Basic Scrambled Tofu

Scrambled tofu is a simple and easy-to-put-together breakfast dish. You can dress it up any way you want - my favorite way to eat it is covered with beans and salsa (and guacamole when I really want to go crazy!). I served it (to myself) with an everything bagel-thin and two strips of fakin'. Yum.

From Food pics

Crunchy Miso-Peanut Bowl

I've been on a peanut kick this week. Ever since I spur-of-the-moment grabbed a can of peanuts from Publix last week, I've been hooked. Instead of just gobbling them down by the handful (like I had been doing!) I decided to throw them in a recipe and see how it turned out. I also had some miso paste leftover in my fridge, and as it turns out, marrying peanuts and miso equals happiness. I ate this without any pasta or rice, but if you decide to add some you might need to add more of the miso sauce.

From Food pics

Falafel-Crusted Tofu and Spinach-Pomegranate Salad

Three words can describe this meal - yummy, easy, and healthy (only two of these words describe the fried version). This tofu and salad would go great with Israeli Cous Cous (check back next week for the recipe) for a wonderful Middle East inspired meal. It also looks pretty fancy, which is good for the cook, because this really didn't take any time to throw together. I used two methods of preparing the tofu - baking and frying. They both have their perks, just depends on what you're into. Obviously, the baked tofu is way healthier, but tasted a little dry (but I bet a tzatziki sauce would be great!) . They were both easy, so try both and see what you like!

From Food pics

Pantry Challenge Day 1 - Pomegranate tofu with roasted potatoes

These were really nice. The pomegranate molasses added a bit of fruit flavor without the sweetness, so it still felt like a savory dinner dish. I did have to buy the molasses online - I purchased it several months ago for a different recipe.

Baked Tofu

For the marinade:
1 cup vegetable broth
2 tbsp balsamic vinagrette
1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
1 tsp thyme
lots of shakes of garlic and onion powder
salt and pepper, to taste

1 block firm or extra firm tofu

1. You'll definitely want to drain your tofu for this. Place the block of tofu on a plate, and put another plate over it. Place a heavy object on that plate. You'll have to discard the tofu juice every once in a while. I let mine drain for an hour.

2. Slice the tofu and put in a bowl with the marinade. Let marinate for at least an hour, but overnight is better.

From Food pics

2. Preheat the oven to 375. Spray a casserole dish with cooking oil. Bake the tofu for 20 minutes, then flip each piece and bake another 10 minutes. Serve with a little extra marinade.

Roasted Potatoes

Ingredients:
1 potato (I think mine was an Idaho...?)
Spice blend (I used the peppercorn salad dressing spice blend from Penzey's, but I think any combo of garlic/onion/salt/pepper with some sage or thyme would have been great.

1. Slice the potato into pieces that are about 1/2 an inch thick and place immediately into cold, salted water.

2. Bring the water to a boil and let it boil for 15 minutes.

3. Spay a cookie sheet with oil. Line the potatoes on the sheet and sprinkle with your spice blend.

4. Roast the potatoes in your preheated oven for 10 minutes. (Yes, I'm aware that it is possible to roast potatoes without boiling them first, but I wanted to use half of this potato for another recipe...check back later this week to see it).

From Food pics

Thai red curry

I freaking love thai curry. 'Nuf said. Its hard to find a good one in Tallhassee, though Mr. Roboto's is fabulous. I've been working on my own version of the perfect curry, and I'm pretty satisfied with this result. As i work on making it better, I'll update changes. I really wanted to make my own curry paste, but unfortunately, the ingredients cannot be found in Tally.

From Food pics

(and yes, the wine is necessary)

A few notes about ingredients. Your curry will totally depend on the curry paste you buy. Pictured above is the brand I like, and I get the massaman and the red curry. This particular brand of coconut milk I was NOT happy with. It was really watery. If your coconut milk is watery, omit the vegetable broth that I've included below.

