spaghetti squash and glazed tofu
Andrea
Good evening! With deadlines and social engagements the last couple of days haven't been very conducive to coming home and cooking a meal. But, finally, tonight I had time to play around in the kitchen! I decided to try out the spaghetti squash I picked up last weekend.
I cut it in half, scooped the seeds, rubbed about 1 tbsp olive oil all over the flesh and sprinkled it with salt and pepper. I placed it flesh-side down on a nonstick pan and popped it in the oven at 400* for 30 minutes.
When it came out, all I had to do was use a fork to pull the flesh away from the skin. So easy!
We had some veggies in the fridge to use up before our grocery trip Saturday, so I decided to roast some asparagus while the squash cooked. Ends chopped off, little drizzle of olive oil, sprinkle of salt and pepper and in the oven it went.
I was debating toppings for the spaghetti squash and decided to keep it nice and simple. I chopped up a zucchini, red bell pepper and 1/2 an onion.
The veggie trio was sauteed together with a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper. I really wanted all of the pure flavors of the veggies to come through and not be muddled with any extra spices.
Finally, I needed a protein. I hadn't done pan-glazed tofu in awhile, and for some reason it sounded really good tonight. So, out came a block of extra firm tofu. I sliced it into (6) 1/2 inch slabs and layered it between paper towels for about 15 minutes. No pressing, I've found that it doesn't really help that much.
I heated one tbsp of olive oil on medium heat in a nonstick pan and waited for it to shimmer. When it was ready, the tofu went in and immediately started to sizzle. This is the hard part....no moving the tofu! So difficult for me because I like to stir things on the stove top. It just sizzles for about 7 minutes until it is golden brown on one side, then you flip it.
Once the tofu has sizzled on the 2nd side for about 5 minutes, you add a glaze to the pan. I use this glaze from A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen by Jack Bishop, I haven't been able to stray from it because it is so good!
Whisk it all together and add it to the pan with the tofu.
Once the tofu has sizzled in the glaze for about 2 minutes, remove it from the pan. Perfect every time!
Dinner was a success. I didn't saute' the veggie trio for very long so it still had a nice crunch to it. The spaghetti squash was awesome, I love its texture!
Paired with a small glass of red wine and I am a happy girl.
I hope that everybody had a lovely day. I worked on a new banana apple bread recipe tonight that just came out of the oven. I'll report tomorrow about how it turned out and share the recipe...I'm pretty excited about it!
I cut it in half, scooped the seeds, rubbed about 1 tbsp olive oil all over the flesh and sprinkled it with salt and pepper. I placed it flesh-side down on a nonstick pan and popped it in the oven at 400* for 30 minutes.
When it came out, all I had to do was use a fork to pull the flesh away from the skin. So easy!
We had some veggies in the fridge to use up before our grocery trip Saturday, so I decided to roast some asparagus while the squash cooked. Ends chopped off, little drizzle of olive oil, sprinkle of salt and pepper and in the oven it went.
I was debating toppings for the spaghetti squash and decided to keep it nice and simple. I chopped up a zucchini, red bell pepper and 1/2 an onion.
The veggie trio was sauteed together with a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper. I really wanted all of the pure flavors of the veggies to come through and not be muddled with any extra spices.
Finally, I needed a protein. I hadn't done pan-glazed tofu in awhile, and for some reason it sounded really good tonight. So, out came a block of extra firm tofu. I sliced it into (6) 1/2 inch slabs and layered it between paper towels for about 15 minutes. No pressing, I've found that it doesn't really help that much.
I heated one tbsp of olive oil on medium heat in a nonstick pan and waited for it to shimmer. When it was ready, the tofu went in and immediately started to sizzle. This is the hard part....no moving the tofu! So difficult for me because I like to stir things on the stove top. It just sizzles for about 7 minutes until it is golden brown on one side, then you flip it.
Once the tofu has sizzled on the 2nd side for about 5 minutes, you add a glaze to the pan. I use this glaze from A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen by Jack Bishop, I haven't been able to stray from it because it is so good!
- 1/2 cup veggie broth
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- sprinkling of red pepper flakes
- salt
Whisk it all together and add it to the pan with the tofu.
Once the tofu has sizzled in the glaze for about 2 minutes, remove it from the pan. Perfect every time!
Dinner was a success. I didn't saute' the veggie trio for very long so it still had a nice crunch to it. The spaghetti squash was awesome, I love its texture!
Paired with a small glass of red wine and I am a happy girl.
I hope that everybody had a lovely day. I worked on a new banana apple bread recipe tonight that just came out of the oven. I'll report tomorrow about how it turned out and share the recipe...I'm pretty excited about it!