These recipes are quick and easy to put together, and they employ my favorite techniques of using as few pans as possible to minimize cleaning. In the entree you get an entire vegan food pyramid of food in one dish, and there's not much better than a fresh berry parfait to cap off a summer's evening.
This is a quick and easy meal because most of it is inactive cooking that you don't have to hang around to monitor, and it's really tasty. To press tofu, I usually wrap it in a clean dish towel or paper towels, put the wrapped tofu in a bowl, and then weigh it down with a heavy pan. If you happen to be out of broccoli, you can use any vegetable you have around the house, or even make it with a combination of veggies. The key is to try to get out as much of the moisture as you can so it will absorb the flavors of your marinade.
To speed up cooking time at dinner, you can press the tofu early in the day and put the tofu in the marinade while you're at work. You can also make the walnut cream earlier and chill it until you're ready to assemble dessert.
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp. olive oil
approx 2 c. broccoli, chopped
1 block firm or extra firm tofu, pressed and diced into 1” cubes
1 1/2 tsp. ginger powder
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
3 Tbsp. corn starch or arrowroot powder
1/4 c. soy sauce
1 c. water
2 c. brown rice and 4 c. water
Start rice either 30 minutes before tofu or the night before, saved for tonight. To cook the rice, boil water, add rice, return to a slow boil, and then reduce heat to low until all the water is absorbed.
In a large skillet over medium heat, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until onions turn translucent, about 3-5 minutes. Add the tofu, ginger, cayenne and broccoli to the pan and continue to cook until broccoli is done, another 6-8 minutes.
In a separate small bowl, mix together the arrowroot powder, soy sauce and water, then add this mixture to the broccoli and tofu. Cook until sauce thickens, then remove from heat.
Serve over rice. Save extra rice for a meal later in the week.
Per serving: 380 calories, 18g fat, 158 calories from fat, 20g protein, 39g carbohydrates, 6g dietary fiber, 0mg cholesterol, 1043mg sodium, 5.5mg iron, 44.4mg vitamin C, 52.6mcg vitamin K, 166mcg folate, 603mg calcium, 2.5mg manganese
We made cashew cream last week and we get to sample walnut cream this week. This is a super simple recipe, perfect for nights when you don't want to go to much trouble to have a sweet treat.
1 quart berries
2 c. raw walnut pieces
1 c. nondairy milk (soy, almond, hazelnut are great here)
1/4 c. agave syrup or brown rice syrup
2 tsp. vanilla extract
pinch of sea salt
4 mint leaves (garnish, optional)
To make the walnut cream, preheat your oven to 325º F.
Place the walnuts on a single layer on a cookie sheet and toast for 10 minutes. This is an important step because it makes the natural nut oils come out of the walnuts and ensures that you will get the creaminess you need for the cream.
Put the milk, syrup, vanilla, and salt in a blender and blend for 10 seconds. Add the toasted walnuts and blend until smooth, up to 4 minutes, depending on the quality of your blender.
Chill the cream for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator before serving.
Put about 1/3 cup of berries in the bottom of each of four glass dessert bowls and cover with a spoon of walnut cream. Put more berries on top of the cream and then cover with another spoon of cream. Keep layering until the cream is used up in each bowl. Refrigerate and garnish with mint.
Per serving: 274 calories, 20g fat, 168 calories from fat, 6g protein, 43mg sodium, 22g carbohydrates, 0mg cholesterol, 0.6mg copper, 1.6mg manganese, 89.8mg vitamin C