Sometimes I want a healthy, vegetarian dinner, but Jon is not in the mood. This recipe creates the perfect single serving of flavorful tofu and vegetables.
½ block of extra firm tofu
2 tsp of olive oil
1 tsp of curry powder
1 tsp of garlic salt/powder
Squeeze of lemon juice
1 cup of frozen stir fry vegetables
Mix together the oil, curry powder, garlic salt/powder, and squeeze of lemon juice in a bowl. Set aside.
Wrap the half block of tofu in paper towel. Squeeze as much water out of the tofu into the paper towels as you can, without crumbling the tofu. Cut into small squares and put into a skillet on medium-high heat. You don’t need to oil the pan, as the liquid from the tofu will be sufficient. Cook for a few minutes until the tofu starts to turn golden, then remove from heat.
Brush half the marinade onto tofu and cook for another two minutes. Turn over tofu chunks and brush on remaining marinade. Cook until desired firmness is achieved. Serve with frozen vegetables, stir fried in the same skillet. You may need to use cooking spray to stir fry the veggies if all the oil has burned off.
Tomorrow, I will be enjoying lots of sides, while Jon eats a rotisserie chicken. No matter what you choose to eat, I hope you have a happy Thanksgiving!
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Deconstructed Lasagna
Deconstructed lasagna is what you get when the directions on a box of oven-ready lasagna noodles are bunk. It tastes delicious, but looks like a hot mess. Fortunately, my guests appreciated my "post-modern solution" and its accompanying bruschetta. Crisis averted.
Ingredients:
Olive oil
Minced garlic (2 cloves)
28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
½ jar of spaghetti sauce
1- 8 oz. box of oven-ready lasagna noodles
1- 9 oz. bag of ready-washed baby spinach
1 lb. of washed, cut mushrooms (if you like mushrooms as much as I do)
6 basil leaves
1 cup of firm, crumbled tofu
2 cups of shredded, part-skim mozzarella
½ cup of grated Parmesan
Use lower-middle oven rack. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil a 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Lightly oil a piece of aluminum foil large enough to cover the dish.
Sauté garlic in a large saucepan over medium-high heat in 2 tbsp. of olive oil. Drain the can of tomatoes and add them to the pan (I also added a half of a jar of spaghetti sauce that I had chilling in the fridge because contrary to what other cooks seem to think, crushed tomatoes and garlic do not a sauce make!) Reduce heat and simmer for about ten minutes with lid on, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
Rinse and separate spinach.
Sauté mushrooms over medium-high heat in 2 tbsp. of olive oil (I had to repeat this step because my pan could not hold the whole pound of mushrooms). Put cooked mushrooms in a bowl. Use the same pan to wilt the spinach. Add a little oil or tomato sauce so they wilt nicely without drying out. Put a lid on the pan if you want to speed up the process. Mix spinach with mushrooms in the bowl, add basil and crumbled tofu.
Pour ½ cup of sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Make two layers of three lasagna noodles, 1 cup of the sauce, 1 cup of vegetable filling, ¾ cup of mozzarella, and 2 tbsp. of Parmesan. Top with the last three noodles, ½ cup of mozzarella, ¼ cup of Parmesan, and ½ cup of sauce.
Cover baking dish with foil, oiled-side down.
Bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and notice that the top layer of lasagna noodles has failed to cook. Think quickly, while throwing top layer of noodles in the garbage. Dump rest of lasagna into a pot. Shred noodles into bite sized pieces using a fork and knife. Serve to guests as “deconstructed” lasagna. Have someone else clean the kitchen.
Ingredients:
Olive oil
Minced garlic (2 cloves)
28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
½ jar of spaghetti sauce
1- 8 oz. box of oven-ready lasagna noodles
1- 9 oz. bag of ready-washed baby spinach
1 lb. of washed, cut mushrooms (if you like mushrooms as much as I do)
6 basil leaves
1 cup of firm, crumbled tofu
2 cups of shredded, part-skim mozzarella
½ cup of grated Parmesan
Use lower-middle oven rack. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil a 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Lightly oil a piece of aluminum foil large enough to cover the dish.
Sauté garlic in a large saucepan over medium-high heat in 2 tbsp. of olive oil. Drain the can of tomatoes and add them to the pan (I also added a half of a jar of spaghetti sauce that I had chilling in the fridge because contrary to what other cooks seem to think, crushed tomatoes and garlic do not a sauce make!) Reduce heat and simmer for about ten minutes with lid on, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
Rinse and separate spinach.
Sauté mushrooms over medium-high heat in 2 tbsp. of olive oil (I had to repeat this step because my pan could not hold the whole pound of mushrooms). Put cooked mushrooms in a bowl. Use the same pan to wilt the spinach. Add a little oil or tomato sauce so they wilt nicely without drying out. Put a lid on the pan if you want to speed up the process. Mix spinach with mushrooms in the bowl, add basil and crumbled tofu.
