I’ve been feeling kind of betrayed lately. And, to be frank, I blame the groundhog.

You can’t just tell people that there are only going to be six more weeks of winter. And then pummel them with 20+ inches of snow. That’s right. Over. Twenty. Inches. In Central Park, the snow amounted to more than a third of my height.

Now that. Is just unethical.

So then the real question becomes. Where’s an IRB when you need one? And has anyone ever calculated the statistical significance of this Groundhog Day phenomenon? Because, not to burst anyone’s bubble, but it really seems to me like the p-value for this whole operation is definitely less than 0.05. Meaning, obviously (at least to those of us who were just forced to take a course in epidemiology and biostatistics), that the association between winter’s length and whether or not Punxsutawney sees his shadow. Is entirely up to chance. No correlation. No positive predictive value (or negative predictive value). Pure serendipity.

Although we’d have to calculate the beta error to be sure. Odds are. We just don’t have enough statistical power.


So where does that leave us? Or me. To be precise.

Maybe it’s just a severe vitamin D deficiency. But I’ve been craving sunlight. Big time.

Seeing as how I probably won’t encounter the real thing for at least another month or so (six weeks my a**). I’ve had to resort to other, more desperate, tactics.

Pineapple. If anything tastes like sunlight. It is pineapple.

I have an interesting relationship with pineapple, however. Namely that I ate it every day for a year. And then proceeded to give myself an ulcer from it’s intense acidity. So now, as soon as I have a piece. Instant. Intense. Pain. Which is truly unfortunate. Because how else am I supposed to get my tropical fix without pineapple?
Well. There are two solutions.

One. I could move to the tropics. Like DAVE of My Year On The Grill. That’s right. Dave’s wife Jackie had to go to the Virgin Islands for her job. And thus he was forced (not exactly the word I would use to describe it. Just admit it Dave, you were a willing and very compliant participant in all this.) to move to paradise.

Not all of us have this luxury, however. Which brings me to. Two. Dried pineapple. (For some reason it doesn’t give me any stomach problems. No idea why.) In a sesame noodle salad. Just hand me a lei and a bowl of this and I’ll be hula-ing in no time. And, of course, some coconut rum. Because no beach party would be complete without coconut rum.

Happy beachwarming Dave!

And thanks to Min for organizing all of this!
Sesame Noodle Salad with Dried Pineapple
Serves 4, adapted from The Tropical Vegan Kitchen

1 lb linguine
1/4 cup light soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
3 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 red bell pepper, sliced thinly
3/4 cup grated carrots
6 scallions, green and white parts, sliced thinly
1/2 cup dried pineapple

1. Set up a pot of boiling, salted water and cook the pasta. Strain.

2. If you’re like me and don’t really like raw bell pepper, then heat a non-stick skillet with some cooking spray and cook the bell pepper until soft. Add in the scallions during the last minute of cooking.

3. Mix together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, cayenne, sesame seeds, sugar, and sesame oil in a bowl.

4. When the pasta is done, combine it with the sauce, bell pepper, scallions, carrots, and dried pineapple. Toss and serve, topped with cilantro to garnish.

This is my submission to Presto Pasta Nights, which is being hosted this week by Ruth of Once Upon A Feast.
Just a reminder. You have less than 12 hours to send me your Regional Recipes submissions! Thanks to everyone who has participated so far!

You are reading this post on Eats Well With Others at https://joanne-eatswellwithothers.com. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to the author and or owner of Eats Well With Others. All rights reserved by Joanne Bruno.
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66 Responses to Sesame Noodle Salad with Dried Pineapple

  1. Amy says:

    Minneapolis has a cruel joke, as well – sunny skies all the time, BUT it’s 10 degrees outside. So it tricks you into thinking it’s nice, when in fact, if you tried to play in the snow, your face would fall off.

    I wish Paul would get a job in Hawaii and we would be “forced” to move there for a while. Fresh fruit from the tropics…few things compare. This recipe and the caramelized slices over at Pam’s make me long for summer!!

