Tofu and veg in turmeric lemon grass broth
This is a quick thai-inspired recipe from the cookbook Vegetarian Supper from Deborah Madison’s Kitchen. It’s basically tofu and quick-cooking vegetables simmered in just a small amount of vibrant yellow, flavorful liquid. The first time I made it I added a few tablespoons of coconut milk, and both Derek and I really enjoyed it. It’s like a really quick thai curry without much broth at all. For my veggies I used asparagus and snow peas (from the freezer). But I used more than a handful. Maybe a few cups? I bought somen noodles for this recipe, but then forgot to cook them ahead of time, and was too hungry to wait, so we just ate the dish without rice or noodles.
I didn’t measure all that carefully. I bought 3 lemongrass stalks and used all 3, and more than one slice of ginger, and kaffir lime leaves instead of lime zest. Rather than just throw out the veggies after straining them I decided to try simmering them again, and the second batch of broth also turned out very flavorful. So I think I’d probably use more of the broth veggies and quite a bit more water—maybe 4 cups? Or at least make a second batch of broth after the first one.
Alma tasted one bite and said she didn’t like it. It was a little spicy, but even if I had left the jalapeno out I doubt she would have eaten it. I wonder how I can get her used to the flavors of a thai curry?
The recipe:
First make the broth. In a small sauce bring to a boil, then simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes or until reduced to about 3/4 cup:
- 3 Tbs. chopped fresh or frozen lemon grass
- 2 slices fresh ginger
- grated zest of 1 lime (I couldn’t find organic limes so used a few kaffir lime leaves)
- 2 cilantro sprigs
- 1.5 cups water
- big pinch of salt
Strain the broth and add
- 1 Tbs. soy sauce or fish sauce
- 1 Tbs. brown sugar or maple syrup
While the broth is simmering, make the tofu and veggies.
- 2 garlic cloves thinly sliced
- 1 carton soft tofu, drained and cubed
- 1 tsp. toasted peanut oil (I didn’t have any so used toasted sesame oil)
- 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced crosswise
- 2 scallions, including 2 inches of the greens, diagonally sliced
- 1/2 jalapeno chile, finely diced
- a handful of quick cooking vegetables, like sugar snap peas, edamame, asparagus tips, baby bok choy, or even diced cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
- a dash of coconut milk (optional)
- 1 cup cooked sticky rice or 1 oz. dry somen noodles, cooked (optional)
- 2 Tbs. cilantro leaves (for garnish)
- lime wedges (for the table)
Heat a medium skillet, add the oil, and when it’s hot add the garlic onion, scallions and chile. Stir-fry over high heat for 30 seconds, then add the veg, turmeric and tofu. Pour in the strained broth, then simmer until the veg is brigh green and tender-crisp and the tofu is hot, usually a few minutes. Taste for salt. Add the rice or noodles to the dish, if using, then garnish with 2 Tbs. cilantro leaves and serve with lime wedges.
Tofu vegetable pie
This recipe was given to me in grad school by a football-loving, barbecue-adoring, guy from Texas. It’s creamy and satisfying comfort-food. It’s somewhat reminiscent of a vegan quiche. It doesn’t have a crust, but the outside gets crisp and forms its own crust. Read the rest of this entry »
Silken chocolate tofu pie
One of the desserts I remember best form childhood is silken chocolate tofu pie. I know, it doesn’t sound that great, but it was creamy and rich and chocolately and sweet… I loved it. My mom used to bake it in a graham cracker crust which made it even better. But I also loved it uncooked right out of the food processor. When I lived in the co-op I used to make the pudding with lemon juice or grapefruit juice for a little extra bite. I liked the stark contrast between the sweet pudding and the sour juice. Other co-op denizens didn’t like the combination of citrus and chocolate and soy as much as I did. I didn’t mind though, because that way there was more for me. I tried making the pudding for Derek long ago, but he was disturbed by the strong underlying soy flavor, so I stopped making it. But last month I had a few boxes of silken tofu lying around that needed to get used up, and so I decided to try making tofu chocolate pudding again. Read the rest of this entry »
Mini crustless tofu quiches
I had some expiring silken tofu in the fridge and felt like eating something savory. I love how Isa Moskowitz uses silken tofu to simulate eggs in Vegan with a Vengeance, so I thought I would give these mini quiches from the fat free vegan blog a try.
