Mexican Tofu Scramble

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp chipotle powder
1 tsp salt (can use up to half black salt if an 'eggy' flavor is desired)
1/4 cup salsa
1 pound firm tofu, mashed
1/2 tube soyrizo
hot sauce to taste

Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, or until translucent.  Add the spices, salt and garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.  Add the tofu, salsa and soyrizo and cook for 5 more minutes, or until heated through.

Vegan Mexican "Eggs"

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 black bean burger, minced*
1/3 cup salsa
1 cup corn

1/2 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp chipotle powder
A pinch cumin
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp black salt
1/2 tsp smoked salt

1 pound firm tofu, drained
1 cup pepper jack Daiya shreds
tortilla chips

Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for a few minutes. Add the burger crumbles and cook for 3 minutes. Add the corn, salsa, spices and salt. Cook until no longer soupy. Crumble the tofu in and stir for another 3 minutes or so. Add the Daiya and cook until melty.

Serve by spooning onto tortilla chips.

* I really like the MorningStar Farms black bean chipotle burgers, but they're not strictly vegan.

Vegan Solarz

We went to Mars Cafe for brunch the other day, where my husband got the Solarz breakfast sandwich, which was cream cheese, a fried egg, jam and spinach. It looked tasty, so I set out to veganize it.

1 English muffin
1/4 vegan omelette (I used the baked recipe from Happy Herbivore)
1 Tbsp vegan cream cheese
1 Tbsp raspberry jam
1 handful arugula (or baby spinach)

Peanut BBQ Tofu; Orangey Roasted Squash & Sweet Potatoes; Kale & Black-Eyed Peas

Peanut BBQ Tofu

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
2 tsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp curry powder
1-2 tsp hot sauce (optional)
1 lb. extra firm tofu, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices

Mix all the sauce ingredients together and whisk until incorporated. Smear the tofu slices on all sides and marinate for at least 20 minutes (overnight is best).

Lay the slices in a baking dish, smear with any extra sauce and bake, covered, at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

***

Orangey Roasted Squash & Sweet Potatoes

1 largish sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1/2 yellow onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
salt & pepper to taste
a drizzle of olive oil
1/4 cup orange juice
2 Tbsp agave nectar

Combine all ingredients in a baking dish. Bake, covered, for 40 minutes at 400 degrees, or until the squash chunks are fork-tender. Taste and adjust seasonings to your preference.

***

Kale & Black-Eyed Peas

1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 tsp Cajun/Creole seasoning
a dash of liquid smoke (optional)
2-3 cups finely chopped frozen kale (or 1 bunch fresh)
1 can black-eyed peas, drained
2 Tbsp salsa
1/4 cup water

Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute for 5 minutes, or until translucent. Add the liquid smoke and Cajun seasoning, followed by the kale. Cook for 2 minutes or so, then add the black-eyed peas and salsa and stir well. Add the water, cover, and cook on medium-low for 10 minutes, or until the kale is tender.

Sweet Chili Tofu & Roasted Broccoli

1 block super-firm tofu (I use Wildwood's High-Protein), cut into 1/4-inch-thick triangles
1 cup sweet chili sauce
a drizzle of roasted sesame oil
a hefty sprinkle of salt
1 handful sesame seeds (optional)

Lay the tofu triangles in a baking dish and put everything else on top. Marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight. Put the whole shebang in the oven at 400 degrees and bake for 30 minutes.

1 head broccoli
hefty drizzle of olive oil
hefty sprinkle of salt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, chopped

Combine all ingredients in a covered oven-safe dish (or a foil packet) and put in the oven with the tofu. Cook for 15 minutes, or until tender.

Tamarind Tofu-Potato-Onion Roast

This is one of those perfect make-ahead meals... assemble the night before, let marinate in the fridge, and bake the next day.

