You can conquer Tofu and a Quick Stir Fry

                  So is Tofu giving you the run around? One minute you order it at a restaurant and it tastes sooooo great, then when you try to make it at home, it sits in your fridge, you give it to the dog or you toss it with yesterdays papers. I have been there, and I have done that, except I don't have a dog. So many times it remained in the fridge for a couple days, until I got tired of looking at it and then tossed it. (Yes, I know, shame on me. I admit, I am ashamed).
                    However, despite all the bad tofu experiences,  I never gave up. The epitome of my tofu experience came while in culinary school (big surprise there). We learned there that not only should you season and marinate tofu (which I did sometimes), but that a good way to cook Tofu is to make sure you get a good golden pan sear! In essence you are taking the same technique that you would use to pan sear meats and apply that to tofu (Firm tofu usually works best).
                    What does it mean to pan sear? Searing (or pan searing) is a technique used in grilling, baking, braising, roasting, sauteing etc., in which the surface of the food (usually meat, poultry or fish) is cooked at high temperature so a caramelized crust forms.  With the addition of bold spices and seasonings, you can take your boring tofu to exciting bites of yumminess! The searing technique creates a visual improvement on your dishes, an interesting texture depth, and seals in and enhances flavor. Now, cooking and eating tofu is no longer a chore, but a delight!
                     In light of this, a couple of days ago, I was feeling for an Asian inspired dinner. I whipped up a A Tofu and Vegetable Stir Fry and served it with some noodles. I had not cooked tofu in a long time and thought that it would be nice to share one of the ways I prepare it, focusing on the tofu cooking techniques. Hope you enjoy!

Tofu pairs especially well with Sesame Oil and Seeds. Other lovely pairings are scallions, teriyaki, soy sauce, mushrooms, ginger, garlic.

Ingredients

1 box tofu (Firm), diced in medium cubes
1 head of broccoli, bite sized florets, blanched
1 zucchini, sliced in half moons
1 carrot, sliced in rounds
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1 medium onion, julienned
2 cloves of garlic, grated
5 baby portabello mushrooms, sliced
1 package of your favorite noodles (you can serve with rice if you wish)
1 green onion, sliced
3 tbsp mushroom stir fry sauce
2 tsp sesame seed oil
2 tsp sesame seeds
vegetable oil (you can use peanut oil if you like)
Sweet chili sauce (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

Spices/Seasoning for Tofu

1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp sesame seed oil
1 tsp Chinese five spice
2 tsp mushroom stir fry sauce
1 scallion, sliced

Method
1. A couple hours before, or if possible the night before, cut tofu into medium cubes, and add all the ingredients for seasoning the tofu. Just toss the bowl with ingredients as you don't want to break up the tofu. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
                         

2. Cut and slice all other ingredients, keeping them separate.
3. In skillet, or wok, heat up a little vegetable oil, enough to coat the bottom of the pan. When it is hot, add the tofu. Do not stir as yet. It would start to brown on one side, making it easy to just toss the skillet to move tofu around. Remember you do not want to break the tofu up any smaller (however it can happen).

                         

5. Once the tofu has got the color you desire, start by adding the onions, let it cook a little bit, probably a minute. Then add the garlic, mushrooms, sweet peppers, carrots and zucchini. While that cooks, make sure to add salt and pepper to taste as well as the sesame seed oil and the mushroom stir fry sauce.  Cook at least 5 minutes.
6. Add the broccoli and sesame seeds and turn off the stove. The heat will warm up the broccoli if you blanched them prior. (Blanching allows the broccoli to get and keep a bright green color. To blanch, place a pot of water to boil, adding enough salt to taste like the sea. Meanwhile, get a bowl with ice cold water ready. When the water is boiling, add the broccoli for a few minutes, probably 2 to 3 minutes, but no more than 4. Drain broccoli and immediately shock them in ice cold water which will stop it from cooking).
7. Taste your dish, adjust seasonings and serve over your favorite noodles or rice. I added some sweet chili sauce to the top of each serving just to add more flavor.

P.S. Wait till you try this dish the day after you cooked it. Sure the day you cook it is good, but the next day its just great!

Fresh Cranberries and A Muffin Recipe.

                        Don't you just love the Ocean Spray cranberry commercials? I do, and when I visited Walt Disney World's Food and Wine Festival in 2011, there was this spectacular display, shown in the picture above, of a live version of a cranberry commercial! It was the first time I saw this in real life and was pretty amazed. It was hard not to pass the display, as the sun made the cranberries almost glisten like red rubies in a huge box! That experience started me thinking of all the ways that we can use cranberries, and other things that compliment them. Other than drinking various mixes of cranberry juices, we are used to cranberry overload during the holidays. So, with the holiday seasons upon us, it was not very surprising today, when I visited the farmers market, that I saw bags  of fresh Ocean Spray cranberries for a dollar. (Needless to say I bought a couple bags)
                         More than likely, like most people, I am going to make my own cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving this year. So I washed the cranberries, dried them and froze them so that I can use them in the next week and a half or so. Then I took the rest and used them in some muffins for breakfast for my husband (he likes muffins). From what I have read, using fresh cranberries are more effective in protecting our cardio-vascular system and they are full of antioxidants! It is also high in Vitamin C, and so I am sure adding orange juice to the recipe just makes it that much more full of Vitamin C.
                         I decided that I would make vegan Cranberry and Orange Muffins for my husband. You may not have to go completely overboard like I did to make it vegan, but trust me, they taste really good and are much healthier than using eggs, butter and milk. Below I describe the method I used. But before I share my recipe, here is just a list of other ingredients that cranberries pair well with.

Cranberries go well with Cinnamon, Ginger, Honey, Lemon Juice, Maple Syrup, Orange, Sugar, Vanilla and Walnuts.

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

2 cups of flour, sifted (all purpose works well)
1 cup of sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 cups of chopped cranberries
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts

Wet Ingredients

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg (for vegan use Ener-G egg replacement. Follow box description)
1 fresh squeezed orange (yes, without the seeds)
1/2 cup of pineapple juice
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
approx 2 tsp orange rind
Sugar to sprinkle on muffins before baking (optional)

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 350
2. Using two bowls, measure out all ingredients, dividing them between wet and dry. You should add the walnuts and the cranberries to the dry ingredients. Make sure to mix wet ingredients well. If you are using the egg replacement, mix it separately until frothy and then add to wet ingredients.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and using a spoon fold gently until all dry ingredients are incorporated.
4. Line your muffin tins with the individual cupcake liners, or you can use your cupcake tins for smaller portions. I usually pray the inside of the liners lightly.
5. Using an ice cream scoop (depends on the size muffins you want and tin size), portion out equal amounts into each. At this point you would sprinkle with sugar if you want.
6. Place in oven, and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the top of the muffins bounce back when you touch the top.
7. Place them on a cooling rack and cool properly before storing. I like to store mine on a glass plate under a  glass dome cover, so we can just grab it and go. However you can store them in plastic containers with covers if need be.
8. Take a bite and enjoy!


Let me know how this recipe worked for you.