Pour ½ cup of sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Make two layers of three lasagna noodles, 1 cup of the sauce, 1 cup of vegetable filling, ¾ cup of mozzarella, and 2 tbsp. of Parmesan. Top with the last three noodles, ½ cup of mozzarella, ¼ cup of Parmesan, and ½ cup of sauce.
Cover baking dish with foil, oiled-side down.
Bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and notice that the top layer of lasagna noodles has failed to cook. Think quickly, while throwing top layer of noodles in the garbage. Dump rest of lasagna into a pot. Shred noodles into bite sized pieces using a fork and knife. Serve to guests as “deconstructed” lasagna. Have someone else clean the kitchen.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Meatless Stuffed Peppers
I made these about five years ago for my friend Jay and he had no idea I used a meat substitute. Tonight, I tried them out on Jon and he seemed pleasantly surprised as well, at least that is what I gathered from all those "mmmmm" sounds he was making. The recipe is originally from Peta, but I modified (and simplified) it by using real Parmesan and removing some ingredients. It took me an hour just to prepare them for cooking! Needless to say, this is not a recipe you want to make when you are short on time and long on hunger pangs. Also, expect to have a sink full of dirty dishes because this recipe requires a pot, skillet, bowl, colander, and baking dish.
Ingredients:
1 cup of dry Barilla orzo pasta
4 large green peppers
¼ cup of grated Parmesan
12 oz. bag of Morningstar sausage-style recipe crumbles
Olive oil
½ tsp. of minced garlic
12 oz. can of Hunt’s roasted garlic and onion spaghetti sauce
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Cook the orzo pasta according to the directions on the package. Drain and set aside. I hope your colander has smaller holes than mine does, because I lost some orzo down the drain!
Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. This takes forever on my stove, so I moved on to the next step, while waiting for it to boil.
Barely coat a large skillet with olive oil and sauté garlic in it over medium heat. Brown the crumbles in the oil/garlic mix.
Go back to your boiling pot of water and place the peppers (tops cut off, insides scraped thoroughly) into the pot. Simmer for three minutes. Remove them from the water using tongs, and invert them onto a paper towel to drain.
Mix Parmesan, sausage crumbles, orzo, and 1 cup of sauce in a bowl.
Pour the remaining tomato sauce into an 8-inch glass baking dish. Pack the peppers with the mixture and place them into the baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes.
50 Word Cookbook Review
The PDQ (Pretty Darn Quick!) vegetarian cookbook: 240 healthy and easy no-prep recipes for busy cooks
by Donna Klein
Both vegetarians and omnivores will gobble up Donna Klein’s PDQ (Pretty Darn Quick!) Vegetarian Cookbook. Klein’s “keep it simple” mantra eliminates the bizarre ingredients and extensive prep time required by gourmet cookbooks. Try the Artichoke and Feta Cheese Phyllo Pizza for a fresh and tasty alternative on take-out night.
Full disclosure: For about the millionth time in the last year or so, I have stopped eating meat. To me, it's like quitting smoking: one of these times I will stick with it. I hope this is that time :)
by Donna Klein
Both vegetarians and omnivores will gobble up Donna Klein’s PDQ (Pretty Darn Quick!) Vegetarian Cookbook. Klein’s “keep it simple” mantra eliminates the bizarre ingredients and extensive prep time required by gourmet cookbooks. Try the Artichoke and Feta Cheese Phyllo Pizza for a fresh and tasty alternative on take-out night.
Full disclosure: For about the millionth time in the last year or so, I have stopped eating meat. To me, it's like quitting smoking: one of these times I will stick with it. I hope this is that time :)
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Crispy Chicken Without Deep Frying
Last week I was flipping through magazines and found a new recipe to try. It wasn't one of the featured recipes; it was actually from an ad for French's French Fried Onions (also known as the delicious crunchy part of green bean casserole.) Jon and I have been bored with the way we prepare chicken, but we don't really want to head into fried chicken territory and get a couple of twin fat asses, so this recipe was a nice compromise. I changed up the recipe a little bit, because Jon and I prefer to cook the chicken in a skillet with a little olive oil, rather than bake it.
Ingredients:
2 cups of fried onions
2 tbsp. of flour
2 large chicken breasts
1 egg
Enough olive oil to just coat the bottom of a medium sized skillet.
Instructions:
Defrost chicken in the microwave if you use frozen breasts. Cut up into 2" pieces. Set aside.
Beat egg in a medium sized bowl. Set aside.
Crush french fried onions and flour in a plastic bag. Pour onto a large plate.
Dip chicken pieces into egg, then coat with onion crumbs.
Set aside all the chicken pieces until you are done coating them, before placing them in the skillet so they cook evenly.
Have your burner set to medium high and your skillet coated with olive oil.
When the oil seems hot enough, place in chicken and cook until the onions are a medium to dark brown and the chicken is no longer pink.
