Five Spice Tofu Spinach Salad with Miso Dressing

It’s not often that I write a recipe for one, but the odds of me cooking for one are high. Now the odds of me making a ginormous, delicious salad....those are odds you don’t wanna mess with. While I say over and over how undervalued and underestimated good salads are, I really do think they are the bees knees and next to perfect. I don’t have that heat obsession that most people have - where any food that isn’t served hot isn’t perceived as filling. Learn a thing or two about fiber and you’ll learn your lesson about salads being filling. What I like most is that they are a hodgepodge of wonderful ingredients in a creation that at best is a reflection of your persona or at worst a compilation of stragglers in the fridge when you’re too lazy to hit up the food store. Sometimes it’s not one or the other, but both.

This recipe is written a little differently than others. Most ingredients lack measurements, because it’s totally up to you. In fact, I almost feel silly putting this up since you could substitute half of this for something else. But if this recipe gets your vegan juices flowing, my goal is accomplished. I typically choose a themed salad when making it as a main course, in this case - Asian. Sauteed tofu is all the protein you’ll need and if you add some cooked brown rice on top, this fill you further than a gritty burger. If you’ve never cooked with 5 spice, it’s a wonderful tool in the kitchen that encompasses all five flavor regimes: sweet, sour, astringent, bitter and salty. If you like Pho, you’ll definitely like the 5 spice blend. If you’ve never heard of Pho before now, quite reading and find a Vietnamese noodle shop.

I’d like to throw a tofu tip to the non-veg heads or novice cooks out there: be smart about flavor and don’t under cook the cubes. Once you’ve seasoned tofu, cook it at medium-high heat and WAIT until it’s brown. So many people tell me they can’t get tofu to taste like anything. Those are somehow the same people who enjoy moo muscle marinated in jungle juice for 4 hours. Tofu needs the same TLC, the same flavor saver - soak tofu in something saucy and spicy for an hour. In a pinch, a quick marinade (like this recipe here) can be very effective. Just make absolutely sure you cook it relatively slowly until golden brown. No white patches. No soggy spots. Tofu doesn’t have to be flavorless flab

5 Spice Tofu Spinach Salad with Miso Dressing

Serves: 1
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 5-10 minutes


Ingredients

For the Tofu
2-3 oz Tofu
1 tsp Soy sauce
1 T. Rice vinegar
1/4 tsp. Chinese 5 spice
1/4 tsp. White pepper
1/4 tsp. Chili or sesame oil
2 T. Leeks
Cooking spray


For the Dressing

1 T. Warm water
1 tsp. Miso
2 tsp. Rice Vinegar
1/4 tsp. Sriracha
1/4 tsp. Agave

For the Salad

Large handful of spinach
Small handful arugula (optional)
Bit of cilantro, chopped
Couple of basil leaves, chopped
Carrot, thinly sliced
Cucumber, thinly sliced
Pickled Radish, thinly sliced
Broccoli, lightly steamed
Roasted Cashews


Directions

Slice tofu into 1/4-12 inch thick slices, about 2. Place on paper towel and pat dry. Combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl and throw in tofu. Stir to completely coat with marinade. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Coat with cooking spray and add tofu to pan, reserving any remaining marinade. Saute stirring frequently until all sides are golden brown. At the last minute pour any leftover marinade in pan and remove from heat. Or just remove tofu from pan into leftover marinade.


Combine all dressing ingredients together in a small bowl.


Combine all salad ingredients on a large plate or in a large bowl. Top with tofu and drizzle miso dressing over the top. Enjoy!

Potato Zucchini Cakes with Coconut Sauce

Despite choosing “potato” as the primary word for this recipe, this idea was all about the squash. I love my weekly share provided by Desert Roots Farm. There is nothing like a ripe batch of yellow pear tomatoes, freshly plucked green onions, or perfectly small apples to brighten up a Saturday morning when I pick up my bag of joy. Always surprise. Always inspiring. But right now - always a huge load of squash. My goodness, I had heard of squash being a long-lasting and high volume nuisance in the sense that you can’t make it stop growing once it springs from the ground. It’s hard to find ways to use it all and still be creative. I have 9 crooknecks waiting patiently in my crisper for that stroke of genius to hit – the moment where I discover a way to make summer squash pudding or sorbet perhaps.

This recipe may not have been a stroke of genius, but it does involve fusion. Thanks to my latest enthusiasm for the Indian realm of vegan cooking, inspiration is easier to find. I’m really into the flavors we learned in class at Indika in Houston and am determined to apply lessons instead of forgetting them. In class, my other half and I made a particularly scrumptious batch of Potato Cakes stuffed with Coconut Chutney, and I felt some serious pride in the final results. Most class members seemed to be impressed, but we had chef supervision and a commercial kitchen at our disposal. How am I to know if these lessons are effective if I don’t recreate at home? So my goal with this recipe was not to duplicate the original, but to make something using it as a foundation with my own interpretive twist.

