Tofu Two Ways

Basic Tofu Recipe Two Ways

This basic recipe can be transformed into almost anything. The tofu can be baked parmesan style, dipped in ketchup as a nugget or added to a salad instead of chicken. Disregard your preconceived notions about tofu and give this recipe a try. It is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

2 packages of firm tofu
1/2 c italian salad dressing
2 tbsp hot sauce
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tbsp poultry seasoning
olive oil
salt/pepper
3 eggs
1 c flour
2 c bread crumbs

Slice tofu into uniform pieces. Depending on what you are using it for you can slice it as big, small or in any shape. For serving as tofu nuggets i would slice similar to the picture. If making a tofu cutlet I would slice each brick horizontally in half for a large flat piece. If adding to a salad or pasta i would cut the nuggets in half or in thirds to make bite size pieces.

Once sliced uniformly lay out onto a paper towel lined sheet pan. Cover with more paper towel, another sheet pan and some large cans or something heavy, let sit for 15-30 minutes depending on the size of the tofu pieces.

While the tofu is draining mix the chopped garlic, italian dressing, hot sauce and salt and pepper in a shallow flat dish. Once the tofu is drained add to the marinade and toss gently to coat. Let marinate for 30 minutes.
Now comes the two ways part. One way to finish is by breading and baking. This will make a traditional tofu nugget. One year old and mother approved. Simply serve with some ketchup, BBQ sauce or honey mustard. This is a great alternative to chicken nuggets. The other finishing technique is pan frying. Cooking in the pan will give the tofu a nice crust on the outside with out the breading. 

While the tofu is marinating pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees and set up breading stations. To get a nice crust I like the basic flour, egg, bread crumb breading. Once tofu has marinated wipe off excess marinade and add to the flour. Divide the tofu in half and continue the breading process with one half and place on a sheet pan coated in olive oil. Once the tofu is all on the sheet pan bake for 30-40 min flipping half way through till golden brown. While the tofu is baking coat a large frying pan with olive oil and heat on medium heat. Shake off excess flour from the remaining tofu and add to pan in a single layer. Cook on each side for 10-15 min or until golden brown.

Serves 4

CASA MONO

Casa Mono

It was definitely a great experience.  Casa Mono is very small maybe seating 40 people. There were about eight tables and bar seating. The staff was attentive and knowledgeable about the menu. The extensive wine menu, about 30 pages, was a little overwhelming for me and seemed to be a challenge for our waiter as well. There were bottles ranging from 30 to 4000 dollars and everything in between.

The beautifully cured ham that sat proudly in the window. We did not try it, next time, but it was explained that it was similar to Prosciutto but cured at least a minimum of six months longer than any prosciutto giving it a handsome price tag and I can only imagine a salty and concentrated pork flavor.

Pumpkin and Goat Cheese Croquetas - They were very light and melted in your mouth. The fried sage could have been its own dish, but it complimented the pumpkin perfectly.

Mixed Beets with Opal Basil and Salted Granola - We all know how I have a new found love for beets well this was amazing. The yogurt sauce brought all of the flavors together while the soft, sweet beets played off the salty crunch of the granola with the savory bite from the opal basil. 

Foie Gras with Cinco Cebollas - Ooooh this was a good one. Very rich but nicely balanced The five onions were green, pickled ramps, red onion and some kind of fried onion... hummm I'm missing one... I'm not sure but it was very good.

Chorizo with Spring Beans and Aged Manchego - The Chorizo is made in house from the Whole Hudson Valley Pig the Chef Sasso butchers, cures and make other pork dishes with. There was a good balance of flavors with the lightly dressed beans with the mild flavored Chorizo. The fresh Chorizo was slightly gamier that I prefer but it was seasoned excellently.

Mono Sundae - Plum Brandy Ice cream with Arrope and Almonds. I liked it. Who thinks of plum ice cream as a good idea? Not me, but surprisingly it works. The Arrope, or grape syrup, enhanced the pluminess while the paprika coated chopped almonds cut through the sweetness with a smokey, savory almond twist.

Kicked Up Tabbouleh

Kicked Up Tabbouleh
This great summer salad gets a kick from the salty feta and a little bite from jalapeno pepper. It is great served with grilled chicken or shrimp, but this easy salad with its hearty feta can stand alone as a light lunch.

