Lunch Edition: Tofu Salad Wraps

I survived the longest 2 weeks ever but just barely.  I have  few meals to catch up on but honestly by the end we were living on whatever my husband could pull together.  Many (many) repeats and I think we even ordered pizza once!  Today's lunch was made by my darling oldest daughter (she is 8!) who loves to help out around the kitchen.  She found a similar recipe in one of my library cookbooks that I reaalllly don't want to return and quickly exclaimed that she was going to "make it her own".... These were supposed to be sandwiches but we are out of bread so they became wraps served with leftover rice and some cucumber.  Tonight we are off to celebrate the last day of our real summer vacation with bike riding and a wiener roast at a local provincial park.  Happy Labour Day, everyone!

Tofu Salad Sandwiches

 1 package of extra firm tofu, crumbled

 3-4 tbsp of mayo

1 tbsp dijon mustard

2 stalks chopped celery

1 grated carrot

handful of chopped dill

1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1/2 tsp turmeric

salt and pepper

*Mash together tofu, mayo, and dijon mustard

*Add remaining ingredients and mix well.

*Chill for 1/2 hour and then place in whole wheat wrap with lettuce and serve :)

Thai Curried Noodles with Tofu

I saw this in an old issue of Vegetarian Times last week and figured my son would LOVE it.  He loves spicy and he loves tofu so it seemed the perfect fit.  I was right, the only complaint that he had was that it "needed a little more spice!"  It was super quick and easy to make so it was perfect for after our long day spent at the Grand Beach <3

Thai Curried Noodles with Tofu and Broccoli

1/2 box of fettuccine noodles, cooked according to package instructions

2 diced shallots

2 cloves minced garlic

1 inch grated ginger

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 tbsp curry paste

1 tsp curry powder

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp turmeric

1-15 oz can coconut milk

3/4 cup vegetable broth

1 package of tofu, drained and dry fried

4 cups chopped lightly steamed broccoli

*Saute shallots, garlic and ginger in olive oil for 5 minutes.

*Add cilantro, curry paste, curry powder, cumin and turmeric and stir for a minute.

*Add coconut milk and broth and bring to a boil.  Lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes.

*Cut tofu into 1/2" cubes and add to mixture.  Cook an additional 10-15 minutes.

*Add broccoli and noodles and stir to mix.

A meal that I wish I could have enjoyed!

You can all thank my husband for the wonderful plating and photo tonight because while he was feeding 4 children, I was at hot yoga.  Sometimes it is hard to prepare a meal for the family and not get to enjoy it with them but hot yoga is pretty much the only acceptable excuse for it in my mind ;)  It was a dreary cold day here in Winnipeg and I was happy to spend the afternoon making these stuffed buns and then sweating it out at yoga.  Making lemonade out of lemons?  Yes, I think so.  The buns were served with a simple green salad with tofu croutons!

Vegetable Stuffed Buns

2 1/2 tsp yeast

1 tbsp honey

1 tsp salt

2 tsp olive oil

1 cup warm water

2 3/4 cups whole wheat flour

2 tbsp vital wheat gluten

filling

olive oil

1/2 chopped onion

2 cloves minced garlic

2 tsp grated ginger

1 chopped red pepper

2 chopped carrots

3/4 cup chopped broccoli

1 tbsp braags

1 tbsp cornstarch

*In a large bowl, dissolve yeast, honey, salt and olive oil together.  Let sit for 10 minutes.

*Mix in flour and wheat gluten and knead for 8-10 minutes.  Place in a well oiled bowl and let rise for at least 1 hour.

*Saute onion, garlic and ginger in olive oil until soft.  Add red pepper, carrots, and broccoli and stir fry until slightly soft.  

*Mix together braags and cornstarch and pour into stir fry mixture.  Allow to cool

*Remove dough from bowl and divide into 12 pieces.  Roll each piece into a thin circle.

*Add 2 tbsp(ish) of stirfry mixture to each circle.

*Bring edges to close in mixture and twist together to close.

*Place seam side down on a baking sheet and allow to rise for 30 more minutes

*Brush with olive oil and bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes

Easter Dinner

I think today there might have been too much food, even for this foodie.  It started yesterday when I made the mashed potatoes, ratatouille and started the tofurkey.  After church and swimming (our Sunday morning tradition!) I almost immediately got to work on the rest of our Easter supper.  It was a beautiful day (finally!) and I could hear the kids playing outside and feel the lovely breeze.  I spent a bit of time (while the rolls were rising) sitting with a neighbour on her porch.  It was a perfect day.  I can hardly move now though, from both sheer exhaustion and because I am pretty sure that I am literally stuffed full of food.

