Tofu Lettuce Wraps

I went through a phase a while back when I was obsessed with tofu lettuce wraps. It all started because I had PF Chang's vegetarian lettuce wraps for the first time and couldn't believe I had missed out on them all those years. I made so many different recipes trying to mimic PF Chang's lettuce wraps, but I never could quite get it. I finally realized that there are still plenty of fantastic lettuce wrap recipes out there, even if they don't taste exactly like the ones I was trying to copy. I couldn't get enough... or so I thought- I made them so much I had to take a break. As my dad would've said, it was too much of a good thing. So I haven't made them in a while... until tonight.

This recipe is a combination of many lettuce wrap recipes I have made. It is delicious, but I don't claim that it tastes exactly like PF Chang's recipe.

Tofu Lettuce Wraps
(Print Recipe)

head of iceberg lettuce
1 block extra firm tofu, pressed, diced in small pieces
1 tablespoon tamari (or soy sauce)
1 8-oz can water chestnuts, finely diced
1 small onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh minced ginger
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons mirin
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
2 teaspoons yellow mustard
1 teaspoon sesame oil
additional soy sauce, to taste
sweet chili sauce, for dipping

Directions
Preheat a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Spray with non-stick spray, add tofu and cook for about 10 minutes, flipping with a spatula occasionally. Midway through, add 1 tablespoon of tamari. Remove from pan and set aside.
Saute the onion, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes, until the onion is soft and browned. Add the mirin and let cook for another 3 minutes. Then add the water chestnuts, hoisin sauce, yellow mustard, and sesame oil. Stir and let cook for another minute. Add the tofu and gently stir. Add additional tamari if desired. Remove from heat. Serve with the iceberg lettuce leaves (stuff the mixture in them like a taco) and sweet chili sauce for dipping.

Other add-ins I have tried that you may like too: Diced red peppers, diced shitake mushrooms, onion powder. Any of these could be added along with the onions to saute at the same time.

If you don't know how to press tofu, here is how I do it.

This process helps remove the water from the tofu, and firm it up even more. Slice the tofu and place it between absorbent towels. Top with something heavy and wait at least 15 minutes.

I served these lettuce wraps with brown rice. I added sauteed onions, garlic, and ginger to it, along with cooked peas and a few dashes of soy sauce.

I loved this return of the lettuce wraps into my menu... I will however, try not to make them every single week, sometimes twice a week, until I get sick of them again.

Have you ever made a recipe over and over until you had too much of a good thing?

Red, White, and... Green?

Today I made a spectacular lunch and dessert! I wasn't certain how either would turn out, and thankfully they weren't disappointing. Not even close. Lunch was Quinoa, Tofu, and Kale with Lemony Spinach Pesto. It isn't easy photographing food this shade of green, but I assure you it is delicious! It even had red (sun-dried tomatoes), white (tofu), but no blue! SO I used a blue napkin, since it is almost the fourth of July.

I actually ended up using spinach in mine today, because I forgot to buy kale. I'm sure it is tasty either way.

Quinoa, Tofu, and Kale with Lemony Spinach Pesto

(Print Recipe) 

Adapted from Color Me Vegan

Ingredients

2 cups uncooked quinoa

4 cups vegetable stock

2 tablespoons safflower oil, divided

1 block firm or extra firm tofu (12-15 oz), pressed and cubed

1 bunch of kale, finely chopped or 10 oz spinach chopped

1/3 cup toasted pepita seeds

1/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes

salt and pepper to taste 

1 recipe of lemony spinach pesto (see recipe below)

Cook the quinoa according to package directions, in vegetable stock. Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet and saute tofu over medium heat until browned on all sides. Remove from pan and transfer to a large bowl. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil (less if using spinach) to the pan and saute kale until tender and bright green. Add to the bowl with the tofu.

Add the quinoa to the bowl, along with the pepita seeds, sun-dried tomatoes, pesto, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well to fully incorporate pesto. Serve heated or at room temperature.