While ideas for recipes often have far too many potential directions, this one was dead set on the concept of Indian cooking lessons using zucchini. I am now confident that my lessons will not be temporary or wasted – the cakes were delicious. The sauce was a risk and there will be many more versions. I only used mushrooms this time because of a sad portabella hanging out with some saggy gills. Maybe red peppers in the sauce next time? Maybe take the fennel out of the cakes and put it in the sauce? You tell me. But try it.

Potato Zucchini Cakes with Coconut Sauce
Makes 4-6 cakes

Prep time: 20-30 minutes
Cook time: 6-8 minutes

Ingredients

Potato Cakes
3-4 Red potatoes, boiled/steamed* & grated1 c. Zucchini or yellow summer squash, grated
1/3 c. Onion, minced
1/3 c. Breadcrumbs, homemade or store-bought
1 ½ T. Ginger, minced
1 ½ T. Garlic, minced
1 T. Jalapeno, minced
½ tsp Ground cumin
½ tsp Fennel seed
½ tsp Salt
Canola oil for pan frying

Coconut Sauce
1 tsp. Canola oil
¾ c. Mushrooms, minced (optional)
½ T. Garlic, minced
½ T. Ginger, minced
¼ tsp Salt
2/3 c. Coconut milk, light or regular
1 tsp Cornstarch + 2 T. Water

For protein: 1 c. Mung beans or lentils, cooked
For garnish: ½ c. Red bell pepper, finely diced

*When you cook the potatoes, be careful not to over cook them. Otherwise these will be less like latkes and more nuggets. Which might be ok with you. It might be ok with me too. Also be careful not to undercook them or the cakes won’t hold together. It’s not as hard as it sounds.

Directions

For the Potato Cakes: In a medium bowl, combine the all ingredients and adjust the seasoning to taste. Working with 2-3 inch pieces in hand, form mixture into patties. Add breadcrumbs if mixture isn’t sticking well. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat and fill up to ¼ inch with cooking oil. Use a piece of scrap or stray veggie to test the readiness of the oil – if the oil bubbles excitingly over the tester scrap, it’s ready. Place cakes in the pan and cook on each side until edges are brown, about 3-4 minutes per side. Set cakes aside on a plate lined with a couple of paper towels to pat them dry.

For the Coconut Sauce: Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and add mushrooms (if using), garlic, ginger and salt. Cook until mushrooms are very tender, about 3-4 minutes. Add coconut milk and cornstarch mixture. Cook until just starting to thicken, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Remove from heat and set aside.

To assemble: Place 2-3 potato cakes on each plate and cover each serving with half of the beans (if using). Drizzle coconut sauce over cakes and garnish with red pepper.

Succotash Stuffed Squash

It’s no surprise to those that know me that I often eat incredibly late at night. Whether it’s because I’ve already had a post-workout snack earlier in the evening or because I ate a large lunch, the grumblies just come a knockin’ around 9pm. That doesn’t exactly give me a lot of time to come up with a perfect meal plan or spend hours chopping and assembling. This is why I have the “quick and easy” category as a label on my recipes – for as much as I love to take my time cooking, it’s not uncommon for me to have to figure something out in a pinch. Much like any other person in this world that works hard and plays hard.

Succotash is a beautiful thing: lima beans and corn with a little twist and shout depending on where you’re from or what you live. Said to be one of the first dishes taught to the settlers by Native American, succotash was also popular during the great depression. That may be the reason there is a regional version of succotash all around the US. It’s made with bacon fat in the dirty south or milk and cream in the northeast, but it takes very well to healthy versions and is easy to play with. For instance, I used edamame here to substitue lime beans and added some red pepper for color. While there are an overwhelming number of recipes for succotash online, no cook – novice or expert – really needs that much guidance. So why put a recipe up?

Because not enough people know about the loveliness of the three sisters! Native Americans used to plant corn, beans and squash together, because it was an efficient use of soil. The corn stalk provided a platform for the beans to hang on to, and the leaves provided shade for the ground-bound squash. Just toss all three seeds in the same hole, and voila. They also compliment each other nutritionally speaking which may be why they taste so good together. Since succotash doesn’t typically have squash in it, why not serve it in squash?

I rarely use my microwave, it kind of creeps me out. But cooking winter squash is one of the few instances I feel it is very convenient to have as a kitchen tool. Zap a whole squash with some water in the micro and it cuts down about 40 minutes on baking time. The succotash only takes about 10-15 minutes to prepare, so I see no sense in using the oven for that long. Broiling the squash after microwaving it gives it the nice golden edge of roasted squash. Use whichever additional spices or herbs you prefer in the succotash and enjoy your edible American roots.

Succotash Stuffed Squash

Makes 2 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 Delicata or acorn squash, cut in half & seeded
Olive oil

½ T. Olive oil
¾ c. Onion, diced
1 T. Garlic, minced
½ T. Ginger, minced
1 c. Edamame, boiled & drained
½ c. Red pepper, diced
½ c. Corn, cooked or frozen (thawed & drained)
2 c. Spinach
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Turn oven on high broil setting.

Place squash flesh side down in a microwave-safe baking dish and fill with ½ - ¾ inch of water. Microwave on high for 5-6 minutes or until squash is tender. Drain water from baking dish and flip squash over, skin side down. Brush or spray a thin layer of olive oil over the squash and broil while you prepare the succotash.