 

 

  So from the top, I have: the super easy cranberry sauce (sugar, water, cranberries, orange zest),steamed vegetables, apple pie (the only change I had was using slightly more apples), vegetarian gravy, Amy's super wicked mashed potatoes, quinoa rolls, tofurkey (which didn't at all hold up like the pictures BUT it did taste good!, ratatouille (I found this recipe in the Metro a few weeks ago), and stuffing (box mix that I added craisins, yellow and red onion, and celery to).

Amy's Super Wicked Mashed Potatoes

10 medium potatoes, boiled until very tender

1/4 cup butter

8 oz cream cheese

1 cup sour cream

salt and pepper

2 tbsp melted butter

1/4 cup bread crumbs

*Mash together potatoes, butter, cream cheese, and sour cream

*Add salt and pepper to taste

*Transfer to a greased baking dish

*In a small bowl, mix together melted butter and bread crumbs, top potato mixture

*Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before cooking

*Bake at 350 for 45 minutes

Ratatouille

 2 tbsp olive oil

2 sliced yellow onions

3 cloves chopped garlic

1 diced red pepper

1/2 cup fresh chopped basil

1 tbsp fresh chopped thyme

1 can diced tomatoes

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp each salt and pepper

3-4 sliced zucchini

1 1/2 cups comte cheese (or gruyere)

*In a large skillet, saute onion, garlic and pepper for 10 minutes.

*Add basil, thyme, tomatoes, vinegar, salt and pepper.  Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.

*Spread a third of the tomato mixture over the bottom of a deep dish pie pan.

*Arrange a third of the zucchini on top, then a third of the cheese.  Repeat the layering two more times.

*Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

The kids like tofu :)

Toe-fooooo, toe-foooo!  My kids really love tofu. So much that they chant for it when I ask for menu suggestions!  This time they thought I should make a burger out of tofu and have tofu fries?  A little too much if you ask me ;)  I have never tried to make tofu burgers before but I figured it shouldn't be too hard, and it wasn't!  They could have used a little more spice but they were still very good.  I served them with a sweet and savoury kale and a bell pepper salad.

Tofu Burgers

 2 packages of soft tofu

3/4 cup sunflower seeds, crushed

1 chopped onion

3 cloves minced garlic

1 cup old fashioned oats

3 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

salt and pepper

hot sauce

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

*In a food processor, pulse together tofu, seeds, onion and garlic

*Pour into a large bowl and add remaining ingredients, mix well.

*Form into patties and cook in a skillet (with olive oil) for 4-5 minutes per side.

*Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes

A Child's Portion: "Tuna" Noodle Casserole

Another childhood favourite for my husband is tuna noodle casserole.  I found this recipe in my Vegetarian Family Cookbook and thought I would try it out.  With a few adaptions it turned out pretty good!  The kids really liked it and I managed to forget about the fact that I had used mushrooms in it.  It's kind of a running joke that I'm the worst vegetarian in the world because I don't like mushrooms or eggplant and when you request a vegetarian meal it is almost ALWAYS a combination of those two things.  I served this dish with scalloped broccoli and some steamed carrots.  This picture is of my oldest daughter's plate because she thought it was only fair that I shared her meal for once :)

"Tuna" Noodle Casserole

1 box pasta (I only had bowtie), boiled to al dente

 1 package baked tofu*-finely diced

2 tbsp butter

1 chopped onion

4 stalks chopped celery

1 cup minced mushrooms

2 cups milk

3 tbsp flour

salt and pepper

2-3 sliced scallions 

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup shredded cheese

wheat germ

*I didn't buy pre-baked tofu, I just pressed a block of firm tofu and sliced it into 4, marinated it in braggs and nutritional yeast and baked it for 30 minutes.

*Heat the butter in a saucepan, and saute onion until soft

*Add celery and cook for 4 minutes, add mushrooms and cook for 5 more minutes

*Pour 1 1/2 cups of milk into saucepan and bring to a simmer.

*Combine flour and remaining milk, and add slowly to saucepan, stirring constantly until thickened

*In a large bowl combine pasta, peas, tofu, scallions and milk mixture

*Pour into a well oiled 9x13 casserole dish.  Cover with wheat germ and cheese.

*Bake at 350 for 40 minutes

Slow Cooker Tuesday: Veggie Dumpling Stew!

When I asked my kids if there was anything they wanted on this weeks menu, all they could come up with was "MORE TOFU!".  I was happy to oblige with today's meal that I found on this website!  Tuesdays are generally our busiest day of the week, and this week we added a dentist appointment to our regular obligations.  I didn't check the recipe closely enough though and when we got home I realized there was still more to add in and cook for another hour and forty five minutes!  Oops!  I had also planned on making some garlic rolls but decided to enjoy the lovely weather again.  Luckily my mom had dropped off some fresh bannock so we had that with some garlic butter and a green salad with feta.