  2. SE says:

    hey..i can understand how you feel about snow..gosh..we had our share of it twice !!! Noodles look very tempting liked the idea of adding pineapples into it..

  3. Wowowowoa ur post is already up-im still putting up my pics and in the back seat of our car…he he…yeah its sunday and we are exploring the beach belt…ok im on the laptop yeah and today being Purim have a few hampers with the tropical delights to distribute to whoever touches my heart….already gave a few to the security staff ..:-))))

    Cya again right here soonnn….

  4. Tempting Noodles! Loved the idea of adding a little “sunlight”(pineapple) to it!

  5. Joanne-I am so sorry that you have so much snow. We got a dusting. It has been so weird. I love soba noodle dishes because they are so versatile. I love the addition of pineapple. Very Yummy!

  6. Marcia says:

    This looks delicious!! I bet the pineapple makes it very tasty.

    That darned groundhog. I grew up less than an hour from Punxsy, and I didn’t realize that the whole country knew about groundhog day until the movie came out.

  7. Linda says:

    I’m a blogger friend of Dave’s too… and a native New Yorker…. grew up there and moved to upstate… split my time between there and Georgia… sorry for all your snow… but we’ve been cold here too in the 50’s…okay I’ll shut up now…. glad to have found you… I love pineapple and this recipe sounds wonderful…

    I’ll add you to my blog list… thanks for the great recipe!

  8. Kim says:

    These sesame noodles sound delicious! Sorry to hear about all the snow you have up in NYC. Here in KY we are usually moving into spring right now, but it is even below freezing here and we just got more snow. Dave is lucky:D

    Can’t wait to see the Regional Recipes Roundup!

  9. What a winter you’re having! I like the idea of tropicizing your menu to lift your spirts 😉 I don’t know Dave but he’s one lucky guy!

  10. Bob says:

    How is it you guys in NYC got so much snow and we in Boston got nothing? Last week it didn’t even get below freezing! Weird.

    The pasta looks great, I love dried pineapple. I’ve never actually used it in anything though. Heh.

  11. Sesame Noodles seems really delicious,loved that u added sesame seeds and pineapple…

  12. Radhika says:

    The combination of peppers, pineapple and sesame seeds sounds really good! Hope you are staying warm!

  13. Min says:

    These noodles look delicious! (and the coconut rum too, of course) Thanks for helping out with the party!
    Min
    The Bad Girl’s Kitchen

  14. Chef Aimee says:

    Giggles! Joanne, you and I are on the same pineapple wavelength this week! And I just dissed dried pineapple in my last post! But I can see it in a savory dish such as this…now I may have to eat my words! This looks great. Ugh, I hope the next storm coming in is rain.

  15. Cherine says:

    Your noodles look deliciouuuus!

  16. This looks so very lovely! I am in love with this dish. Yummy noodles.

  17. such a pretty combination Sesame and Pineapple.this looks delicious..

  18. dessert girl says:

    This sounds yummy! But I’m not sure about the pineapple. I love pineapple, but I have yet to make the leap into including it in savory dishes. Maybe the dried pineapple would work better! 🙂

  19. Cynthia says:

    Poor you! I heard about all the crazy snow! I can see your head is still reeling with all the stuff from your class (which sounds horrible by the way lol). This is such a creative recipe! I would never have thought to include pineapples! It sounds so delicious and definitely very tropical! One thing that you could use the dried pineapple for as well is to throw it into a blender with a banana, some milk and some ice cubes and you’ll have a really delicious tropical smoothie! That would definitely bring a bit of paradise to you =).

  20. Joanne this sounds heavenly – I will be adding to my menu plans soon, very soon. I’ll see you at the party where you can forget your snow days for just a bit. 🙂

  21. your idea of adding sunlight is very interesting. am a pineapple lover myself but never knew of this. perfect salad with that little required jing. as for the weather we are in southern part of India are forced to put the Fan on full speed. its already scortching.

