Vegan Matcha Soba Noodles

I'm not usually a noodle- or pasta-girl, but every once and a while my stomach, too, calls out for a comforting, filling, and slurp-tastic bowl of carb goodness. This recipe was born of that thought we've all had while eating out, and, in my case, after I'd had a soba dish at an Asian-fusion place I like near my office that I don't usually order: this is really good, and I bet I could make it at home just as good, or even better. With these two things in mind, it seemed fated for me to figure out a way to recreate that meal chez moi. I was further inspired because I've been making myself a huge cup of matcha tea—the super-healthy green drink that's better than coffee and found in the hands of everyone from Gwyneth Paltrow to the Kardashians health drink—every morning for the last few months, so I had the "real thing" (not pre-packaged green tea noodles). Challenge accepted and, I think, accomplished, with flying (verdant) colors. If you haven't joined team matcha yet, there are plenty of reasons to do so: matcha is a highly concentrated powdered form of green tea, which basically means you drink the entire tea leaf rather than infusing it in water (like in a tea bag, or with loose leaf tea), and therefore get the benefits of 10 (!) cups of regular green tea. So not only are you reducing waste by choosing this bright, health-exuding drink, you're getting a heck of a lot of vitamins and nutrients—like vitamin C, selenium, chromium, zinc and magnesium—boosting your immune system and metabolism, detoxing, and getting 20 times more antioxidants than superfruits like blueberries and pomegranates. As if that weren't enough, matcha usually comes in adorable little tins, and you can buy fun accessories—like a wooden whisk and matcha bowl—to prepare your drink.
Whatever form you enjoy matcha—solid or liquid—you simply can't go wrong.