Ingredients:
(these measurements are not at all exact - you'll have to do frequent tastings to get it to the way you like it. If you want it hotter, add some crushed red chillies).
1/2 a can red curry paste
1/2 a can massaman curry paste
1 can coconut milk (careful, make sure its good quality. If you buy lite milk, it might be watery and you might want a little more).
i tbsp brown sugar
about 1/4 soy sauce
about 1/4 cup vegetable broth (not necessary with lite or watery coconut milk)
1-2 tbsp minced ginger
1-2 tbsp lemongrass (this and the ginger are available as a paste in the produce section of the grocery store - they are so much easier!)
1/4 cup basil (Thai basil if you can find it)
1/2 white onion, sliced
a variety of sliced veggies. I used zucchini, squash, broccoli and bamboo shoots.
1 block firm or extra firm tofu, drained

1. Prepare your tofu. If I'm lazy I'll just cut it up after it drains and add it to the curry raw at the end. You could also deep fry it or saute it in a pan until it browns. Set aside until the dish is finished.

2. Prepare the curry sauce. Take a little of each curry paste and dissolve it in about 1/2 a can coconut milk, the veg broth, and a few squirts of soy sauce. Add the sugar and mix well. Taste it and see what it needs. It probably needs more curry paste.

3. Chop up the basil and add about half of it to the curry. Let it simmer for 10 minutes and taste it. Add more if needed, but reserve some for a garnish. Add the onion and simmer for another 5 minutes.

4. Add all the vegetables and simmer for a few minutes, until the vegetables are tender. Add the tofu.

5. Serve over basmati rice.

From Food pics

Tomato Basil Pizza

I LOVE to make dough. Pizza dough, bread dough, whatever...there is something so satisfying when I see the yeast bubble in the sugar, and when the dough rises and I get to punch it down, and as a runner, I take any excuse to have extra carbs. (Sometimes I think that the reason I run is so I can eat more carbs!)

I will say this about making a dough: If you don't have a pizza stone, GET ONE. I got one as a wedding gift and I absolutely love it. It makes the crust so perfect for pizza and bread...crispy on the outside and nice and soft on the inside.

From Food pics

Ingredients:
For the dough:
1 package active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm (not hot) water
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil, plus a little extra
3 cups flour, plus extra for the counter top

For the toppings:
1 cup fresh basil (chopped pretty small)
1 package firm or extra firm tofu, drained very well
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt, pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced very small
1 tomato, sliced

1. Proof your yeast. Dissolve the sugar into the warm water and add the yeast. Stir the yeast until it is just wet, don't over stir. Let it hang out for 5-10 minutes; it should start getting frothy and foamy. If it doesn't, get a new package of yeast because the first one is dead.

2. Prepare a large bowl for the dough to rise in. Pour in about a tbsp of olive oil and set aside.

3. Assemble the dry ingredients in a large bowl. I only add about 1/2 the flour, because I have made the mistake before of adding way too much flour and that makes your dough very tough. So I add half the flour and add more as i need/knead it.

4. By now the yeast should have proven itself to you. Add the yeast mixture and the oil to the flour and salt and stir. Add flour until you can't stir any more (you won't get very far).

5. Sprinkle some flour onto a very clean and dry counter top. Dump your dough on top of it and any flour that might have gotten stuck in your bowl. Knead it around, it likes to be beaten up. Be rough. Add more flour if the dough gets sticky. You should be kneading for 5-10 minutes, until the dough is nice and stretchy.

6. Form the dough into a large ball and place in prepared bowl. Swirl it around in the oil a bit so it doesn't stick. Cover with a damp, clean kitchen towel and place in a warm dry place to rise. Go away for about an hour.

7. When you come back, the dough should have doubled in size. Make a fist with your hand and punch that dough right in the face. Go ahead, just do it. You will feel the dough deflate a little; that's ok. Turn the dough out onto the floured counter top again and knead for a couple of minutes.

8. If you are not going to use all the dough, take a knife and cut the dough in half, wrapping one half in saran wrap and freezing. If you are going to use it all, skip that step. Take the dough that will be used and put it back in the rising bowl, cover, and go away for at least 15 minutes, but an hour is better. (you can prepare the topping now...scroll down).

9. Finally - time to make pizza! If you already halved the dough, don't half it again. If you haven't, cut the dough in half. This recipe can make 2 14" pizzas.

10. Preheat your oven to 500. Your pizza stone should preheat with the oven.

11. Take a large cookie sheet, the kind with no sides, and cover it with a generous amount of cornmeal (or flour). You will put your pizza on this and slide it onto the stone. Or bake it on this if you have no stone (but you should get one).