  22. I love almost any Sesame Noodles but what a twist with Dried Pineapple. Have to see how this goes. I know, it has to be good.

    Great choice for the party.

  23. wow amazing noodles oh wow so much snow thats unreal

  24. U know i actually am dreaming of snowed in days…with a love puupy look on my face ….yeah its getting warmer here and i love to sleep w/o the aircon but cant…coz it aint cool anymore:-
    ))) and cool not col…love this recipe and am back to droll over the eliciousness…looks like evrybody played with sunshine pineappe and i did too…..

  25. Nicole, RD says:

    YUMMM! That looks outstanding! Sorry about all the snow — 20″ — crazy!!!

  26. Karine says:

    Poor you! You can’t eat fresh pineapples… But dried pineapples are good too.

    I don’t think Dave was extremely forced to move to US Virgin Island. I would not for sure.

    As for ground whatever day (I never remember the exact term in English and I don’t think we have a term for it in French), the relationship between winter length and its shadow is totally insignificant. I am just wondering if someone has already done a statistical analyses on it (I hope not… but with all the statistical analyses made, you never know)

  27. Karen says:

    Mmm, this sounds really yummy. I’m thinking that some scallops would be good in this, too. I’m going to have to remember this (along with 16,382 other blog recipes I want to try!) 😛

  28. Julie says:

    girl we MUST be going through the same thing because i literally just bought frozen pineapple from tjs on friday in the middle of the snow storm.

    the groundhog is a crock of bull. …just sayin..

  29. Gulmohar says:

    Heard about the snow there in News..We can’t even complain about snow in Colorado..lol…
    Fabulous noodles…Flavorful and yumm Liked the addition of pineapple.

  30. Pam says:

    Pineapple does taste like sunlight. This dish looks so delicious and flavorful.

  31. teresa says:

    this is so nice! i love it! i’m hoping all of these bright sunny recipes will bring on some sunlight of our own. i’m with you, no more snow!

  32. This looks so delicious! It is midnight and I seriously want a big plate of it before bed.
    How terrible not to be able to have fresh pineapple! Glad you can at least have dried. I think I have this book on my wishlist..

  33. Caronae says:

    I’ve just discovered dried pineapple myself and sesame noodles sound like th perfect accompaniment. Now we just need to get ourselves some mango-lime margaritas, cute swimsuits, and a beach…

    Happy Monday!

  34. Debbi Smith says:

    Life without pineapple would be horrible! I love pineapple. This sounds good with the dried pineapple though. Pineapple and coconut are so beach/summer foods. I’m all for that coconut rum!

  35. Sesame noodle salad with dried pineapple sounds like a great dish for sitting around the deck watching the boats come in…

    You will be seeing this soon.

    Thank you so much for playing along and making this such a fun day!

  36. Shirley says:

    Sorry to hear about your ulcers Joanne. I love pineapple too, but I get cuts in my mouth when I eat raw, so I either opt for juice or covert it into some dish.

  37. Jagruti says:

    Hey Jo
    Noodles looks awesome and adding bit of sunshine is nice..but I’m really craving for real pineapple(SunShine)..lol…I’ve sent my entry to your event, hope you got it…

  38. Kristen says:

    Although I am in AZ, this winter has been crazy. It just keeps snowing and raining and snowing and raining. This Island themed party is just what all of us needed to tide us over until spring. Your Asian noodles sound and look wonderful. I have a similar problem with pineapple – I ate an entire one trying to get myself into labor (old wive’s tale) and now I break out in hives when I eat the fresh. I wonder if dried would work for me.

  39. Faith says:

    I have actually been dying for a Thai-style sesame noodle salad! I was thinking of going to a Thai place for lunch this week, but I think I’ll make a big batch of this instead — it looks fantastic!

  40. Mary says:

    Now that’s a salad guaranteed to warm a winter weary soul. It’s a shame you can’t have fresh pineapple. I hope you have a terrific day.