Veggie Dumpling Stew

Olive Oil

1 chopped onion

3 cloves minced garlic

1 package of tofu, drained, pressed, and cubed

3 sliced carrots

2 sliced stalks of celery

3 1/4 cups vegetable stock, divided

2 tsp sage

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

1 cup + 2 tbsp flour, divided

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup margarine
1/4 cup soy milk

1 cup chopped fresh parsley

*Saute onion and garlic in oil until soft

*Add tofu and cook until browned on all sides

*Transfer to slow cooker and add carrots, celery, 3 cups stock, sage, salt and pepper.  Cook on low for 7-8 hours.

*Mix together 1/4 cup stock and 2 tbsp of flour (to thicken).  Add to slow cooker and cook for another hour.

*Mix together remaining ingredients to make dumplings.  Add to slow cooker and cook for another 45 minutes.

Matthew's Delicious Tofu

I have no idea who Matthew is but I'm pretty sure that today he is a hero in our house.  I found this recipe in The Garden of Vegan last week and thought it sounded okay.  I had no idea it would be so well liked though!  To quote my son, "This is spicy but delicious!" and I didn't even tell him the name of the recipe ;)  In the cookbook it doesn't have you dry-fry or marinate all day, but I figured it couldn't hurt!  We had the tofu with a mixture of brown and wild rice, and steamed carrots and broccoli. 

Matthew's Delicious Tofu

2 packages of medium firm tofu, dry-fried and chopped

3 tbsp olive oil

6 cloves of minced garlic

 2 tbsp of grated fresh ginger

3 tsp Asian chili sauce

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup braggs

juice from 1 lemon

*Saute tofu in olive oil until browned

*Reduce heat and add garlic, ginger, and chili sauce. Saute 5 minutes.

*Add maple syrup, braggs, and lemon juice.

*Cover and cook until the liquid has evaporated.

You can serve it just like this or place it in a container to marinate in the fridge and then re-heat it in a frying pan later on.

Another Monday of trying to please a 2 year old...

I'm pretty sure the only reason any of this meal got eaten by our favourite Monday dinner guest is because we were having chocolate pudding for dessert.  Another Monday, another fail!  You just never know with a 2 year old!  Tonight we had spaghetti with a super easy (super delicious) lentil sauce and a tofu and veggie salad.  I just kind of threw the salad together at lunch and it went over so well I will definitely be making it again.  Possibly even this week, ha!  I basically just marinated the tofu in a simple balsamic vinegar marinade and then baked it in the oven for 30 minutes.  Then I threw it in a bowl with some tomatoes, cucumber, yellow pepper, carrots and the leftover marinade!  So for next week all I know is that our little friend likes bread and... well that is actually all I know for sure :)

Spaghetti and Lentil Sauce

2 small chopped onions

3 cloves minced garlic

1 1/2 cups of dried green lentils

3 1/2 cups vegetable broth

1 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp parsley

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

freshly ground black pepper

1 can tomato paste

*Saute onion and garlic until soft

*Add lentils, broth, and spices and bring to a boil.

*Lower heat and simmer for 30-40 minutes (until lentils are cooked)

*Add tomato paste and mix well.

Kabobs and more kabobs!

Despite the fact that it is snowing outside, I am continuing on with my spring themed meals.  It is okay to pretend it's not snowing outside because it REALLY IS spring.  Tonight we had tofu kabobs in a marinade that I really just threw together last minute this morning.  I thought about searching around for a new recipe but decided to go with my tried and true non-recipe recipe.  We had the kabobs with some rice and a simple green salad, and for dessert... fruit kabobs!  The ones I am posting a picture of are mine, the kids made their own so there was a lot of grape-grape-grape and watermelon-watermelon-watermelon versions ;)  I am going to continue ignoring the snow and am planning on taking the kids on a hike/picnic tomorrow for our last day of spring break.  Think of me tomorrow and pray I'm not knee-deep in slush with a baby on my back!!

Tofu Kabobs

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/3 cup olive oil

3 cloves minced garlic

1 inch grated ginger

1 tbsp fresh chopped rosemary

2 tbsp fresh chopped basil

1 tbsp fresh chopped thyme

2 tbsp fresh chopped parsley

1 tbsp honey

small squeeze of lemon

pepper

1 block tofu

1 chopped red pepper

1 chopped green pepper

cherry tomatoes

1/2 chopped zucchini

*Combine all ingredients and pour over cubed (pressed and dry-fried) tofu

*Keep in a covered container all day in the fridge

*After placing all tofu and veggies on a kabob-stick, brush remaining marinade over the veggies

*BBQ on medium-low, turning often.

