooke in oven at 350 for about 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked. While chicken is baking make sauce, noodles, and vegetables.  When chicken is done cooking, slice into thin strips.

Sauce:
Toast sesame seeds in a skillet over medium high heat until golden brown. Reserve 1 Tbsp of toasted seeds to sprinkle on top before serving. In a blender or food processor, blend seeds, peanut butter, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, red pepper, and sugar until smooth.  Add 1 Tbsp hot water at a time until the consistency of heavy cream.

Noodles:
Boil water for noodles in a large pot and cook as directed on box, drain, put back in pot, drizzle with peanut oil (or vegetable oil), and toss.  While noodles cook, prepare the vegetables.

Vegetables:
Rinse and cut broccoli florets into bite size pieces.  Fill a medium pot with a half inch of water. Add florets when water begins to boil.  Cover and steam until tender but crisp.  Drain off any excess water. For carrots, rinse, peel, and grate (or you can make long thin strips using the peeler).

Assemble:
To the noodles add chicken, broccoli, carrots, and sauce and then toss until evenly mixed.  Dish onto plates and top with green onions and reserved toasted sesame seeds.

–Melanie