1/2 block extra-firm tofu or tempeh, cubed
3-4 potatoes, diced
1/2 largish onion, cut into crescents
1/2 tsp each salt and fresh ground pepper
3-4 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tsp each paprika & garam masala (or curry powder)
1 tsp saffron (optional)
1/4 cup Pickapeppa sauce (or other tamarind-based sauce)

Combine all ingredients in a casserole dish. Let marinate for 30 minutes or up to overnight (in the fridge). Bake, covered, at 400 degrees for 40 minutes.

Note: You could easily change up the sauce/spices here for a different effect. I've used barbecue sauce to good effect.

Asparagus-Dill Tofu Scramble

This recipe is based off one from Peter Berley's The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen. It's still my favorite tofu scramble recipe. This week we added fresh asparagus and dill from the farmers' market.

1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 bunch asparagus, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp salt
1 block firm tofu, drained
1 Tbsp pine nuts
2-3 Tbsp fresh dill, chopped
2 Tbsp lime juice
black pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 3 minutes. Add the asparagus and cook for 2 more minutes, until the asparagus is bright green and the onion is translucent. Add the garlic, spices and salt and stir for a moment, until fragrant. Using clean hands, crumble the tofu into the pan. Add pine nuts, dill and lime juice and stir until heated through. Serve with toast and veggie bacon of choice.

Tofu Puttanesca

This took no time at all to throw together, and it was delicious. Inspired by the Puttanesca Scramble in the excellent Vegan Brunch cookbook (which is almost convincing me to buy a waffle iron).



2 Tbsp olive oil
1 block extra firm tofu
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp fire roasted salsa, or a few dashes of hot sauce
a small handful each fresh oregano, thyme and basil, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1 can black olives, drained
1 tablespoon capers, drained

Drain and press the tofu by dumping it into a colander and pressing down on it with a can repeatedly. Cut the pressed tofu into half-inch cubes. Heat the olive oil in a pan and dump the tofu in. Let it sit for 4-5 minutes, then turn. Cook for another 4-5 minutes, or until golden.

Add the following ingredients in stages, stirring after each one: garlic (1 min), salsa, herbs, tomatoes, olives, capers. Stir until heated through, then eat!

Crazy Good Vegan Calzone

1 batch pizza dough (we get ours from Gateway Market)
1 Tbsp cornmeal

1 block firm tofu, crumbled
2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1 heaping teaspoon country-style grainy mustard
salt/pepper to taste
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp each onion powder and garlic powder
2 Tbsp vegan cream cheese (optional)
2 Tbsp capers (optional)
1/4 cup artichoke hearts, mashed (optional)

4 oz. sliced shiitake or oyster mushrooms
2-3 cloves garlic
1 small onion, sliced
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 package veggie pepperoni, diced
8 oz. black olives, smooshed
1 large handful each sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts (optional)
1 largish bunch of swiss chard, stems removed and leaves torn into bits (optional)

1 can pizza sauce

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Sprinkle a pizza stone liberally with cornmeal.

Mash the tofu and add the nutritional yeast, mustard, salt, pepper, lemon juice, onion/garlic powder, capers, artichoke hearts and cream cheese. Mix well and let sit.

Heat the olive oil in a largish pan. Add the onion and saute for 3 minutes, or until translucent. Add the garlic, mushrooms and pepperoni; saute for a few more minutes, or until the mushrooms are softening. Add the swiss chard and stir until wilted. Add the tofu mixture, sundried tomatoes, pine nuts, olives and mix well.

Stretch/roll out the pizza dough on the pizza stone until it forms a large circle. Dump half of the tofu mixture onto one half of the dough, then fold the other half over the filling to create a half-moon. Crimp the edges of the dough to seal. Shake off any excess cornmeal and bake for 25 minutes.

Serve with pizza sauce for dipping.

Note: This recipe makes enough filling for two calzones. I usually bake one, then save the filling for another easy meal later in the week.