I served the chicken with light Texas toast and whole wheat pasta and sauce, but to be honest, having two starches was overwhelming. Just go with the pasta or the garlic bread. Corn on the cob would also go nicely with this chicken's faux-fried feel.
Ingredients:
2 cups of fried onions
2 tbsp. of flour
2 large chicken breasts
1 egg
Enough olive oil to just coat the bottom of a medium sized skillet.
Instructions:
Defrost chicken in the microwave if you use frozen breasts. Cut up into 2" pieces. Set aside.
Beat egg in a medium sized bowl. Set aside.
Crush french fried onions and flour in a plastic bag. Pour onto a large plate.
Dip chicken pieces into egg, then coat with onion crumbs.
Set aside all the chicken pieces until you are done coating them, before placing them in the skillet so they cook evenly.
Have your burner set to medium high and your skillet coated with olive oil.
When the oil seems hot enough, place in chicken and cook until the onions are a medium to dark brown and the chicken is no longer pink.
I served the chicken with light Texas toast and whole wheat pasta and sauce, but to be honest, having two starches was overwhelming. Just go with the pasta or the garlic bread. Corn on the cob would also go nicely with this chicken's faux-fried feel.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Whooo is looking forward to Halloween?
The latest issue of Martha Stewart Living inspired me to carve an owl into my pumpkin this year. I love how it turned out! It's much better than any of the jack-o-lanterns I have carved in the past. Of course Jon had to incorporate his passion for all things hockey into the holiday; he carved "Al" the octopus into his pumpkin. I wish I had a photo that captured just how scary Al's eyes look when the pumpkin is lit up. Oh well. Just use your imaginations.
The Wizard Party is this Saturday in Michigan. I know I complain about it every year, but the lack of empowering, gender-specific costumes for women is really annoying. I thought attending a Wizard Party would give me the opportunity to be a truly powerful character, but I could only think of Galadriel from LOTR, Persephone, and other random goddesses. None of those will work, though, because I already bought a black crushed velvet cape. So I guess I am going as a generic witch/crone. I have a medieval crushed velvet dress, which I will wear with my black corset and cape. I also have a cheesy witch's hat and a badass Masters of the Universe-style skull staff. Maybe I will just tell people that I am high school Karen with accessories.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Creepy Creativity
Below are some of my favorite homemade Halloween decorations. Credits to Liz for painting the pumpkin house!
This year I haven't had much time to make any new decorations at home, but I definitely went over the top with my latest library display. I ordered a handful of books on Illinois hauntings and put up lots of ghoulish accessories. I'm really excited about my next book discussion though! I just read Devil in the White City for the first time and will be discussing it on the 20th, as part of the Burnham Centennial events at the library.
I won't go into too much detail about the book because I am still formulating my review and original discussion questions on it, but I did lose A LOT of sleep over the week that I was reading it. I even had to sleep with the door open and the light on one of the nights that I stayed at my parents. Holmes was just too efficient of a killer *shudder*
Ironically enough, I had no problem sleeping after going to Scarefest Scream Park in Lenox Twp. The one scary part of the hayride/maze/hike attraction was the hike because they only allow a handful of people on the trails at a time and duh being in the woods at night is always scary. Armada's Slaughtered at Sundown was way scarier- especially if you are as claustrophobic as I am!
Well it's getting time to start working on my costume. Jon and I are planning on dressing as The Man in the Big Yellow Hat and Curious George, but we'll see if that actually happens. Last year's Slimer costume was hard work to put together and this year I have even less time than I did then (what with actually being employed.) This might just be the year that I cop out and buy a costume from Halloween USA. Sexy librarian anyone?
This year I haven't had much time to make any new decorations at home, but I definitely went over the top with my latest library display. I ordered a handful of books on Illinois hauntings and put up lots of ghoulish accessories. I'm really excited about my next book discussion though! I just read Devil in the White City for the first time and will be discussing it on the 20th, as part of the Burnham Centennial events at the library.
I won't go into too much detail about the book because I am still formulating my review and original discussion questions on it, but I did lose A LOT of sleep over the week that I was reading it. I even had to sleep with the door open and the light on one of the nights that I stayed at my parents. Holmes was just too efficient of a killer *shudder*
Ironically enough, I had no problem sleeping after going to Scarefest Scream Park in Lenox Twp. The one scary part of the hayride/maze/hike attraction was the hike because they only allow a handful of people on the trails at a time and duh being in the woods at night is always scary. Armada's Slaughtered at Sundown was way scarier- especially if you are as claustrophobic as I am!
Well it's getting time to start working on my costume. Jon and I are planning on dressing as The Man in the Big Yellow Hat and Curious George, but we'll see if that actually happens. Last year's Slimer costume was hard work to put together and this year I have even less time than I did then (what with actually being employed.) This might just be the year that I cop out and buy a costume from Halloween USA. Sexy librarian anyone?
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