tofu | My Foodie Call

Tag: tofu
- Healthy Fruit and Protein Snack Wrap
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Feb 27th
  A sweet snack (or lunch).
  
  Remember my post about Ezeikel Bread? Guess what. Food for Life (the Ezekiel bread people) make other stuff besides bread, like these wraps.
  
  Sprouted Grain Tortillas
  
  Of course you do not have to use Ezekiel Tortilla. If you are just starting your health journey, start small and buy straight up whole wheat tortillas. Still be delish. :).
  
  Try this yummy dessert-snack-breakfast-could be a meal recipe by following these directions.
  
  Make your spread. It’s easy, don’t sweat it.
  
  Grate your apple. Or fine chop it if you are on a time crunch.
  
  Plate your tortilla.
  
  Spread your spread. Profound, I know.
  
  Add your apple.
  
  Then some sliced grapes.
  
  Wrap it.
  
  Cut and arrange in a pretty stack on a plate so people think you worked hard.
  
  Healthy Fruit and Protein Wrap
  
  Ingredients
  
  For the spread:
  6-7oz silken firm tofu (Eyeball it. Don’t stress on it being exact. It’ll still work.)
  
  3 Tbs. natural peanut butter (No Jif, Skippy or any of that other nonsense. Your peanut butter should just be peanuts. And maybe some salt.)
  
  1 tsp chia seeds
  
  3 Tbs. Honey
  
  2 tsp cinnamon
  
  1) Mash it really good OR process in the food processor until creamy (what I did)
  For the wrap:
  
  1 package sprouted tortilla (or whole wheat tortilla)
  
  2-3 apples, shredded or fine chopped (I used granny smith, but use what you have!)
  
  1 cup seedless grapes, halved
  
  6 halved red seedless grapes
  1) Spread tofu/peanut butter mixture on tortilla.
  
  2) Place grated apple and grapes on top.
  
  3) Roll up tortilla, folding in sides as you go.
  
  4) Slice and serve.
  
  Kids can easily help with this one too.
  Posted in Desserts, Meatless mealtime, Snacks | Tagged chia, peanut butter, tofu
- Make friends with…Tofu.
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Dec 5th
  If you have been following my blog for a while, you know that I use tofu A LOT. Yes, I am well aware that tofu is the punchline to EVERY vegetarian joke, but I think its mockery is unfair.
  
  Tofu is extremely versatile and extremely healthy.
  
  And as I have mentioned in the past, if you do not like tofu it is because it wasn’t prepared right.
  
  Tofu 101:
  
  Let’s talk about the different kinds of tofu, shall we??
  
  First off, you can use pretty much any kind of tofu in a recipe that might call for tofu. Tofus are somewhat interchangeable, HOWEVER the results will be a bit different. Texture, creaminess. I am okay with this because I have been eating tofu for years, but to the tofu newbie? Stick with what the recipe says. If it says silken tofu, use silken tofu! You do not want to have a bad tofu experience then never touch the stuff again, right?
  
  The Two Kinds of Tofu
  1. Silken or Soft tofu is what you want in smoothies, puddings, salad dressings. SOFT STUFF!
  Can be found refridgerated or also in the world foods section of your supermarket.
  
  Check out the picture. A smoothie on it. SOFT STUFF. CREAMY STUFF.
  
  Can also be found in with Asian goods. Doesn’t need to be refridgerated. Nice to have an option for road trips. Because we all bring tofu on road trips. Ha!
  
  Extra Firm or Firm Tofu is for you meat eaters that are using your tofu in place of chicken in your stir fry. This tofu hold up better than silken because it has less moisture.
  
  Check out the picture on this package. Kabobs. You can’t do that with silken tofu, surely it would crumble before you even finish putting it on the stick.
  
  Extra Firm Tofu also holds up its texture well even after being pressed. You do press your tofu, right??
  
  Why press your tofu????
  
  Newbies out there, listen up:
  
  If you press your tofu, it helps remove any excess moisture (from that tub of liquid it was just sitting in).
  
  If you press your tofu, it helps to improve texture (for all of you “tofu is too slimy” people out there).
  
  If you press your tofu it allows sauces and marinades to be reabsorbed (making your meal super awesome and swoon worthy).
  
  How do you press tofu?
  
  Easy.
  1. Grab a dinner plate.
  2. Put two paper towels down.
  3. Put your tofu block on the paper towels.
  4. Put two more paper towels on top.
  5. Add a pan or something heavy on top of the tofu/paper towel tower thing you’ve got going on.
  6. Walk away for 30+ minutes.
  7. Voila. Pressed tofu.
  Tofu rocks.
  Posted in Make friends with... | Tagged tofu
- DIY Salad Bar Night
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Nov 4th
  Tonight’s meal was easy. Slightly time-consuming because of all of the prep involved with the chopping, but healthy and EASY.
  
  Grab a knife and get chopping.
  
  What did I include in our salad bar?
  - Romaine and mixed greens blend
  - Tofu marinated in low-sodium soy sauce
  - Gardein Szechuan Beefless Strips (these are SOOO yummy!)
  - Sunflower Seeds
  - Shelled pistachios
  - Roasted sweet potatoes
  - Roasted asparagus
  - Red onion
  - Yellow pepper
  - Roasted broccoli
  - Raw cauliflower
  - Cucumber
  - Mushroom
  - Lemon wedges
  - Artichoke hearts
  - Cherry tomatoes
  - Black olives
  Really I could have added a 1000 more things to this salad bar such as chopped apples, carrots, shredded cheese…
  
  I purposely left those things out because I have no problem getting my kids to eat that stuff. And I got sick of prepping, so no chopped carrots in this spread.
  