Bacon-y Potato-Swiss Chard Quiche

This recipe is from have cake, will travel. I adapted it to what I had on hand, and goddamn, was it tasty. It didn't set up very well, but I had proprotionately less tofu than veggies and probably didn't press out as much cooking liquid as I could have.

Crust:
1 cup spelt flour
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 Tbsp margarine (cold)
1/4 cup water (cold)

Filling:
1 tsp olive oil
1 largish potato, cut into thin half-moons
1/2 onion, diced
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup water
1 bunch swiss chard, well rinsed and torn
3 garlic cloves, minced
6-10 tempeh bacon slices

Sauce:
1 package extra-firm silken tofu
4 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 chipotle in adobo
3 Tbsp miso
2 cloves garlic
1/3 c plain soy or rice milk

Prepare the crust. Whisk together the flour, nutritional yeast, salt and pepper. Use your hands to squish in the margine bits until crumbly. Add the water a little bit at a time, until the dough forms a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate/freeze for 10-20 minutes, to chill the dough.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Chop the potato, onion and garlic and rinse/tear the swiss chard. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet, then add the potato and onion and 1/4 tsp salt and saute for a few minutes. Add the water, cover, and simmer until the potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, put the swiss chard in a large pot with an inch or so of water. Cover and cook for 5 minutes, or until the swiss chard is all wilty. Drain the potatoes, onions and swiss chard in a colander (you may need to press out extra liquid).

Rinse/dry your skillet and return it to medium heat. Add the tempeh bacon slices and cook for 5 minutes, or until crispy. Chop/crumble into little bits.

Dump all the sauce ingredients in a large jar and blend until smooth.

Spray a pie dish with olive oil. Remove the dough from the fridge/freezer and roll it out between two sheets of wax paper until thin. Peel off the top sheet of wax paper and flip the dough circle into the pie plate. Bake the crust for 10 minutes.

Mix the potatoes, onions, garlic, swiss chard and bacon with the sauce. Ladle the mixture into the prebaked crust and return to the oven. Bake for 20 minutes, then serve!

Grilled Plantains w/ Black Bean-Corn Relish & Gingered Mangoes & Strawberries

Grilled Plantains
1 semi-ripe plantain, cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch thick slices
2 tsp sucanat or sugar or maple syrup
1/4 tsp lime juice
dash salt

Rub the slices with lime juice and sprinkle with sucanat and salt. Generously oil the grill pan and grill for 3-4 minutes on each side.

Black Bean-Corn Relish
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
kernels from 2 ears of corn
1/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp lime juice
1/4 tsp garlic powder
a few shakes chipotle hot sauce

Combine the corn kernels and a little water in a small saucepan. Cook the corn for 3 minutes, or until no longer raw. Drain the corn and add to the black beans. Add lime juice, cumin, garlic powder and hot sauce and mix well.

Gingered Mangoes & Strawberries
2 ripe mangoes, peeled and diced
5-6 strawberries, quartered
2 pieces crystallized ginger, chopped or 1/4 tsp grated fresh ginger

Combine the mangoes, strawberries and ginger in a bowl and mix well. Let set for a few minutes, then serve!

Peanut Soba w/ Tofu & Peas

Super-quick, super tasty. You might want to make your peanut sauce on the sharp/savory side, since the peas are sweet and the tofu and noodles are mild. I'd use raw garlic to give it some extra bite.

4 cups water
4 oz. soba
1/2 cup peanut sauce, or to taste
2 cups sugar snap peas, ends trimmed
2 oz firm tofu, cut into tiny pieces

Boil the water while you're trimming the ends off the peas and chopping up the tofu. Drop the soba in and cook for 5 minutes, or until al dente. Put the peas in the bottom of a colander and drain the soba over them. Return peas and soba to the pot with the tofu and peanut sauce and toss well to combine.

Mango Ginger Tofu

This is adapted from Isa's recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance (my new favorite cookbook). It was a little effort, but well worth it. We had this with steamed farmer's market asparagus, and it was the perfect end to a very long week. (Last night, for our anniversary, we went out for Thai food, where I chowed down on fried tofu, papaya salad and sweet purple rice w/ coconut milk. Num!)

