Tex-Mex Tofu and Rice Skillet

I love my Pampered Chef "29 Minutes to Dinner" cookbooks and have adapted many of the recipes over the years.  This is the lasted omni to vegan redo.

1 tsp plus 1 tbsp vegetable oil, divided

1 can (11 oz) Mexican style corn 

15-20 oz pkg tofu (my favorite is Wildwood Organics SprouTofu Super Firm, vacuum pack)

1 tbsp Pampered Chef Southwest Seasoning Mix (you could substitute packaged or homemade taco seasoning)

2 cups uncooked white rice (you could also use brown rice - just adjust liquid amount and cooking time accordingly)

2 cups vegetable broth

1 1/2 cups salsa verde

2 tbsp snipped fresh cilantro

1 cup vegan cheese, shredded, if desired 

Drain tofu and slice into 1" thick slices.  Press tofu between absorbent toweling for at least 20 minutes.

Add 1 tsp of oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Drain corn well and pat dry with paper towels.  Add corn to skillet in a single layer.  Cook without stirring for 5 minutes or until caramelized on one side.  Remove corn from skillet; set aside.

Sprinkle tofu slices with seasoning mix; press into tofu to adhere.  Cut into cubes and place in a heavy baking sheet that has been sprayed or brushed with oil.  Bake at 400 degrees, stirring occasionally for even browning, for 15-20 minutes or until desired doneness.  Alternatively, you can saute' the tofu in a pan with a little oil if you prefer that method.  

Add remaining 1 tbsp oil to skillet.  Add rice; stir until coated with oil and slightly browned.  Add broth and salsa; bring to a simmer.  Cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 20 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed and rice is tender.  Add rice, cilantro, and tofu and stir.  Add vegan cheese if desired; cover and let stand 5 minutes for cheese to melt.  

Per serving (without cheese): 

481 cal

69 g carbs

12 g fat

23 g protein

Scrapbook Night

 Tonight I had a scrapbook class and needed to make something relatively simple for dinner, but also make a snack and dessert for my scrapbook class.

Our family loves Lebanese and Greek food.  Whenever we'd go to a restaurant, even before being vegan, I'd usually order a vegetarian plate.  I always had Mujaddara on my plate because I just loved it so much.  My family...not so much.  One day, just a couple of years ago, I decided to make it myself.  It was so much better than any I had ever had at a restaurant and, to my complete surprise, my family gobbled it up!  It is easy to make; it just requires a little baby-sitting.

Mujaddara

1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp vegan margarine
1 tbsp olive oil

Melt the margarine and oil with a pinch of salt in a large skillet; when hot, add the onions.  Set heat on medium-low and stir occasionally until very soft, about 30 minutes.  Turn heat to medium high and keep cooking and stirring often until deeply browned and sweet, another 20 minutes or more.  Deglaze the pan with a splash of water.  Stir and set aside.

Lentils and Rice

3/4 cups brown or green lentils (not red or French)


1 cup long grain white rice
2 cardamom pods

Meanwhile, cook rice and lentils separately according to package directions, adding the cardamom pods to the rice and removing once the rice is cooked.

The lentils should be tender, but not mushy or soupy.  They should retain their shape.

Combine rice, lentils, half the caramelized onions, 1/8 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp cumin, salt and pepper to taste, and a splash of olive oil in a large pot or skillet.  Add about half a cup of water and heat everything together until fragrant, warm, and combined.

Turn into a serving dish.  Top with remaining caramelized onions.  You can also top with chopped fresh parsley and pine nuts if desired.

Rustic Apple Tart

This tasted much better than it looked.  I struggled with the pie crusts, though, and was reminded once again why I so prefer to make my own pie crusts rather than taking the easy way out and buying the frozen or refrigerated ones.  If you DO use a purchased pie crust, make sure you read the ingredients.  Some contain lard.  