To prepare the succotash, heat olive oil over medium high heat in a skillet. Sauté onions until translucent, 5-6 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, and a pinch of salt. Cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds, and add edamame and red pepper. Cook until pepper begins to soften, about 2-3 minutes, and finally add corn and spinach. Stir until spinach is just wilted and turn off heat. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Remove squash from oven and scoop ½ of succotash into each side of the squash.

Spicy Lentil Hummus with Chapati

I’ve embarked on a recent journey toward the world of fresh and dry legumes, parting ways with my former reliance on canned beans. While I miss the ease of reaching into the cupboard and relative ease of opening a can (our can-opening device is slightly defunct), I can adjust to the lifestyle of dried beans. Types that need a good soak before cooking require more planning, but they are truly superior in taste to canned versions. Creamier on the inside, firmer on the outside – I don’t know anyone that likes the soggy mushiness of canned beans after having tasted a fresh batch. Even bean purees are much tastier, which is what lead to this Indian version of a middle eastern staple.

As for my health tangent of the day – most of us keep hearing about BPA as the latest bizarre and potentially harmful compound invading food packaging for whatever reason cheapie commercial manufacturers give. BPA is illegal in many countries and linked, however convincingly, to a whole gamut of maladies. And not so good ones to boot. Despite many companies having stepped up to discontinue the use of BPA in plastic bottles, canned food is still BPA strong and stubborn due to lack of strong evidence of its adverse affects. I don’t care how many studies it takes to make the FDA buck up and lay down the BPA law, I can live without it. So long my BPA-laced convenience!

Back to the beans: we were having a couple of people over last minute for the 4th of July and because of the late notice, I had not spent my typical 3-5 days planning the edible entertainment. The crowd was small and wasn’t going to be starving or expecting food, but in my house any guest equals food and I still needed to eat. My default in this case: hummus, chips and salsa, and fresh fruit. Going back to the fact that beans take some planning…I didn’t have any soaked chickpeas or canned beans. My ready-to-cook selection consisted of mung beans and lentils. I love mung beans, but they are not the best chickpea stand-ins for hummus. Lentils however were a fabulous alternative.

Having recently attended a vegan cooking class at a superb Indian restaurant in Houston, I learned a few lovely spice combinations during my time at Indika. What better opportunity to apply new knowledge than a small gathering where people may or may not eat? It takes the pressure off of the testing phase, and a chance at fusion made it even more thrilling. Aside from spices, we also got an impromptu lesson from the chef herself about making Indian flatbread made from garbanzo flour. Though I had garbanzo flour, which I used in the hummus recipe, I decided to try it with plain ole whole what flour. Zero leftover and a double batch the next day….pretty good results.

Spicy Lentil Hummus with Chapati

Makes 2 c. Hummus and 8-9 Flatbreads

Total Prep Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

For the Hummus
½ c. Lentils, dry or 1 ½ c. cooked*
¾ c. Chickpeas, cooked or canned (drained & rinsed if using canned)*
1 ½ T. Tahini
1 T. Lemon juice, freshly squeeze
1 T. Garlic, chopped
1 T. Jalapeno, chopped
¾ T. Fresh Ginger, chopped
½ tsp. Ground cumin
½ tsp. Sea salt
¼ heaping tsp. Garam masala

For the Chapati
1 c. All purpose or whole wheat flour
¼ tsp. Salt
Water
Olive oil

* I cooked dry lentils and used the cooking liquid with Bob’s Red Mill garbanzo bean flour instead of actual chickpeas. To do it this way, bring 1 cup of the lentil liquid (or add enough water to lentil liquid to make 1 cup) to a boil and whisk in ¼ cup of garbanzo flour. Lower heat to medium low and simmer about 3-4 minutes – clumps are ok. Pour into food processor with lentils.

Directions

For the hummus: If lentils are dry, cooking in 3 cups of liquid by bringing lentils and water to a boil with a pinch of salt and 1 bay leaf. Cook until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain lentils (reserving liquid if using method above) and place in food processor. Combine remaining ingredients in food processor and process until completely smooth. Adjust seasonings to taste, using more or less jalapeno depending on your spice preference.

For the chapati: In a medium mixing bowl, combine four and salt and mix well. Slowly add ¼ cup water at a time until you have a stiff dough. If dough is too sticky, add 1-2 tablespoons of flour. If too stiff, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time. Knead dough for 5 minutes. Roll into a ball and place in refrigerator wrapped in plastic for 1 hour.

Once the dough has sat, knead again for another 5 minutes. Tear off a hunk of dough and roll into a ball about 1 ½ inches in diameter. Repeat with the rest of the dough which should yield 8-9 pieces. Coat dough with cooking spray or olive oil and roll each ball out into a small flat disk, about 1/8 inch think and 5 inches in diameter. Heat a dry electric or stovetop griddle over medium heat. Place however many pieces you can easily fit without crowding. Cook 30-45 seconds on the first side and flip over. Cook until golden spots appear on other side. Flip once more and press each chapati with a cloth until if puffs up. Repeat with remaining chapati.