2 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 pieces crystallized ginger
2-3 mango pieces, roughly chopped
1 dash Tobasco
1 shotglass full of maple syrup
1/2 cup white wine
fresh black pepper to taste
a few dashes of Bragg's Liquid Aminos
1/8 teaspoon garam masala
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 shotglass full of lime juice
1/2 cup orange juice

1 block extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
2 pieces mango, sliced in long thin slices

Mash the crystallized ginger, garlic and mango with a mortar and pestle until well pulverized. Add Tobasco, maple syrup, wine, pepper, Bragg's, garam masala, vinegar, lime juice & orange juice and puree with a hand blender.

Cut the tofu into triangle shapes, lay in a plastic Tupperware container, and pour the marinade over them. Marinate overnight.

The next day, extract the tofu and lay in a single layer in the bottom of a glass baking dish. Ladle a little marinade over the tofu slices. Spray generously with baking spray. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the marinade in a saucepan and simmer until darkened.

Take the tofu out, flip the slices over over, and ladle more marinade on top. Spray generously with baking spray, add the mango strips to the tofu, then bake for 30-40 more minutes, or until the tofu slices are browned on top.

Pour the reserved marinade into a bowl and serve the tofu slices topped with marinade.

Sundried Tomato Pesto

1/2 cup dry sun-dried tomatoes (not in oil)
1 cup water
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/3 cup pine nuts
1 tbsp dried basil
1/4 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper (to taste)
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil

Put the sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl. Boil the water in a kettle and pour it over the tomatoes, then cover and let sit for 10 minutes, or until the tomatoes are soft. Drain and set aside. Put the pine nuts in a dry saucepan and heat over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring, or until just golden.

Crush the basil, pine nuts, garlic, salt & pepper in a mortar and pestle until they form a thick paste. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl, add the olive oil and tomatoes, and pulverize with the pestle. Finish the mixture off with a hand blender until smooth.

Toss with pasta or gnocchi and consume!

Creole Okra, Tomatoes & Corn

A co-worker of mine brought this to our Mardi Gras potluck, and it was surprisingly delicious. Okra is a vegetable I've always been skeptical of (something about the combination of hairy and slimy that turns me off), but this is genuinely delicious. We served this with Red Beans and Rice Deluxe for a killer combination.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tsp onion powder
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can diced mild green chiles, drained
1 can diced tomatoes, juice reserved
1-1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning
1 dash each salt and pepper
1 16-oz. package frozen okra pieces
1 cup frozen corn

Drain the tomatoes and the chiles over a large bowl to catch the juices. Saute the onion powder and garlic in the olive oil until they start to brown, then add the chiles, tomatoes and Cajun seasoning. Cook for 3-5 minutes, then add okra, corn and reserved tomato juice. Cover and cook until heated through and the okra is no longer crunchy.

Orange-Lacquered Tofu

I made this recipe pretty much exactly as it appears in the latest issue of Vegetarian Times, so I won't reproduce it verbatim. But the general method is to pan-fry slices of extra-firm tofu until brown, then add a sauce made up of orange juice, soy sauce, maple syrup, sesame oil and a little Tobasco (which is essentially my default tofu marinade). Cook until the sauce thickens and serve!

I brought extra sauce to the table, thinking that the tofu might be a little bland. But it was perfect... with an almost al-dente exterior and an addictive flavor.

My boy made this for me while I did yoga this evening... he's much better at frying tofu than I am. I'm just not patient enough. :)

Spanakopita

Before the unfortunate cholesterol diagnosis, spanakopita was one of our favorite dishes. But it just didn't seem right to try it without the feta and mozzarella. Tonight I overcame my fear and produced something very different from normal spanakopita... but delicious nonetheless.