2 pie crusts, one on top of the other on a large pizza stone and roll out over the edges of the pan 

6 large apples, peeled, cored, and sliced - I used a combination of Winesap and Virginia Gold

2 tbsp all purpose flour

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp grated fresh ginger root

1 heaping tsp cinnamon (I used The Pampered Chef's Cinnamon Plus, which is probably like an apple pie spice with a little nutmeg, cloves, and allspice)

1/4 cup turbinado sugar (or more if your apples are tart)

Roll out dough over your pizza stone or other flat, heavy baking sheet, using a dusting of flour to keep it from sticking to the pan and the rolling pin.  You want the dough circle to be about 16-18" in diameter or so.  Please don't measure it, though.  Just guess.  I'm not that particular.  Combine apple slice and remaining ingredients.  Mound in the center of the dough and fold the edges of the dough up over the apples.  You just want it to keep in the juices.  You can brush the exposed crust with your favorite non-dairy milk and a sprinkling of sugar if you wish.  Cover the exposed apples loosely with a circle of foil that you have brushed with melted margarine or spritzed with a little nonstick spray.  This prevents your apples from drying out and getting to brown.  You can remove this for the last 15-20 minutes of baking time.  Bake at 350° for about 50-60 minutes or until the crust is nicely browned.  

Please forgive my ugly crust.  Remember I said I had issues with the premade crusts.  I had a terrible time with it breaking and tearing.  I really do prefer making my own crust.  So next time I'll include my homemade pie crust recipe.  It really is easy to do.  I don't know why I thought the purchased ones would save time.  The tart may have looked pretty rough (although it is a "rustic" apple tart - rustic usually means not pretty), it tasted delicious.  Not cloyingly sweet, but the natural sweetness and the delicious flavor of the Virginia Gold apples really shined through.  

Spanish-Style Stuffed Peppers

This has been a family favorite recipe for many years.  It was a vegetarian dish, not vegan, but with the simple elimination of the cheese from the dish and just adding cheese to the top for my family, I can have a vegan option.  You can add shredded vegan cheese to this if you'd like.  

We have to triple this recipe for our family.  The original recipe (that I'll post here) serves four.  Without my adult son (who rarely ever eats with us), we are four.  But as I said, we have to triple the recipe.  Yes, they like it that much.  

1 pkg yellow saffron rice

2 medium red bell peppers

2 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 small green bell pepper, diced (or you could use a poblano pepper if you like them - I don't)

1 green onion with top, sliced

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided

1 tsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced

3/4 cup shredded vegan Mexican cheese blend, divided (optional)

2 tbsp water

Prepare rice according to the package directions.  We use this kind:

Check the ingredients.  Not all packages are vegan.  The one that our Target carries has chicken bouillon in the mix.  You can also make your own saffron rice if you prefer not to use a packaged product.  

As the rice cooks, prepare the bell peppers.  Cut the peppers in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds and stem.  In a large skillet, add the 2 tbsp water and place the peppers in the skillet; cover tightly with a lid and steam on medium to medium-low heat for about 5 minutes or until the peppers are crisp-tender.  Remove them from the skillet.  Pat them dry and set aside.  You'll use this skillet again at the end.  Put the lid back on it and set it aside.  

In a separate skillet, heat oil; add bell pepper and cook for about 3 minutes.  Add tomatoes and garlic and cook for a minute or two more.  Add green onion and half of the cilantro.  Stir and cook just until the green onion starts to soften slightly, another minute or two.  

Stir vegetable mixture into the rice.  If you are using cheese, add 1/2 a cup.  Place bell peppers cut side up into the skillet where you steamed them originally.  Spoon rice mixture evenly into each pepper.  Top with remaining cheese (if using).  Add a little more water to the skillet if it has evaporated - you don't need much.  Cover with a lid and heat over medium-low for about 3-5 minutes, just until the cheese is melted.  (If you aren't using cheese, you can skip this step).  Sprinkle with remaining cilantro.  

Serves 4.  (Or at my house, one and a half ravishing wolves - I mean kids.)  

I have served this as a side dish for company with other Mexican/Spanish/Tex-Mex dishes.  After cooking them, I do cut them in half again for a smaller portion.