Recipes

Gourmet Vegetarian Cooking With Barry Cohen

“A delicious venture into the Tofu Kingdom”

Tofu as an extender:

Lower-Fat Guacamole

serves 4-6

3 ripe avocados

6 oz. silken tofu

3/4 tsp. pressed or minced garlic

2T + 1tsp. lemon and/or lime juice

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

salt and pepper to taste;

1/4 tsp. umeboshi plum vinegar

2T minced fresh cilantro

1/2 medium cucumber (remove skin if waxed), diced small bulbs of 5 green onions (or 1/4 of a medium red onion), chopped finely.

1. Open the avocados, remove pits and stems, scoop out fruit of one avocado into mixing bowl, and mash.

2. Add silken tofu, mash, then stir in lemon, cumin, garlic, salt and pepper & vinegar; work to a smooth consistency.

3. Add onions, cukes, and cilantro; then score the other avocados with a knife into bite-size chunks, remove the fruit and add into mixture.

4. Chill and serve with blue corn chips, or as a salad dressing.

Tofu as a delicious protein source:

Pan-Seared Barbecued Tofu over mixed Greens, Radicchio, and Quinoa with a no-oil tarragon-citrus dressing

serves 4

Quinoa Preparation:

1 cup filtered water

1/2 cup quinoa, thoroughly rinsed at least three times

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1. Boil the above ingredients in a small sauce pan; turn flame to very low, cook with lid on for 15 minutes, or until all water is absorbed.

Salad Dressing Preparation:

1/2 cup orange juice

2 T lime juice

1/4 cup pink grapefruit juice

1/4 cup filtered water

1/8 tsp. sea salt

1 T dried tarragon

black pepper to taste

3/4 tsp. guar or xantham gum

1. Whisk together all above ingredients, except for guar gum, in a mixing bowl; slowly add guar gum while stirring for one minute.

2. Let this sit in the refrigerator to marinate for an hour, it will thicken; you can also shake all ingredients in a mason jar, then adding guar gum a little at a time.

Take four handfuls of your favorite greens (green leaf, arugula, watercress, romaine, etc.) and radicchio and wash them well; tear into nice salad pieces, and let them dry; keep chilled in refrigerator until ready to serve, then arrange on plates.

Pan-Fried Blackened Tofu Preparation

4 T dark or light sesame oil

2 pkgs, organic extra-firm tofu, drained and cut into strips 1/4” thick

6 T shoyu soy sauce or tamari

4 T sorghum or rice syrup

3 T balsamic vinegar

1. Do this in two batches; heat steel skillet over medium flame for one minute, add sesame oil to lightly coat entire pan, heat for a minute; place tofu strips in pan one by one (they should sizzle in the oil, if not, wait and heat oil more), leave enough room between tofu strips to be able to flip; after about 1 1/2 minutes, tofu should be lightly browned and ready to flip; flip all strips and brown the other side for another 1 1/2

minutes.

2. Mix soy sauce, vinegar and syrup to make a sauce and pour about half over tofu, covering all pieces; after sauce cooks down, flip strips again and pour remaining sauce over strips and heat until they become dark brown (you may need to flip a second time, adding a touch of water to the pan to prevent sticking).

3. Keep tofu strips warm in oven while doing second batch.

To arrange plate, simply lay salad greens down first, then scoop about 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa on top forming a mound, then add tofu strips in a circular design around quinoa, pour dressing over salad.

Tofu as an egg replacer:

Chocolate Brownies (wheat, sugar & dairy-free)

make in 9 x 13 pan

In a mixing bowl mix together:

2 1/2 cups amaranth flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

In a stainless steel pot heat over a low flame, until melted and a smooth consistency:

3/4 cup soy milk

1 1/2 cups natural chocolate chips (unsweetened) or 1 cup cocoa powder

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups fructose granules

1/2 cup + 2 T unrefined corn oil

In blender, blend:

12 oz. silken tofu

3/4 cup filtered water

Add liquids together, add to dry mixture, mix well; pour mixture in a lightly oiled casserole dish (9 x 13), glass or steel, and bake in a preheated oven at 375 for 25-35 minutes, until firm and a knife goes in and pulls out of cake easily .