2 c cooked bulgur wheat
1 bunch parsley
1 large lemon, zested and juiced
1/4 lb feta, crumbled
1 pt grape tomatoes, quartered
1/2 english cucumber, med dice
1 bunch green onion, chopped
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
1 small jalapeno pepper, chopped finely
salt/pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and adjust with salt and pepper to taste. Serve room temperature. Serves 4

Keftedes on a Warm Greek Pasta Salad

Keftedes on a Warm Greek Pasta Salad

For Keftades:
1 lb ground chicken or turkey

1 egg

1/4 c bread crumbs

1/4 c onions, finely chopped

1 sm clove garlic, grated

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp mint

salt/pepper to taste

2 tbsp olive oil

For Pasta Salad:

1/2 lbs short cut pasta

2 lbs spinach, washed and dried

2 cloves of garlic, grated

2 c tomato, large dice or grape tomatoes halved

1/4 lb of mixed olives, pitted and roughly chopped

1/4 lb feta crumbled

Turn large pot of water on to boil. Mix all Keftede ingredients. Heat non-stick pan with olive oil on medium. Add rounded tablespoon meatball to pan. (should make about 12 meatballs, 3 per person.) Cook on medium heat till browned all all sided and cooked through, 10-15 min. Place on plate with paper towel and cover to keep warm. Add spinach, garlic and a couple of tablespoons of water to wilt. Cook on medium heat till desired doneness. Add pasta to boiling water and cook according to package. While pasta is cooking divide the spinach between four plates. Drain pasta and toss in a tablespoon of olive oil. Divide pasta between the plates and top with tomatoes, olives, keftedes and crumble feta on top.

Serves 4

GREEK FESTIVAL

It was great! I went last night. Great, inexpensive food and liquor. The traditional Greek folk dancing children were super cute too. Check out the website and print out a free admission for two coupon.

We sat inside the auditorium where there were large family style table set up and the food was around the perimeter cafeteria style. Everyone was super friendly and happy to share their culture to outsiders. Oh and did I mention the cute little old Greek ladies serving food.

I had a gyro and shared a mezathakia platter. It was ALL delicious. A couple of glasses of wine and some loukoumathes and I rolled home, literally. The loukoumathes were totally worth it. Light and chewy pillows of love. No, there are not any picture, sorry. I was so excited to eat I forgot. 

If you're planning on going out to eat this weekend I would definitely make this an option. Not a traditional dinner option but the great food, show and family style seating was definitely a good time.

Have a great weekend!

Mother's Day Brunch

 

Greek Yogurt with Fresh Berries, Honey, Mint and Granola

The Family!  haha kind of.

 

Breakfast Pizza, the good one! I had a recoverable "incident" with the first one. This one looks a lot better, minus the missing piece. My brother got a little too excited, I was just excited it worked and forgot to take a picture. Then, there was a piece missing.

 I served the pizza with a simple arugula salad tossed with lemon and olive oil.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all the mother's out there!

What did everyone else do for Mother's Day?

Breakfast Pizza

Now, this is not an uncommon pizza but surely tasty any time of the day and fairly simple. There are many variations of this pizza but basically it is the process of baking an egg on top. Underneath can be anything you like.
This is my second pass at the pizza, the first one being disastrous. I now have the tips and tricks to get it done right! I was so excited it worked that I kind of forgot to take a picture and someone, my brother, ate a slice before I remembered.

Breakfast Pizza
1 package of pizza crust (it can either be canned, home-made or the bagged kind usually found by the pre-grated cheeses in the refrigerator section of the super market)
1/2 c skim ricotta
1/2 c skim, low moisture mozzarella
1/4 c parmesan grated
1/4 c total bacon, sausage, ham or any breakfast meat you like
2 tbsp green onion, chopped
4 fresh large eggs, the fresher the better because the whites are less runny
olive oil

Pre-heat oven to 500 or as high as the oven will go but NOT on broil. Stretch out pizza to about 8-10-in diameter. I use my rectangular stoneware but make it fit what ever kind of pizza stone you have. If you do not have a pizza stone a sheet pan with sides will work. Make sure that you oil the stone or sheet pan well before adding the dough.
Add ricotta and smooth into an even layer leaving about 1/2-in around the edges. Add green onion and meat in an even layer. Top with parmesan and mozzarella. Bake for 8-10 minutes.
While that is baking get your eggs cracked into 4 individual dishes with a little salt and pepper. Here comes the tricky part. I learned hard way that my oven was very crooked. I have adjusted it since but when you pull out the oven rack the pan will inevitably dip lower in the front. Having all the eggs prepped will help make this smooth and hopefully painless experience.
Ok, here goes.... after the 8-10 min pull your pizza out. make four little wells in the cheese topping being careful not to break through the crust. Tilting the pizza stone slightly to the back of the oven add each of the eggs to the wells and quickly slide the pizza back into the oven. Bake for another 5-10 min depending on how you like your eggs. I like them runny and eat around the yoke dipping the rest of the pizza into it... YUMMM!
It's really not as hard as it sounds but you will soon discover how lopsided your oven is. If the egg starts to run off the side keep an eye on it. When it just starts to set up take a spatula, you will be thankful you oiled the pan well, and scoop it back onto the pizza. No one will ever know.

