Wintergreen Miso Paste (and 10 Ways to Use It)

 A green, herbal miso paste with some garlic, rounded off with lots of chives, coriander, ginger and some rosemary. Plus ten easy uses!

Let's talk abbreviations! Keeping a rainbow-colored array of homemade curry pastes in the freezer is one of my favorite, slightly tricky, cooking strategies. Modified miso pastes also fall into this category. A few times a year I take an hour or two and make a selection of my favorite pastas. I freeze them in snack-size bags and stack them in the freezer for a quick thaw for weeknight curries, hearty broths, and pasta bowls.

Many of you are familiar with this turmeric lemongrass curry paste (a longtime favorite), and today's recipe is a lovely rosemary alternative. It's a herbaceous green miso paste with a touch of garlic, topped off with lots of chives, coriander and ginger. The soupy bowl of noodles pictured above is a green winter miso soup along with noodles, toasted cubes of tofu with winter miso (notes below), and hemp seeds. Also lots of chopped chives and some leafy broccoli (cooked in the pasta water at the last minute). I'm also including ten other ways I like to use it, but I'm sure you can think of more! :)

Ideas and variations:

-Wintergreen Miso Soup: Add 1 large (!) tablespoon of miso paste to 4 - 6 cups of hot water (barely simmering) for a green miso soup with herbs. Add more pasta to taste and salt to taste for more flavor.

- Wintergreen Miso Guacamole: For a guacamole twist, mix a tablespoon of miso paste into a ripe avocado, along with a squeeze of lemon or lime juice and a pinch of salt.

- Winter Miso Veggie Burgers: Add a big dollop to your favorite veggie burgers

- Wintergreen Miso-Roasted Tofu: (Shown in a noodle bowl) Cut the tofu into small cubes and mix with a generous amount of noodles. Place on a baking sheet and bake at 375F until tofu is golden.

- Roasted Wintergreen Miso: Same idea as tofu. Place in a bowl with some pasta, place on a baking sheet and toast at 375°F until golden brown. I love this approach of plump slices of tender squash, broccoli florets, and cauliflower.

- Wintergreen Miso Vegetable Bowl: Prepare a broth with half water, half cashew milk and a large amount of miso paste. In a separate pan, cook chopped onion/shallot, add some of your favorite veggies and some tofu. Mix the cashew stock with the vegetable mixture and finish with a generous dollop of lime juice. Season to taste with salt and/or more winter miso paste.

- Winter Miso Mashed Potatoes: You know this goes great mixed with your best mashed potatoes, right?

- Winter Miso Salad Wraps: Spread the lettuce wraps out a bit, they really light up.

- Wintergreen Miso Ravioli/Dumpling Bowl: Make a quick miso soup with the noodles. Cook your favorite ravioli or dumplings in a separate pot. Drain, transfer to individual bowls, scoop out the miso and finish with some fried shallots and/or toasted almonds.

Ingrediaents

1/2 cup organic miso

2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

4 medium garlic cloves, peeled

2 tablespoons fresh rosemary

2 bunches of coriander, leaves and stems

16 chives, chopped

Ginger in 2-inch segments, peeled

Instruction

Use a food processor or blender to puree all the ingredients into a paste. Taste, season and use.

Notes

Makes about 2 cups.

To make the noodle bowl pictured, prepare a simple pot of wintergreen miso soup. Cook pasta on the side and add some broccoli at the last minute. drain. Roast miso-coated tofu (and/or veggies) in a 375F oven until deep golden. Arrange the noodles, broccoli and tofu in bowls, pour over the miso soup and finish with hemp seeds and lots of chives. Enjoy!