12. This is the hardest part for me...making a round pizza. People tell me I'll get it eventually, and they have gotten better. My method is to form the dough into a ball then flatten it. Pick it up by the middle and let gravity do the work...move it around in your hands so that it falls in a circular way, then work your way all around the dough. Once you have a pretty good circle, put it on your cookie sheet and use your fingetips to press the dough and perfect the circle.

13. Apply toppings, slide the pizza from the cookie sheet onto the stone (it might need some prodding) and bake for 7-10 minutes. If you have a stone it will take a little less time. As soon as I see the crust start to brown, I take it out by sliding it back onto the cookie sheet.

15. To make it really awesome, brush the crust with olive oil. Enjoy!!

Making the basil-ricotta topping:

This was adapted from Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Vegan with a Vengeance.

1. Place all ingredients in a large bowl, crush with your fingers until it is the consitency of ricotta cheese.

2. Spread tofu mixture all over pizza. Top with sliced tomatoes. Bake as directed.

From Food pics

Bento Bowl

Is it just me, or does food taste better when eaten with chop sticks? I don't know why that is, but making this dish over and over again forced me and ej to finally go out and get a set of our own...which we use all the time. This dish is super easy and healthy - it can be thrown together as a last minute dinner or can be dressed up to serve to guests. Don't forget the chop sticks!

Japanese Bento Bowl:

1 pkg firm or extra firm tofu, drained and then cut into long, thin strips
1 avocado, sliced
1 carrot, shredded
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 white onion, cut into bite-sized chunks
1 cup brown rice
**add any other veggies you might like - just saute them with the onions. Baby bok choy and spinach are my greens of choice.

about 1/4 cup sesame seeds

Marinade:
about 2 tbsp soy sauce
about 2 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 greek yogurt (or other plain yogurt)
**i'm writing this recipe from memory, so the amounts of ingredients are approximate. Add more or less of anything to give it a new flavor!

1. Cook rice according to package instructions. the ratio is usually about 2 water:1 rice, but brown rice always needs more water. Add salt and garlic powder to the water to give the rice a little more of its own flavor.

2. In one pan, saute garlic in water for 1 minute. Add onion and saute until onion is translucent, but do not overcook. Add more water if needed.

3. In another pan, spray some cooking spray (or just drizzle some oil if that's what you have), turn heat to med-high, and add tofu. Toss with spatula every minute or so to allow all sides to brown. Once browned on all sides, remove from heat.

4. Prepare marinade: mix together all ingredients with a fork until combined. Combine tofu with onions and garlic, add marinade, sesame seeds and toss well.

5. In each serving bowl, put about 1/2-1 cup cooked rice. Sprinkle with soy sauce. Add several strips of tofu, making sure to get the onions too, and top with avocado and carrot. Toss some sesame seeds on top and you have yourself a meal.

From Food pics

From Food pics

Lettuce Wraps

I really enjoyed eating these. Because I am such a nice person, I brought these over to a friend's house to share. EJ was a little angry, I think he wanted to hoard them for ourselves!



Ingredients:
1 block tofu, drained and diced into small pieces
1 package tempeh
sesame oil
1-2 cups chow mein noodles (optional, but I love these things)
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 can water chestnuts, cut into small pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp red chili powder, or to taste
few tablespoons sesame seeds
1 cup peanut sauce (I used a pre-packaged, fat free peanut sauce)
3-6 tbsp soy sauce (depending on how salty you want it or how salty your peanut sauce is)
2 tbsp rice vinegar

whole iceberg lettuce leaves


Tempeh marinade:
1/4 c sugar
1/2 c water
2 tbs soy sauce
2 tbs rice wine vinegar
2 tbs ketchup
1 tbs lime juice


1. Saute the tofu over medium heat with some sesame oil. Its hard to get the tofu cooked evenly when the pieces are so small, so I just flip the pieces every few minutes until most seem brown.

2. Cut the tempeh into small pieces. Combine the tempeh with the tempeh sauce in a saucepan and stir well. Cover and bring to med-low heat. Heat until the tempeh has absorbed most of the sauce.

3. Combine all ingredients (including tempeh and tofu) in a large skillet. Mix thoroughly. You should taste the mixture too see what it needs - i did this in a hurry and didn't measure everything. I hope my above measurements are accurate!

