soba noodles with roasted zucchini, cherry tomatoes + swiss chard pesto

It's been quiet around here recently, and for a good reason. This little space of mine is getting an well-deserved update, and I should be up and running with the new site next week. 

But while that has been going on behind the scenes, the late summer vegetables are still lingering, in my backyard as well as in the market, and knew I needed to jump back on here and share one last late summer favorite. I hope you haven't moved onto butternut squash on me already.  

It's kind of that in-between season time right now, the days are still warm but at night the chilly air is sneaking it's way in, and before we know it jackets will make their way back into our daily wardrobe. It right about this time that I start roasting my veggies instead of eating them raw, and this is one of those recipes I will be using to get my last bit of late summer indulgence on. 

 

This swiss chard pesto is a new one for me and I've been putting it on anything and everything. I've make kale pesto, and I've made plenty of basil varieties, but this swiss chard pesto is going to be a new staple. Plus it is just another way for me to use and freeze the mass amounts of swiss chard I ended up with in my garden this season.

soba noodles with roasted zucchini, cherry tomatoes + swiss chard pesto

Serves
2-4 people

Ingredients

a pint (about 2 cups) of cherry tomatoes
2 yellow zucchini, shredded with a julienne peeler or by hand
2 green zucchini, shredded with a julienne peeler or by hand
a drizzle of olive oil
salt+pepper 

1 package of soba noodles

for the swiss chard pesto:
a big bunch of swiss chard (any type of chard will do, I used rainbow chard) 
1/4 cup of pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup of walnuts
1 clove of garlic, minced
a squeeze of 1/2 a lemon
a pinch or two of salt + pepper
a pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
1/4-1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil

optional topping: chopped pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, red pepper flakes

Method

Roast the zucchini + tomatoes:

• Pre-heat the oven to 400º.
• Place the cherry tomatoes and the shredded zucchini on a parchment lined baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. 
• Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the tomatoes and zucchini start to brown. 

While the vegetables are roasting, prepare the chard pesto:

• Place all of the ingredients, expect for the olive oil, into a food processor and pulse several times. Then, while the food processor is running, add in the olive oil in a slow stream until you have the consistency you like. 
• Once everything is incorporated, give the pesto a taste and adjust any seasoning accordingly. Sometimes I find it needs a little more lemon juice, or a little more salt/pepper. 

When the vegetables are done roasting, prepare the soba noodles. 

• Bring a pot of water to a boil, and cook the noodles according to the directions on the package. 
• A few tips for cooking soba noodles to keep them from sticking: make sure you stir them gently a couple of times when they are in the boiling water to prevent sticking while they are cooking, then rinse them with cold water after you strain the boiling water. 

Assemble the dish:

• Spoon the pesto over the noodles and toss until the all the noodles are coated with the pesto. Then add in the zucchini and toss again to combine. Lastly, set the tomatoes on top. You can finish off with some chopped pumpkin seeds, and some red pepper flakes if you like.