  I did however choose a few non-traditional salad items like artichokes and roasted asparagus.
  
  Here are a few pictures for a closer look….
  
  Chopped mixture of romaine lettuce and mixed greens.
  
  Plant-based protein options. Tofu, Gardein brand Szechuan Beefless Strips, sunflower seeds, and shelled pistachios.
  
  Roasted sweet potatoes and asparagus.
  
  Red onion and yellow pepper.
  
  Roasted broccoli and raw cauliflower.
  
  Chopped cucumber, mushrooms, and lemon wedges.
  
  Chopped artichoke hearts, cherry tomatoes, and sliced black olives.
  
  Color is key in leading a healthy, plant-based life.
  Posted in Meatless mealtime, Salads, Soups, and Sides | Tagged salad, sweet potatoes, tofu
- Tofu Lettuce Cups- A recipe that got a California Girl to the White House
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Sep 24th
  As mentioned in this post, my son Corbin and I got to go to the White House this summer as part of a group that won the Healthy Lunchtime Challenge. As one of our “party favors”, we got to bring home a fantastic recipe card box with all of the winning recipes.
  
  Tofu Lettuce Cups
  
  Slowly. And I mean slowwwwwwly….I am working my way through the recipes. I am determined to make each and every one. We are only on number five, and staying in alphabetical order. This Healthy Lunchtime Challenge winner is from California and was the sweetest thing ever. We tried her recipe with a small modification. No pork. Straight up tofu. You know what? It was pretty dang good :).
  
  Here is what I did to veganize it. Not much, it was a great recipe!
  - 3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
  - 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  - 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  - 2 teaspoons white vinegar
  - 2 teaspoons grated ginger
  - 2 teaspoons sugar
  - 2 cloves garlic, minced
  - 2 teaspoons olive oil
  - 1 block firm tofu, pressed, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  - 2 heads romaine lettuce, cleaned and separated into leaves
  - Toppings: 1 bag broccoli slaw, fresh cilantro, and lime slices
  Preparation:
  1. Made the sauce. In a small bowl whisk together the soy sauce, sesame oil, cornstarch, vinegar, ginger, sugar, and garlic.
  2. In a medium pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the sauce to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Add the tofu and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.
  3. To serve, scoop several heaping tablespoons of the tofu mixture into each romaine lettuce “cup” then top with broccoli slaw, cilantro, and lime slices.
  No pork, no problem.
  Posted in Meatless mealtime | Tagged tofu, vegan
- Tofu dippers
  
  Posted at 8:47 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Jan 25th
  
  What is it with kids and chicken nuggets? I know that my kids love them. Yuck. Not sure the last time I ate a chicken nugget but my guess is that mullets were in style at the time. Hence, the picture below….
  
  In case you have been living under a rock, (or are not on Facebook) you may or may not have seen the following picture:
  
  Chicken “paste”…all the crap that is leftover after they take the meat off the bones
  
  Here is a short video describing the above image:
  
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T67DvoH2H3E&feature=fvwrel
  
  Despite that pink heap in the above picture, I am not opposed to my kids having homemade chicken nuggets with actual chicken and void of mechanically separated by products, but you will never catch me making it. 🙂
  In short: the tofu nugget is making an appearance. Tofu is a fabulous meat alternative with lots of protein and calcium and pretty much takes on the flavor of whatever food you put it in. I tried to make something similar to this a few years back, but the recipe (or me) failed miserably. I found this other version on a vegetarian website called:
  compassion over killing http://www.cok.net
  
  My kids like things that they think are junky or anything with a batter that appears to be fried. Hopefully this is a score with the crispy coating.
  
  “Chicken” Nuggets
  
  1- 14 ounce package of extra firm tofu
  1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
  1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  1/4 teaspoon pepper
  salt, to taste
  1/2 cup water
  
  1) Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  2) Unwrap the tofu and shake off any excess moisture. Place the tofu in a freezer bag or wrap well in plastic, then freeze the sealed tofu for at least 24 hours.
  
  The next day, thaw the tofu by placing it—unwrapped—into a microwave-safe bowl.
  
  frozen tofu. scary looking, I know.
  
  Cover the bowl and microwave on high to defrost, checking every 2 to 3 minutes to make sure the tofu doesn’t cook. Once thoroughly defrosted, gently squeeze out any excess moisture. Cut into 1-inch cubes.
  
  3) In a shallow bowl, add the bread crumbs and spices, mixing well.
  
  The goods
  
  4) In a separate bowl, pour 1/2 cup of water.
  
  5) Dip each piece of tofu first into the water, lightly shake off any excess water, and then roll into the seasoned bread crumbs.
  
  6) Put the breaded tofu cubes on a lightly sprayed baking pan and bake 30 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp.
  
  Crunch
  
  7) Serve with a dipping sauce. I used a mango Caribbean sauce.
  
  Thought about doing straight ketchup for dipping. Boring.
  
  The verdict
  
  Although they do not taste like chicken nuggets (thank god), they were really good. As I mentioned, the crunch factor pretty much guarantees that they will be acceptable fare in this household. Everyone ate and dipped, especially dear Devyn who polished off the final crumbs.
  
  Posted in Meatless mealtime | Tagged tofu
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