Wasa Crackers, Tofu, Mushrooms and Black Olives Lasagna
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Hullo. I was wondering if any of you fine folks had any tried and true recipes for making cream cheese from silken tofu. Looks like dairy is off the list of things I'm allowed to eat and I really don't want to spend nearly $4 on an 8 oz tub of vegan cream cheese. Any ideas?

Today I decided to use some of our local veggies and wanted to make soup and bread. So I decided on chicken barley soup because that's simple enough and I can just put whatever I want in it. And I wanted fresh bread, so I used a simple french bread bread machine recipe and made the dough in the bread machine, then did the last rise and the baking in the oven. I used my new pizza stone for the bread and it worked fabulously. I just sprinkled a little corn meal on the stone right after I heated up the stone in the oven, then put the dough on it and it worked perfectly. I'm going to do all of my baking on that stone - bread, cookies, pizza, etc. Here's the bread:



And for the soup I made it without a recipe - I poached the chicken to cook it, then put it aside. I used our own homemade vegetable stock (we freeze all of our vegetable clippings and when the bag is full we make broth), with boneless skinless chicken breasts. I sauteed the onions, carrots, celery and garlic until soft (I added a little dried basil and thyme into the veggies, along with salt and some of Trader Joe's Everyday Seasoning), then added the stock (about 8 cups). Brought to a boil, added 1/2 cup pearl barley and simmered for 20 minutes, then added the diced cooked chicken and cabbage (sliced into strips) cooked for 5 minutes, added the fresh peas, and cooked the whole thing for 15 minutes. The carrots, cabbage and English peas were all grown at a local farm.

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It was all delicious. The bread took time, but was extremely simple. The soup was very hearty and low fat. The only fat was a little oil to sautee the veggies at the beginning. This would be really good as a vegan recipe if you use cubes of extra firm tofu instead of chicken - it would be delicious.

(This is from my website with slightly different wording.)

Note: I refer to most of the seasonings as being “to taste” but it should be noted that my own “to taste” is rather on the heavy side. I like a lot of flavor. So if you want yours to come out like mine, be generous with the spices. If you prefer subtler tastes, then use less spices. I'll try to "guestimate" what I use in parentheses next to each one, but I won't have the actual measurements until the next time I cook this.

It also must be noted that this recipe makes a LOT of the veggies in cream sauce part, because I always cook with the intention of freezing leftovers. I don’t make all the fettucini at once, however. Each time I reheat the veggies/sauce part, I cook more new fettucini for the servings that I’m making.( Read more...Collapse )

Hey everyone, I'm new to this community!

I want to share my current favourite recipe with everyone. It is Vegan (no, not the V word!) but it's REALLY tasty. And I'm saying that as a meat eater.
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I'm looking for more resources on foods that you prep and freeze for later. Whether it's adapting dishes you usually make into freeze for later or foods explicitly made for that. I'd also like things on defrosting safely and properly. I've read all the posts here and it's helpful, but I'm looking for more. (I know that these may seem like really dumb questions to some, but I've always went from eating a lot of processed TV dinners or spending a lot of time cooking.)

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Originally posted by fenilla at Braised tofu with leeks, ginger and shitake

We tried this last night, it was quick, easy, and tasty.

1 lb of extra firm tofu, drained, squeezed, and cut into 4 cutlets (the flatter, the better)
Assorted veggies cut into bite sized pieces (I used cauliflower, broccoli, red and yellow peppers, and red onion.
any asian type condiments and sauces in your cupboard and fridge (mine was teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, hoisin sauce, and plum sauce.)
Olive oil
salt and pepper

Pre heat oven to 425 degrees
Take a jelly roll pan or other large flat pan with a lip , pour a generous amount of olive oil on pan (for less mess cover with foil first). place tofu on pan, flip to get oil on both sides. Place veggies around and on tofu. Pour over mixture of sauces. toss veggies around to coat, and make sure to get sauce on tofu. Add more olive oil, salt and pepper if you like. Place in oven. Roast for 30 minutes, peek in after about 15 minutes and shake to move veggies around. Serve over rice or noodles.

x posted to vegrecipes

I tried searching the memories; wasn't a lot there regarding tofu.

Wanna try stuffed tofu, and I have a recipe I like, but I thought I'd check here first.

Any suggestions?

I've got the perfect type of tofu to make salt and pepper tofu - firm but soft, and want to make it for dinner tonight. Does anyone have a good recipe for salt and pepper tofu? I love the type they serve at my favourite Chinese restaurant...it's crisp and light and crunchy on the outside and really meltingly soft on the inside, almost like custard or something! I have crispy-fried shallots and garlic to sprinkle on top, along with fresh shallots and sliced chili....mmmmm.

I have a confession to make. I, the self-proclaimed healthy food adventurer, had never tried cooking with tofu. I've had tofu-burgers that came pre-packaged. I've worked with meat substitute crumbles many a time. I've eaten tofu in soups. But I've never tried to cook with it on my own.