  41. dried pineapple? never tried that! and yes i’m a twin! =D
    hahhaha at least i know what’s in my salad. green monsters are just…green.
    i’m doing all right. a little sad, but i’m trying it out. almonds aren’t the same!

  42. Mo Diva says:

    wa-wa- wee-wa! AMAZING! that looks sooooooooo good Joanne. hats off to ya! i want that

  43. I love the addition of the dried pineapple to the noodle salad, super delicious tropical flavor!

  44. Barbara says:

    I’ve always thought Punxsutawney Phil was a load. But they have fun up there with it, so who cares? You’ll have some warm weather sooner than Phil said. I hope, as my daughter lives in NYC too!
    Pineapple and noodles? Am thinking I’m gonna love this dish! Going to use fresh though, cause I don’t have your tummy pblms. Thank God.

  45. Andreas says:

    Sesame noodles are the only real competition for pasta with bolognese sugo.

  46. Katy ~ says:

    What a fun party this has been! And those noodles are slurp-worthy! Love the addition of pineapple…

  47. Laurie says:

    I think everyone has had Asian food cravings this weekend.. I’m bookmarking this one too. It looks delicious!!

  48. Juliana says:

    Joanne, I am sorry that you are feeling this way…I could never live in a cold place 🙂
    Anyway, your sesame noddles look absolutely delicious, so flavorful and with dried pineapple, definitely a great addition 😉

  49. Shannon says:

    yeah, the p-value definitely says not to trust the groundhog 🙂 scrumptious noodles!!

  50. theUngourmet says:

    I can only eat pineapple if it’s cooked. Somehow this must help with the acidity or something.

    Your pasta looks scruptious!!

  51. theUngourmet says:

    I mean scrumptious. 😀

  52. Lele says:

    Pineapple *does* taste like sunshine! Although I’m also going to make a case for kiwi.

  53. Looks beautiful and sounds delicious! What a great treat for the island party buffet – and presto pasta night too! 🙂

  54. Hannah says:

    Yum yum yum, I love sesame noodle! Never thought to include pineapple in it… But it’s definitely an intriguing new twist. 🙂

  55. This dried pineapple salad sounds so FUN! Just what you would picture eating on a daily basis in a tropical paradise; I found out recently a couple of friends are moving to St Thomas. Decided that it was not good because the internet is slow there (got to figure a way not to be madly envious)

    sorry I missed the deadline on your regional recipes! I wanted to send something! Next time.

  56. Bridgett says:

    I completely agree, pineapple is pure summer although I have been known to eat it all year long. The noodles look and sound brilliant.

  57. Sophie says:

    I also agree, pineapple feels like summer,…toatlly!

    Your dish sings to me!! yummie,…:)!

  58. Awww, I love that! Pineapple is sunshine. You’re the best. 🙂 This looks SO good, Joanne – I can’t wait to try it once I get settled in. I’ve been craving noodles something fierce lately! 🙂

  59. Danielle says:

    this has me drooling (co-workers are looking at me funny. oh wait, thats normal..has nothing to do with the drool). anyways…now i know what to do with these odd asian noodles that i randomly picked up at the market the other day.

  60. Ruth Daniels says:

    Love your post – especially that gorgeous shot of a dish that has me drooling. Thanks for sharing with Presto Pasta Nights.

  61. msmeanie says:

    I think pineapple sounds like a great way to trick yourself into thinking it’s summer. This dish sounds delicious.

  62. Kerstin says:

    I love fresh pineapple – I can eat a whole one by myself over a couple days! Looks like such a tasty dish with the dried stuff – yum!

  63. tigerfish says:

    Dried pineapples in your pasta? That’s new but completely acceptable to me!

  64. This looks uber delicious, Joanne! That’s sweet of you to join in the beachwarming for your friend, and I bet he’s enjoying it there already. I had no idea such sensitivity to pineapple existed and am sorry you can’t enjoy it fresh already. Thank god for dried fruits, then!

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