I used a pesto recipe from Sometimes I Veg- You can find the recipe here. I replaced the pine nuts with cashews because that is what I already had. It really was a delicious pesto recipe! I loved how it only had two tablespoons of oil in the whole batch. It drives me crazy when pesto is super greasy because of all the added oil. This one was light and creamy, but still full of flavor.

We had a lot of leftover watermelon in our fridge that needed to be used soon. I decided to make a minty watermelon seltzer. 

It was simple to make and very refreshing. After a few sips, I decided to get crazy and try making an "ice cream" soda float, using banana soft serve. I had no idea if the flavors would go well together but thought I'd give it a shot. I made banana soft serve and put a few scoops on top of this minty watermelon seltzer. It followed along with my color scheme from lunch: red, white, and green.

YUM!! A wonderful alternative to an ice cream float and perfectly refreshing and delicious!

Minty Watermelon Seltzer Float

(Print Recipe)

Ingredients

1 cup cubed watermelon

7 mint leaves

club soda (I used lime)

Banana soft serve (1 chopped, frozen banana put in a food processor for 5 minutes)

Directions

Put the watermelon and mint leaves in a food processor and process until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth. Pour into a glass, top with club soda and banana soft serve. Garnish with a mint leaf.

You could also try just the watermelon seltzer without the banana soft serve if banana doesn't float your boat.

Three Yummy Meals

I thought I'd share my three yummy meals today. I could've appropriately entitled today's post: What Mariah Ate. I think I went with the better option though. The first two were quite simple. The last one, quite in depth. They were all delicious.
Breakfast: Strawberry blueberry smoothie in a bowl.
Lunch: Avocado and veggie wrap with fresh fruit.
Dinner: Baked tofu with apricot BBQ sauce, served over barley, with steamed broccoli.

The strawberry blueberry smoothie recipe can be found here.
The avocado veggie wrap is pretty self explanatory... put avocado and whatever veggies you like in a wrap and wrap it up! I used spinach, salad savoy, red pepper, carrots, cucumber, tomatoes, kalamata olives, and avocado.

For dinner, I decided to try a new recipe. I am not the biggest BBQ sauce fan, but this was pretty good! I made baked tofu and then smothered it with this homemade apricot BBQ sauce.

Apricot BBQ Sauce

(Print Recipe)

Adapted from Veganomicon

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium-size yellow onion, chopped as finely as you can
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 pounds apricots (6-8), pitted and cubed
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons tomato paste
3 tablespoons tamari (or soy sauce)


Directions:

Preheat a saucepan over medium heat. Place the oil and onions in a pan and saute until browned (about 7-10 minutes). Add the garlic and saute for 2 more minutes. Add the water, apricots, pepper, ginger, and coriander. Cover and bring to a boil. Once the sauce is boiling, lower the heat to medium-low and let cook about 10 minutes until the apricots are mushy.
Uncover and add the remaining ingredients. Cook 10 more minutes, stirring often and mashing the apricots as you stir.
Remove from heat and let slightly cool. Puree with an immersion blender (or in a regular blender) until smooth. Keep extra sauce refrigerated in a sealed container.

I made the baked tofu, simply by slicing it, pressing it, dredging it in tamari (or soy sauce) and baking it at 350 degrees, for 30 minutes (flipping it halfway through). I don't have a tofu press, so I press my tofu the old fashioned way: With a layer of paper towels, a kitchen towel, and a heavy marble board. I leave the marble on it for at least 15 minutes. (You might want to even use 2 kitchen towels, depending on how absorbent they are.)

This is my tofu dredging process and how it looked when it came out of the oven.

Lastly, I smothered the tofu with apricot BBQ sauce and baked it for an additional 15 minutes. 

As I was cooking tonight, I looked outside to this view!

Today wasn't spent slaving over the stove (that was reserved for tonight)... we spent most of the afternoon at Birkdale Village, walking around, shopping, and sipping our Starbuck's drinks. Iced coffee for her, coffee frappucchino for him, and water for the little dog. Lilly found an adirondack chair just her size.

I am so glad apricots are in season and I hope to use them in a few more recipes before they are gone until next summer!

mmmmm... apricots.