1 block medium tofu
1/3 cup pine nuts
1 tsp each:
- garlic powder
- nutritional yeast
to taste:
- salt & pepper
- basil
- oregano
- dill
- lemon juice

Drain the tofu well and crumble it with your hands until it's roughly cottage cheese textured. Use a mortar and pestle or food processor to crush the pine nuts, garlic, yeast, salt & pepper into a paste. Add to the tofu along with the basil, oregano, dill and lemon juice and mash with a fork. Taste and adjust seasonings. Let sit for at least 20 minutes (preferably overnight) to let flavors develop. Defrost the phyllo dough.

1 portobello mushroom
2 splashes balsamic vinegar
1 10 oz. bag spinach
1/4 pkg whole wheat phyllo dough
baking spray
olive oil

Thickly slice the mushroom into bite-size pieces. Toss with the vinegar and a little olive oil and cook over medium heat, covered, until tender. Meanwhile, cook the spinach in a large pot with a little water, covered, until reduced but still vibrant green. Drain the spinach well.

Spray a baking dish well. Spread the mushrooms across the bottom and top with half of the tofu. Sprinkle with garlic powder and nutritional yeast, and drizzle with olive oil. Cover with a sheet of phyllo dough. Spray the phyllo with the baking spray. Repeat with 5 more sheets.

Top the phyllo with the spinach and the remaining tofu. Sprinkle with garlic powder and nutritional yeast, and drizzle with olive oil. Cover with a sheet of phyllo dough. Spray the phyllo with the baking spray. Repeat with 5 more sheets.

Bake at 375-400 degrees for 30 minutes, or until the top sheet of phyllo is crisp and golden brown.

Soba with Gluten, Tomatoes, Tofu & Basil

Last night we had the soba with tomatoes, tofu & basil again. This time we doubled the recipe (for many tasty leftovers) and added a can of braised wheat gluten (also called seitan), which we picked up at the Asian market yesterday. The wheat gluten is actually the reason we sought out the market, because the wheat protein medallions are so tasty, so meltingly tender, and so interesting on the tongue.

I had never even tasted wheat gluten before I ordered it at Taste of Thailand a few months ago. It's got completely different taste and texture than tofu, and it's a nutritional powerhouse. I was so impressed that I ordered it at Saigon Cafe a few weeks ago, and now I get cravings for it. I saw a jar of it at Campbell's for $7, and I'm glad I waited to get it at Double Dragon, where each can runs $1.50.

All in all, it's a worthy addition to any veg*n diet.

Herbed-Tofu Tortilla Wraps

Adapted from minutemeals vegetarian. I'm bringing these to work tomorrow for "treat day."

2 large tortillas
Herbed Tofu Spread
2 handfuls spinach leaves, blotted dry
1 tomato, very thinly sliced
grated carrot (optional)

Spread a largish gob of tofu spread on the tortillas, followed by spinach leaves, tomatoes and carrot. Roll up the tortillas, sealing the ends with tofu spread. Slice into bite-size chunks and serve cold.

Soba w/ Tofu & Tomatoes

This recipe was adapted from Nava Atlas' Vegetarian Family Cookbook. It's probably one of the best tofu recipes I've ever tried. It made equally delicious leftovers, even cold.

1 package (8 oz.) soba (Japanese buckwheat noodles)
1 16-oz package extra-firm tofu, drained and cubed
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
1-1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 tomatoes, diced
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon sugar or sucanat
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
4-5 fresh basil leaves, torn into bits

If you have time, toss the tofu cubes with nutritional yeast and garlic powder and set in the fridge, covered, overnight. Otherwise, do this right before cooking.

Heat the olive oil in a pan. Fry the tofu cubes until golden on all sides. Add tomatoes, spices & soy sauce and simmer while the noodles are cooking.

Boil 6 cups salted water and add soba. Cook for 5 minutes and drain.

Toss soba with sesame oil, basil and a little of the tomato cooking liquid. Top with tofu-tomato mixture and serve hot.