Tofu Shapes

Every once in a while I have an unusually satisfying success. Yesterday afternoon was one of those times.

I am always hoping to find more foods are both nutritious and easy to eat, especially if they don't involve bread or cheese. I also like recipes that are easy to make and to clean up afterward.

Several years ago, I stumbled across the Vegan Lunch Box, a blog written by a Washington mom with lots of great ideas. (I also have her first cookbook and am hoping to soon purchase her second.) She has a recipe for Tofu Fish Sticks that always interested me, and now I have a child old enough to eat them.

However, I myself hated fish sticks as a child, so I wasn't interested in making anything that tasted remotely fishy. I also have a daughter who doesn't like strong flavors right now, so I needed to make a plainer version than what Jennifer has on her blog. I ended up designing my own recipe, and it worked very well!

1/2 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes (read here if you don't know what these are)
2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
2 T sesame seeds
1/2 cup plain unsweetened soymilk
1 lb firm tofu

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Prepare a cookie sheet. (I like to use a Silpat.)
2. Mix the dry ingredients together in a cereal bowl or pie pan.
3. Pour the soymilk into a shallow bowl.
4. Cut the tofu into slices about 1/2-inch thick. Then use a cookie cutter or knife to create your desired shapes. You'll probably have leftover scraps -- they can be used, too!
5. One at a time, dip each piece of tofu into the soymilk and then the cornmeal mixture and cover both sides. Place on the cookie sheet.
6. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes on each side.
7. Let cool before serving, depending on the age of your child.

Nora didn't like these when I served them at 2pm, but when I served them again at 3:30, she ate three of the heart shapes! Robert ate about ten of the scraps, and I ate a few myself, dipped in ketchup and mustard.

It is somewhat time-consuming to do all the dipping in the two bowls, but I was able to complete most of it while Nora sat in her booster seat having a snack. Then she napped while they cooked in the oven.

Hummus

I tasted my first hummus in the summer of 1995, and have been a major fan ever since! It's nutritious and oh-so-delicious. Here is my basic recipe:

2 cans garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
2-6 cloves of garlic (depending on your preferences), peeled and halved
1/2 cup tahini paste (sesame paste)
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup warm water
juice and pulp of one lemon, or 3-4 T lemon juice
1 T ground cumin
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

1. Put the beans and the garlic in a food processor with the large blade attached. Process until most of the beans are pureed.
2. Add the tahini, olive oil, water, and lemon juice. Process until smooth.
3. Add the cumin, salt, and pepper. Taste for flavor. Add more salt and pepper as needed.

Refrigerated, can last for up to a week. Eat with fresh vegetables, crackers, pita bread, or make into hummus-and-cheese sandwiches.

Optional additions: fresh basil leaves, fresh tomato, fresh parsley

Fava Bean Snack

There are days when I have a hard time getting my protein in. And there are days when I don't have much time to cook. I recently discovered this tasty snack, and now I can't get enough!

I buy the frozen fava beans at Whole Foods. They aren't too expensive. I throw some in a bowl and microwave them for one minute. Then I take it out, add 1 teaspoon of olive oil and a few shakes of salt, stir it up, and put it back in for another 40-45 seconds. YUM! Warm, salty, and fairly nutritious. I eat them with a spoon.