The possibilities are endless with egg topped pizza. No meat is required. I just happen to have some bacon to use up. The egg pizza would be great with some fresh ricotta, spinach and garlic with eggs or a spicy red sauce, with some parmesan and italian sausage. It would also work with something very simple like herbed goat cheese, mozzarella, egg then when it comes out of the oven top it with some spicy arugula.

Tell me what creations you come up with and enjoy the good memories spent in the kitchen!

Super Easy Granola Recipe

Super Easy Granola Bars
Ingredients:
4 c oats (do not use instant)
1/2 c olive oil (I would not use a extra virgin olive oil, use something lighter)
2/3 c honey (depending on how sweet you like it and what kind of honey you're using)
1/4 c flaxseeds
1/2 c total of mix-ins (whatever you like, nuts, dried fruit, coconut, chocolate, etc)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients until well coated. Line the bottom of a 9x13-in glass pan with aluminum foil. Spray with cooking spray. Add mixture and firmly press into pan. (a little oil rubbed on your hands or some plastic gloves will help with the pressing into the pan.) Bake for25-30 minutes, until the top just become golden brown. Remove and press the top with a spatula to compress the bars even more. Let cool thoroughly before cutting into bars. To remove from pan pull foil up and peel away from the bars. Yields: 24-32 bars

For granola, Spread mixture on to a greased sheet pan and bake for 25-30 minutes stirring 1/2 way through. Let cool and crumble to desired consistency.

Greek Yogurt with Fresh Berries, Mint, Honey and Granola
17.6 oz container of )% Fage Greek Yogurt
 8 strawberries, stems removed/quartered
4 tbsp honey
4 tbsp granola
2 tbsp mint

Divide yogurt between four 8-10 oz ramekins. Add two quartered strawberries to each dish. Drizzle each with 1 tbsp of honey. Sprinkle with 1/2 tbsp of mint and top with 1 tbsp of granola and serve immediately. Yields : 4 servings

I make up a few of these minus the granola and save in the refrigerator for a quick breakfast or snack at work I have great Pampered Chef prep bowls with snug lids or I use my Fit & Fresh 1/2 cup containers. Add granola when you're ready to eat.

If you have a lot of people you can serve family style, doubling or tripling the recipe, pie plate or other large shallow dish. I have great shallow sided, flat bottom pasta bowl that work really well. It's a great quick, cheap surprise for a work pot luck or a party. Simple, health, inexpensive and packed full of flavor.
ENJOY!

