Many people have heard that enriched flour (white bread, plain pasta noodles, etc.) isn’t very good for you, but I think a lot of those same people don’t really know why. For the record, enriched flour is flour in which natural vitamins and minerals have been extracted to give the bread or pasta a finer texture and to increase shelf life. The human body breaks down enriched flour more quickly than those with bran or germ; this raises your blood sugar, and ultimately what you’re consuming is stored as fat. Hence the low-carb craze!

I definitely steer clear of enriched flour, and with so many other options now, it’s quite easy. Some of my favorite enriched flour pasta substitutes include Trader Joe’s Organic Black Bean Rotini, Ancient Harvest Gluten Free Quinoa Pasta, Trader Joe's Organic Red Lentil Sedanini and Explore Cuisine's Organic Edamame & Mung Bean Fettuccine, the latter of which is featured in this recipe. Not only do these pastas not contain enriched flour, they also contain a pretty decent amount of protein and all add tons of flavor to whatever dish you're using them in.

Greasy lo mein from a Chinese takeaway restaurant is one of those dishes that takes me back to high school and college, but unfortunately 26-year-old Emily does not have quite the same metabolism. If I ate this now, my stomach would hate me for days. Traditionally, lo mein is made with wheat flour noodles, but I can’t overstate how incredible these edamame & mung bean noodles are! Edamame is a common ingredient in Asian dishes anyway, so using it as the base for your dish is just a no-brainer.

This recipe is great for weeknights, because it only takes about 15 minutes to prepare. Add whatever vegetables you like; this is quite customizable. Next time I think I’ll add egg to it too! After eating a big bowl of this lo mein, I feel full, but not gross, like I would after eating lo mein from a Chinese takeaway restaurant.

INGREDIENTS - PASTA

1 package edamame mung bean fettuccine

Green onions, chopped

3 c. chopped or shredded vegetables like carrots, red peppers, spinach, mushrooms, broccoli, etc.

2 T. low-sodium soy sauce

Sesame seeds

INGREDIENTS - SAUCE

4 T. low sodium soy sauce

4 T. hoisin sauce

2 T. tamari sauce

2 t. sesame oil

2 t. brown sugar

Sriracha

Garlic powder

STEPS

1) Mix all sauce ingredients in a bowl.

2) Cook edamame mung bean pasta according to package directions (about 7 minutes).

3) Heat the sesame oil in a large wok or skillet. Add most of the vegetables to the hot pan. Stir fry until fork-tender, about 5 minutes. Add the spinach and cook until wilted. Add the 2 T. soy sauce, the cooked noodles and about half of the sauce.

4) Toss around in the hot pan to combine and add more sauce if needed. Serve and top with green onions and sesame seeds.