So, on a whim fueled by the promise of more fajita seasoning to restock my dwindling supply and a sale on tofu at the store, I decided to venture into the wonderful world of tofu fajitas. I'd read enough to know that extra firm tofu would be the block of choice. Once home, I set the block wrapped in layers of paper towels between two plates and covered with the biggest cans we had in the house- pasta sauce. Every so often, I'd check the stack, changing paper towels as they were soaked through. In the meantime, I combined a heathy mix: fajita seasoning, lime zest (bow to the new microplane purchased while in Minneapolis!), lime juice, cilantro, and low-sodium chicken stock. Once the tofu was sufficiently squeezed, I sliced it into eight pieces and dropped in to the marinade.

Fast-forward a week. Hey, I have tofu in the fridge! Why not cook it up? If it's inedible, there's always the chili the rest of the house is eating. So, an abbreviated pico was made (cilantro, tomatoes, red onion, lime zest and juice, and kosher salt) while the skillet heated up. Into the skillet went a bit of oil and the bell peppers. Next came the tofu slices, ringing with the punch of lime and the sweetness of cilantro. They were browned until crispy and firm. At this point, I hesitated. It looked like chicken, except for the suspiciously perfectly square corners. It smelled like the fajitas I knew and loved from grandma's house and Sunday suppers in the common rooms in college. Would the taste the same? With images of Fear Factor in my peripheral vision, I nibbled on the smallest corner I could break off. It was... surprisingly good! Crisp on the outside, with the tang of lime and salty kick of the seasonings, and firm yet creamy on the inside. Success!

Soon, my newest adventure was on my plate, rolled up with peppers and pico and guacamole in a red lettuce leaf. One win for the kitchen stadium! Okay, no crowds cheering, no official title, and a pile of dishes to clean up as my roommate laughed at my dance of joy, but a victory for me. Today, I sit, enjoying leftovers and perusing recipes to take me down yet another path in the land of tofu. Victory is sweet, hot out of the pan or chilled the next day at the office.

  

So, what are your favorite tofu recipies?

Hey all. I've been more and more grossed out by meat lately (due to what I've been eating-- I've been eating a lot of turkey in palce of beef, which basically makes me go "ew, beef.")
Tofu freaks my mom's shit out, basically, but I would like to try cooking tofu. Perhaps something innocuous-- like substituting meat for tofu in lasagna or something. I have never in my LIFE so much as touched tofu, though. If I wanted to substitute tofu for ground meat (we use turkey,) what should I do, and what kind of tofu should I use?
I think I posted about tofu before-- but like I said, the prsopect of a meatless dinner frightens my mom, so I don't know how she'd feel about something ENTIRELY new. Plus you can hardly taste the meat in lasagna anyway, so eh. Thanks!

Tofu Dressing (or Tofu Caesar Salad Dressing)

I got this recipe from an acquaintance named Moyn who said the following: "...experimenting, for my daughter, who is VERY weight & fat conscious. We loved it...and the big plus is that there is NO oil at all in it.... and it tastes really rich."

4-6 garlic cloves, peeled
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 14 oz pkg silken tofu
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/8 cup lime juice
1 Tbsp Asian fish sauce (or soy sauce to taste, if you're vegetarian, or vegetarian "mushroom sauce")
2 anchovies (not sure of a substitute for this if you're vegetarian...)
1 tsp black pepper
dash tabasco

Combine all of above in blender and puree until completely smooth.

Notes from Moyn: Next time, to vary it, I would add fish sauce and anchovies to half, and add another herb like dill or basil, with parsley, to the second half - giving me an assortment to choose from. We really didn't miss the oil at all in this, BUT, if you do, you can always thin it out with a TBSP or so, before tossing the salad. Enjoy!!

Julie's Coconut Spinach Tofu Soup

I tossed this together the other night and it was wonderful! Very easy, simple, and tasty. :)

2 cups vegetable broth
1/4 cup green onion pieces in 1-inch lengths
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 to 2 cups firm or extra firm tofu in 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups baby spinach leaves
1 can coconut milk
salt and black pepper, to taste

Heat the vegetable broth until it begins simmering, then add the green onion, garlic, and tofu. Let simmer for 5 minutes, then add the spinach leaves and simmer another 5 minutes. Add the coconut milk and simmer an additional 5 minutes, season to taste with salt and pepper (and a tiny bit Tabasco, if you like) then serve immediately.

Note: regarding the 1 to 2 cups tofu... it depends on how "chunky" you want your soup. :) Or how many people you're feeding. You can also add a bit more vegetable broth, but not more than an additional 1/2 to 3/4 cup or you'll dilute the coconut milk too much.

Makes 2-4 servings.

Can anyone come up with any quick and very yummy tofu recipes for dinner tonight?

In our house we have things like..

-Canned veggies (green beans, peas, corn, diced tomatoes)
-Black beans
-Kidney beans
-Rice
-Various types of noodles
-Plain yogurt
-Boxed couscous (toasted pine nut, and roasted garlic & olive oil flavors)
-Ramen (various flavors)
-Various seasonings/oils (including sesame oil, sesame seeds, cumin, chili powder, etc etc)
-Probably some type of spaghetti sauce
-And...I don't know, probably any other normal household foodstuff you can think of!

Thanks for any suggestions! I have a vague idea of what I could do, I'm just wondering if there's anything that's specifically really good?

Does anyone have any recipes using tofu...but in such a way that it's not in noticeable chunks, or a focal point? Like, for someone who doesn't want to know they're eating it...