Thai Cucumber "Noodles"

My 8-year-old suggested that we make cucumber noodles using the same technique that we use to make zucchini noodles, but eat them raw instead of cooking them. This seemed to lend itself to a Thai-style dressing so this recipe was created. These are delicious and are one of my husband's favorite foods on the diet.

INGREDIENTS:

3-4 large cucumbers
juice of 1 lime
3 T peanut butter (tahini would also work well)
1 T honey
1-2 cloves of garlic
1 T toasted sesame oil
1 T olive oil
1 tsp of salt
1/4 tsp of Chinese 5-spice powder*
about 1 tsp grated fresh ginger

For garnish:
1 handfull of cilantro, chopped
about 1/4 cup peanuts, chopped or crushed
tomato slices

*I get my spice blends from Mountain Rose Herbs and have not had a problem with them.

METHOD:

Peel the cucumbers. Take a cucumber and hold it over a bowl, and peel off thin strips using a vegetable peeler into the bowl. I stop when I get down to the seeds. Continue until all the cucumbers have been shredded.

Put the shredded cucumber into a colander over a bowl or sink, and mix in the salt. Let stand for at least 15 minutes to draw out excess water.

Mix together the remaining ingredients to make the dressing. The dressing will be very thick, but it will thin out once added to the cucumbers as they give off more water. Dress the cucumber noodles when they are ready. Garnish with the chopped cilantro, chopped peanuts and tomato slices, or whatever else you would like.

NOTE: To save time, you could make this as a salad by thinly slicing the cucumbers with a food processor instead of shredding them.