The Write Bite - Spring Harvest Cooking Class

It was a culinary cornucopia. I learn and tasted so many new thing this weekend. I occasionally take recreational classes at the Institute of Culinary Education in NYC. On Thursday; evening I took a Spring Harvest class. It was focused on local seasonal resources forming a fresh, healthful meal. I love the idea eating seasonally and supporting the local farmers.
I do find it a little challenged monetarily sometimes the small local growers are not the cheapest, but I'm working on sacrificing quantity for quality. Also getting to know the growers or being you're own grower helps. Or if you are not a green thumb having friends that are helps!
Back to class, this was perhaps my favorite class thus far. Not only did I get to experience some great new foods but Chef Sasso was amazing. His unbridled enthusiasm and passion for food was prevalent from the first words that came out if his mouth. (He wasn't bad on the eyes either.) I have taken several other classes before and none of the Chefs had shown such passion about food. I loved that he challenged us to sample the lardo on a piece of bread. Then, got the idea of adding some arugula, chili flakes and a touch of lemon. Lardo is basically cured pig fat that has been sliced thin. It is considered a salume and can be eat as such or added to a dish. We used it to top our asparagus salad with warm poached eggs. It really just melts in your mouth. I brought some home to serve as an app for my brothers birthday dinner later in the month. After all, he did get my the ICE gift certificates for Christmas. Love is giving the gift of cured pork fat!
Unfortunately, we didn't get to have the shad roe. I was most looking forward to trying that, but there were so many other wonderfully unique creations. I think the other classes I had taken were more traditional in the sense that they were teaching cultures and techniques where Spring Harvest was my favorite because opened my eyes up to completely new flavors and while honestly teaching me new techniques. It was a great combination of exciting new foods and life long techniques. Ok, my farmers market fillets fish to order, I'm lucky, but I learned how to fillet a fluke. I would love to go fishing and show off my new skills right on the boat. Wouldn't that be hot to see me filleting fresh fish on the open sea! haha. The best part about filleting the fluke was eating it as we were doing it. Sasso encouraged us to taste the fish sashimi style, none of the condiments needed. The fish was super fresh and delicious, such good energy in the room, so exciting.
Silly, but one of my arch enemies... the poached egg! I love them and order them out all the time but the daunting task of making them at home has always baffled and challenged my culinary skills. It is an egg braised in water till the whites are set and the yoke is runny. So simplistic, elegant and delicious yet challengingly impossible. Well, not any more. Who's coming over for poached eggs?! I love it. I made them this morning. Two for me and one for Frankie, yes my dog is spoiled. All you have to do is place some plastic wrap over a small prep bowl, spray with cooking spray, the pampered chef Kitchen Spritzer is perfect for this, crack the egg into the bowl, salt, another spritz of oil and gather all the sides and tie the top in a knot. Once you have all your egg bundles ready. Start a pot of water and grab a bowl to make an ice bath. Boil your egg bundles for about 5-6 min depending on how you like your eggs done. I'm a 5 minute girl. Immediately remove them from the boiling water and put into the ice bath or serve. They will last in the fridge for about a week so make extra for a quick special mid week breakfast treat. How easy and foolproof is that, brilliant!

Out of all the yummy food we ate like dandelion, fresh ricotta and pork belly with honey and citrus segments and monkfish medallions with creamed spinach and morels my favorite dish of the evening was curried beets and carrots with a lime coriander yogurt. It was a beautifully unique, fresh and inspiring dish. I really woke up and surprised my palette with  the contrasting sweet, sour and savory flavors. The sweet beets and carrots were delicately perfumed with the curry while the sour lime infused yogurt cut the sweetness balancing out the dish to perfection. I was put off by the whole coriander seeds at first. They are rather hard and crunchy but in true foodie form they grew on me. I have over come the texture to realized the immense burst of flavor they provided when you crunch into them.
Growing up with funky pickled beet and not knowing any better I am a recent convert to the beet craze. If you like Indian food this is definitely a great mild intro to the flavors of beets. I'm sure this is illegal but I am going to share the recipe courtesy of the Institute of Culinary Education and chef Anthony Sasso of Casa Mono.
I am planning a trip to Casa Mono on Saturday May 22nd if anyone wants to come along. Maybe chef Sasso will whip us up something special.


What is your favorite spring time dish?

___________

This salad would make a great side to chicken, steak or even fish. It would also be great served as a small plate or as a light lunch served on top of a bed of spicy arugula.

Curried Beets and Carrots with Lime Coriander Yogurt
serves 4
2-3 carrots, peeled
3 med/large beets (red, pink, yellow)
2 small shallots, peeled and sliced thinly
2 sprigs of thyme
1 TBSP of curry powder
2 limes
12 oz strained greek yogurt
1/2 TBSP of whole corianders seeds
1/2 bunch of mint
1/2 bunch of cilantro, picked

Bring a large pot of water, big enough to submerge the beets in, to a boil with a few handfuls of salt and the tyme. Add the beet and cook until tender or when you stick a paring knife in it barely starts to slide off the knife. Similar to a potato. Remove from liquid, peel and set aside. If the beets are perfectly cooked you can take an old, it will stain, cotton side towel (or i used paper towels) and rub the warm beets the skin should peel right off.
In the same water  blanch the carrots for 4-5 min or just until tender. do not over cook.
Add the zest and juice of  the limes, chopped mint, coriander seeds and salt/pepper to taste to the yogurt.
Dice the cooled beets and carrots uniformly. I like them just bite size maybe about a 1-2-in dice. Toss with the curry powder and salt/pepper to taste.
To serve, spread the yogurt onto to bottom of a serving plate. Mound the beet and carrot mixture in the center and sprinkle the cilantro on top.
ENJOY!