Spoon into lettuce leaves and eat like tacos. Be careful - they can get drippy! The cool crunch of the lettuce is a great contrast to the heat of the tempeh/tofu mixture. I love this stuff!

Note: I used more tofu than tempeh - I think in the future I will add more tempeh. I like the texture of the tempeh a lot, and I think more of it will make this dish much better.

From Food pics

Tofu Stix

(vegan)

I bumped into this recipe online, while I was searching for recipes for panko bread crumbs. These are Japanese bread crumbs, and i fell in love with them when my favorite sushi place started breading their teriyaki tofu with them. Tofu Stix aren't the most healthy snack, but they are pretty damn good.

Ingredients:

1 package extra firm tofu, drained
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1 cup plain bread crumbs
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp dried basil
1 tsp onion powder
1.5 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dry mustard
2 tsp nutritional yeast
1-2 tsp salt
1/5 tsp ground black pepper
1 package soft silken tofu
1 cup soy milk


1. In a blender, mix the silken tofu and soy milk. Pour mixture onto a plate. (you might not be able to get all of it on the plate, just add some of it, and as it depletes, add more.

2. On another plate, mix the bread crumbs and all other dry spices. Again, you might not be able to fit everything on the plate, just keep adding it as it depletes.

3. After the tofu is finished draining, cut into sticks 1/2 inch thick. (about the size of mozzarella sticks).

4. Bread each stick by covering it in the silken tofu mixture and then covering with bread crumbs. Set aside until all are finished. (Be careful, they break very easily).

From Food pics

From Food pics

5. In a large skillet, heat about an inch of vegetable oil. When the oil is hot, add the stix. Cook until they are brown on the underside, then turn over (about a minute or two, depending on how hot the oil is). You don't want the oil to be too hot, because they will burn on the outside. Cook the stix until they are evenly browned on all sides.

6. As they come out of the skillet, place them on a plate with several paper towels (to absorb the oil). Serve hot with your favorite marinara sauce.

From Food pics

Shumai

(vegan)

Traditionally, shumai are prepared with either pork or shrimp. They are these adorable little dumplings and can either be fried or steamed. I've played around a bit trying to make a vegan version, and my faithful taste tester says the shumai pretty good. I like them, too. Below is a recipe, and I've included instructions on frying and steaming them.

From Food pics

(they look like little soldiers of delicious, don't they?)

From Food pics

Ingredients:

gyoza wrappers (these are cool because they can be frozen)
1 block soft tofu - drained
1 handful fresh spinach - chopped
4 green onions - chopped
1/2 cup white onion - chopped
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
pepper, to taste
1 tsp shredded ginger root
1 tsp miso paste

1. In a bowl, combine all ingredients (except gyoza wrappers). I use my hands, and mix them as much as possible.

2. Take a gyoza wrapper. If they were frozen, they are easier to peel apart if they are thawed a few minutes. Put the wrapper on a flat surface and wet the edges. Put a spoonful of the tofu mixture in the center of the wrapper.

3. Wrapping is a lot easier than it looks. Just pull up 2 sides and seal them together with water. Then pull up the two other sides and seal them, so it sort of makes a square (or at least has four corners. Try to push the open parts in so they are closed, and seal with water. If there are parts of the wrapper that stick up, press them so they are flat. The finished shumai looks sort of like a rose.

Now you need to decide if you want to fry it or steam them. I think they are excellent both ways and how i cook it depends on the audience. If I'm going to a party, I'll fry them, but if its for me and ej i usually steam them, or do half and half. It also depends on if i feel like I deserve fried food.

FRYING:

I heat 2 inches of vegetable or canol oil in an elecric wok, but a skillet works fine. Put the shumai in the hot oil, cooking for ~10-15 minutes. They should be brown on all sides. You may have to turn a couple of times while cooking.

STEAMING:

I use a wire colander and a pot of water. Not sure if its the best way, but it seems to work ok. So I boil some water in a pot and put the wire colander in it. Make sure the water itself isnt touching the bottom of the colander. Put the shumai in the colander (i can only do 3-4 at a time - make sure they aren't touching each other). Cover the shumai with a tightly fitting lid. Steam for about 20 minutes, turning halfway through. Its hard to tell when they are done, but the top part should be soft and not tough.

I like to serve the shumai with soy sauce mixed with honey or agave nectar (if vegan).

enjoy!