Bringing a little taste of NYC home...

For today's post, I pay homage to my recent Spring Break NYC trip with a couple of my infamous recipe recreations. First up is my version of Momofuku's Spicy Cold Noodles with baby spinach, Chinese sausage, and honey roasted cashews. SO GOOD--especially when it's NOT 15 bucks a bowl (as the dishes are above)! This was so easy, too--a real weeknight quick fix.

Momofuku's Spicy Cold Noodles (Copycat Version)

I started by preparing 8 oz. of soba noodles (boiled for 4-5 minutes in salted water, then cooled thoroughly under cold water and drained).

Then I made a vinaigrette from the following ingredients and poured it over the noodles:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon Thai fish sauce (optional)
1 tablespoon teriyaki sauce
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons sriracha
1 tablespoon miso (you could use another tablespoon of teriyaki)
1 teaspoon hoisin sauce
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

I put the noodles in the fridge while I browned three large links of Chinese sausage (removed from the casing and crumbled in the pan). Then to assemble, I placed a large handful of baby spinach on the plate, half of the dressed noodles, half of the cooked sausage, and a handful of honey roasted cashews to garnish. That's it! Easy, fresh, and yummy!

Though my dessert at Momfuku was SUBLIME (pineapple and brown butter cake soft serve swirled together to make pineapple upside-down cake ice cream!), the other NYC-inspired knockoff that I want to share is hazelnut chocolate bear hug rice pudding, a la Rice to Riches--the amazing rice pudding shop in Soho--with amazingly high prices for a dish consisting mainly of rice, milk and sugar. I am VERY pleased at how my inexpensive rendition turned out.

Rice to Riches' Hazelnut Chocolate Bear Hug Rice Pudding (Copycat Version)

1 cup arborio rice
1 quart whole milk
1 cup cream
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup Nutella (chocolate hazelnut spread)

Put everything except the vanilla and Nutella into a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to boil, stirring frequently. Simmer for 45 minutes to an hour until rice is tender and mixture is thick and creamy.

Remove from heat and add vanilla and Nutella. Stir until Nutella is fully melted and mixed in. Serve warm or cold.