I didn’t have any mushrooms so I used small broccoli florets instead. I didn’t have the chives so I left them out. I used tahini for the nut butter and lowfat milk instead of soymilk. I used arrowroot instead of cornstarch. I didn’t have any oil spray so I brushed my muffin tins with olive oil instead.
The batter tasted good. The nutritional yeast flavor dominated, giving it a savory, umame flavor. I couldn’t taste any of the other ingredients individually (not even the rosemary) but I think they contributed to the depth of flavor. The texture of the batter, however, was very powdery from the arrowroot.
I didn’t have enough batter to fill my muffin tins halfway. I’m not sure if I didn’t do a good job of scraping all the batter out of the food processor and skillet, or if my muffin tins are just a little bit bigger than Susan’s.
I took the quiches out of the oven after 20 minutes, since I was using metal muffin tins, and a knife came out clean. However, after letting the quiches cool down, I couldn’t get them out. I’m not sure if I greased insufficiently or didn’t cook them long enough. The top of the quiches had a nice firm eggy texture but the rest kind of resembled mashed up raw tofu. They tasted pretty good, and they were definitely low calorie. I’ll probably try this recipe again sometime, and see if I can get them to firm up more and come out of the tins.
Tofu pumpkin pudding
When I was a kid I used to love my mom’s tofu pudding. My favorite flavors were chocolate and pumpkin (but not together). Sometimes she’d make a pie by pouring the pudding into a pie crust and then baking it, but more often we’d just eat it as a pudding, sans crust. Read the rest of this entry »
Vegan “Mayonnaise”
Tofu or “soy” mayonnaise is not really all that similiar to mayonnaise in flavor, but nonetheless it’s a versatile substance. I’ve used it on sandwiches, to make tofu salad, in place of yogurt in an apple salad, and as a dip. On this day I couldn’t find my mom’s tofu mayo recipe, so I used this one that’s part of her recipe for Mock Turkey Salad.
* 1/2 lb firm tofu
* 2 Tbs. oil
* 1 Tbs. lemon juice
* 1 tsp. sweetener
* 1 1/2 tsp. mustard
* 2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
* 1/2 tsp. salt
It came out quite a bit too sweet–the balance was off. So I called my mom and got her recipe:
- 1 pack (12 ounces) silken tofu, firm
- 3 Tbs oil
- 3 Tbs apple cider vinegar
- 3/4 tsp. kosher salt
- 3/4 tsp. sugar
Aha, less sugar! Also no lemon juice or mustard, but otherwise the same. I’ll try it next time instead. This recipe makes just over 1.5 cups of mayo, or about 26 Tablespoons. Each tablespoon has about 22 calories, but is surprisingly rich and creamy tasting.
Serving ideas:
* sandwiches (obviously)
* mix together with greens and brown rice and nutritional yeast for a great comfort food casserole
* use in place of yogurt in an apple salad
* mix with tofu to make a sort of mock chicken salad
* anyone have any other ideas?
Note: I had some silken tofu in aseptic packages that I took with me on my drive to Chicago, and they froze in the moving van. I decided to just go ahead and try to make mayo out of them. The tofu was kind of weird–it had the texture of silken tofu and of frozen tofu at the same time. The mayo texture was a bit less silky and thicker than normal, but once I added it to the rice and greens the difference wasn’t detectable.
Update May 2011: I tried making the above recipe (for mock turkey salad) with soft silken tofu and it came out way too thin.
Vegan Key Lime Pie
I’ve never been a big fan of key lime pie, but my friend Ben’s girlfriend Deanna brought this vegan pie for dessert a few weeks ago, and I thought it was excellent. It has such a strong lime flavor, I couldn’t believe it only had 4 Tbs. of lime juice. After making lemon bars, I expected it to have about a cup! Deanna is a professional vegan baker, but she didn’t invent the recipe. In looking for the source of this recipe, I found it on the web, and the page said it was created by Jannequin Bennett, chef at the Jefferson Hotel. Read the rest of this entry »
The captious vegetarian 