Tofu gone wrong

So I attempted to cook tofu for the first time. And let me just say, it wasn't the tofu-virginity-losing-experience I had hoped and wished for. This is sad because I had such high hopes! But I promise to press on and not let this experience ruin tofu cooking forever.

Anyway - to the recipe. I thought that Martha's Sauteed Tofu with Bitter Greens looked beyond fabulous. And, as I had a pound of firm lite tofu in my fridge rearing to go, I was excited to give it a try.

It definitely wasn't as easy as I thought it would be and was a bit time consuming. First, I had to drain the water out of the tofu. I placed the tofu under a kitchen towel with cans on top of it and left the tofu in the fridge for over 30 minutes.

While this drained, I whipped together the sauce in a matter of minutes. I combined soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil, lemon juice (substituted for lime juice) and grated ginger. I skipped the hot ingredients because I wasn't too in the mood for something spicy.

Next, I had to soak the tofu in the sauce for another 30 minutes, allow it to absorb the flavoring. I threw the tofu and sauce into a saucepan and browned the tofu on both sides. After things heated up, I added in collard greens. I removed the collard greens once they had wilted substantially.

The food smelled absolutely delicious, particularly because of the sesame oil, which has a fantastic aroma. However, it just... did not taste good. I know that they call collards "bitter greens," but they tasted especially bitter. I normally like a good collard green every now and again, but the sauce just didn't do these any justice. The tofu, while more edible, was a little too sour - I assume because I substituted lemon for lime. It just didn't have the complex, flavorful taste I had expected.

I haven't given up yet, though! Tofu - bring it on. I will conquer you the next time.

P.S. I am officially obsessed with kale chips. I made them again this week and have been snacking on them constantly.

Recipe (from http://www.marthastewart.com/260951/sauteed-tofu-with-bitter-greens)

Ingredients

• One 1-pound block extra-firm tofu
• 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon chili paste or Tabasco (optional)
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 2 pounds bitter greens, such as collard, mustard, baby bok choy, or dandelion, washed, trimmed, and torn into pieces
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds, lightly toasted
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes
• 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

Directions

1. Cut tofu in half lengthwise, then cut each piece across into 6 slices. Place tofu on a paper-towel-lined plate. Cover with more paper towels; place another plate on top. Weight with a few soup cans. Chill 30 minutes so towels absorb excess water.
   
2. In a medium bowl, combine soy sauce; sesame oil; chili paste or Tabasco, if using; lime juice; ginger; and garlic. Set aside. Transfer tofu to medium bowl; toss with half the marinade; let sit for 30 minutes.
   
3. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, arrange tofu in a single layer in pan. Cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to platter; repeat with remaining tofu. Gradually add greens to skillet with remaining marinade. Cook, tossing occasionally, until greens are wilted and most of the liquid has evaporated, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to platter with tofu. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and red pepper; serve.

Ew, Kale (Chips)!

Cooking for one is challenging. Even though I bring all the leftovers throughout the week for lunch, I am usually left with excessive, perishable ingredients that go bad faster than I can eat them. Stores just don't sell things that are small enough for me to use them in time.

Thankfully, today I found a recipe that I could use to take one ingredient I had in excess, kale. On the Whole Living section of Martha's website, I found Chrispy Kale Chips.

This turned out to be an incredible way to use old veggies, and one that I will definitely be doing will all my extra lettuce and the like. All I did was peel the leaves off the kale, removing the spine. I put the leaves on a baking pan, mixing in a bit of olive oil and some salt.

I baked on low heat (250 degrees) for 20 minutes and it worked out fabulously. Kale chips in no time! A super healthy, delicious, crunchy snack made out of wilting kale that would have gone bad in a few days.

Ew, Kale!

I have disliked kale for a long, long time.

This hatred of sorts comes from a single, slightly traumatic kale-related memory. Back when I was in girl scouts, sometime in late elementary school or early high school, my troop had the opportunity to work on a float for the Pasadena Rose Parade. For those of you who don't know what that is here is a summary:  every January 1, in honor of the Rose Bowl, Pasadena (a city in Los Angeles County near where I attended high school) has a parade that features floats made entirely out of plants and flowers; every one of the floats is designed and decorated with a variety of flora and nothing else. Our troop was assigned to work on a Dr. Seuss-themed float, which was awesome. I was pumped. At least until I got my assignment: taking the stickiest glue you can imagine and adhering bunches of kale to one another to create the top of a tree-like feature on the float. Seven or so hours later in the California sun, I was sticky from head to toe, had pieces of kale clinging all over my body, most notably in my hair, and was inundated with the smell of overripe, wilting kale.

From that moment forth, I lived a kale-less existence, by choice.

Today, thanks to Martha, I lifted my kale ban. After all, kale is extremely healthy, loaded with beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin - all good things that I could definitely use.

I decided to make Martha's Kale Slaw with Peanut Dressing. Because the kale is raw in this recipe, I wouldn't lose any nutrients by cooking. And it was easy as pie! I chopped up a big bunch of kale, some carrots, and a (green, not yellow, red or orange) pepper. I also added in some grape tomatoes, my favorite vegetable, for good measure.

For the dressing, I got to use my brand-new Cuisinart Food Processor, courtesy of my fantastic mother. I combined olive oil, apple cider vinegar, peanuts, salt and brown sugar and blended away, a process that took less than a minute.

I have to say, the salad was absolutely, positively DELICIOUS. It might be the dressing that made it, but I completely loved this salad. I have lots of leftovers and am definitely bringing this to work for lunch this week. I highly recommend this recipe: healthy, fast and beyond delicious!

Recipe (by Martha Stewart at marthastewart.com):

Ingredients

 Serves 8

• 2 large bunches curly kale, center ribs discarded, very thinly sliced crosswise (about 10 cups)
• 1 yellow, orange, or red bell pepper
• 2 carrots, thinly sliced crosswise
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup salted peanuts
• 2 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/4 cup salted peanuts

Directions

1. Toss 2 large bunches curly kale, center ribs discarded, very thinly sliced crosswise (about 10 cups); 1 yellow, orange, or red bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, halved crosswise and thinly sliced lengthwise; and 2 carrots, thinly sliced crosswise, in a large bowl.
2. Puree 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 1/4 cup cider vinegar, 1/4 cup salted peanuts, 2 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt in a blender until smooth.
3. Pour dressing over vegetables just before serving. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup salted peanuts, coarsely chopped.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Kale Slaw with Peanut Dressing - Martha Stewart Recipes