Spaghetti Squash Lasagna

My son must ask me at least 5 times every time we eat this dish, "Are you sure there is squash in here, it tastes just like lasagna".  This meal is pretty simple to put together if the spaghetti squash is done and if you have some frozen chunky pasta sauce out.  We had it with a green salad with tofu croutons and some roasted red peppers.  I even blended some up for the baby and she loved it!  While we all enjoyed the lasagna, the most popular part of the meal was definitely the tofu croutons.  They were the first thing gone from every one's plate and seconds and thirds were had by all.

Spaghetti Squash Lasagna

1 large spaghetti squash

1 batch chunky pasta sauce

2 1/2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

3/4 cups grated parmesan cheese

2 cups ricotta cheese

3 cloves minced garlic

2 tsp Italian seasoning

5 oz fresh spinach

salt and pepper

*Cut squash lengthwise and scoop out seeds 

*Bake at 400 for 40-45 minutes face down

*Using a fork scrape the squash lengthwise down the squash so it comes out in long strings like spaghetti

*Spread 1/4 of the sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 casserole dish

*Layer 1/3 of the squash, 1/4 sauce, 1/3 mozzarella and parmesan on top

*Repeat once more

*Saute garlic and spinach until soft, approx 2-3 minutes

*In a large bowl combine ricotta, spinach, and seasonings

*Pour on top of squash mixture

*Top with remaining squash, sauce and cheese

*Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes

Tofu Croutons

1 package of firm tofu, drained, pressed and dry fried

3 tbsp olive oil

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

2 tbsp fresh rosemary

2 tbsp fresh thyme

2 cloves minced garlic

1 tsp parsley

1 tsp basil

*Combine all ingredients in plastic container.

*Shake and coat well

*Place in refrigerator and chill for at least 2 hours

*Bake at 350 for 30 minutes

Tofu Sloppy Joes!

Thursday is our swimming and hockey day, so we are always eating on the run.  Sloppy Joes are easy, quick, and the kids LOVE them.  Well, they love anything with tofu but this seemed to go over extra well.  We've tried a few recipes in the past so today I decided to just see what I could come up with.  I served it with a green salad and just because my son asked extra sweetly, we had strawberries with whip cream.

Tofu Sloppy Joes

1 package of extra firm tofu

1 chopped onion

4 cloves minced garlic

1 chopped green pepper

1 chopped red pepper

1 chopped jalapeno

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp mustard

1 tsp cumin 

1/2 cup ketchup

1 cup vegetable broth

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp brown sugar

1/4 cup chopped parsley

2 tsp soya sauce

salt and pepper

*Pulse tofu in food processor until crumbled.

*Saute onion, and garlic in oil until soft.  Add peppers and saute 5 more minutes.

*Add remaining ingredients and simmer until reduced.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

In our house we like the motto "the more cheese the better" and we try our best to live up to that.  That is why this recipe is one of my favourites.  I put down here 2-3 cups but really... I usually just grate up all the cheese we have in the house ;)  I think that soon I will have to start making two of these casseroles at a time because we finish up one in no time.  We barely have enough for my eldest daughter to take for lunch the next day.  I also tried the dry frying tofu again tonight but with some tofu fingers, and it worked like a charm again.  Thank goodness for google ;)

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

1 package of whole wheat macaroni

3 tbsp butter

3 tbsp flour

1 tbsp powdered mustard

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

salt and pepper

3 cups milk

2-3 cups shredded cheddar cheese

2 tbsp butter

1/2 cup crumbled crackers

*Boil macaroni according to package instructions

*Melt butter and whisk in flour and spices

*Whisk in milk and bring to a boil until thickened

*Fold in cheese

*Mix together cheese and macaroni and pour into greased 9x13 casserole dish

*Melt butter and mix with crackers, spread on the top of the macaroni mixture

*Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes

Tofu Fingers

1 package of extra firm tofu

1 cup bread crumbs

1/2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp parsley

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper

*Cut, press, and dry fry tofu in 12 long strips

*Place in a container with the remaining and ingredients and coat well

*Bake at 375 for 30 minutes

Stirfry

We had a pretty easy meal today.  Some "dry fried" tofu in a simple marinade, stir fried veggies (broccoli, red and green pepper, green beans, carrots, and celery) and some chow mein noodles.  I only recently heard about the dry-frying method for tofu, and it works fantastic!  Great consistency, and good absorption of flavours. 

Tofu Marinade

1/2 cup of soy sauce

1/8 cup rice vinegar

2 cloves of minced garlic

1 inch grated ginger

2 chopped green onions

2 tbsp sesame oil

chopped parsley

juice from half a lemon

1 tsp brown sugar

dash red pepper flakes