A KEEPER: Scallion Ginger Tofu Marinade

• 
• Good Luck. 
• My newly vegetarian teen keeps reminding me(she's TRYING to be patient)that she doesn't like SOY all that much. 
• Have you ever tried to find a tofu marinade without soy??? It's ridiculous. I FINALLY ran across this... which has a small bit of tamari and tried it.
• A complete hit!
• I cut the drained & de-watered tofu in slices, marinaded it for 3 hours and then fried it up in a pan with a bit of coconut oil. 
• It came out beautifully. Not too spicy. Made the house smell like heaven.
• Even THE PICKY ONE tolerated it. I'd say this is a total keeper. The next time I will double the batch as this was BARELY enough for one block of extra firm Tofu.
• Now as you can see we like our stuff CRISPY (ok, it looks burnt...But i assure you thats 1000% tasty.)
• You could obviously roast this or do it in a pan. I just wanted to try something different since my oven could use a break, and I thought the pan would give it that extra crisp WE like. It did!
• This would really work as a marinade on anything, I think.
• 
  
• A KEEPER: Scallion Ginger Tofu Marinade

• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 1 tbsp reduc sodium tamari (or shoyu or soy sauce)
• 1 tsp agave nectar
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger (minced, or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger)
• 1 tbsp garlic (minced fresh, or 1/2 teaspoon powdered garlic)
• 1/2 cup scallions (chopped)
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp coriander
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper

OH YES : Easy Summer Rolls

Ok, I felt like a heel posting photos from the Internet of food that isn't actually mine. Like so...

But my summer rolls have been in the fridge for 24 hours and just look odd, as you can see below...

Trust me, they are still beyond delicious. 

(The point if this bog was to get a REAL world view if recipes and products, from a REAL struggling person who 

might or might not make pretty food)

SO...

I'm posting this recipe because it is SO great. So easy. And exceedingly malleable. Even calling it a recipe is sorta silly...

Rice wrappers or "Spring Roll Skin"

I typically fill with the ingredients below, But what stopping you from doing your own thing?:

OH YES : Easy Summer Rolls

Chicken or marinated tofu

Basil or mint

Shredded cabbage

Chopped Scallion

Peanuts

Lettuce

Cucumber

Thai Peanut sauce (store bought usually. Trader Joe's is the best. It's also super easy to make from scratch. I'm just lazy.  If you are obsessed with peanut sauce like I am you can have extra on hand to dip. Soy sauce would also work for dipping.)

First you buy rice paper wrappers which look like old LPs and are typically have an Asian brand. A lot of grocery stores have these in the international aisle. Here's an example:

Now these are tricky. They are very rigid when you pull them out. Be careful not to break it.

Have a empty large plate near you to assemble ingredients, and have everything you want in the roll cut lengthwise and at the ready. Once you start the wrapper sequence there's no goin back!

Next, You can either turn on your tap and run some hot water,or get a largish wide container and fill it with warm water.

While not earth friendly, I find the tap works best because you can keep the water temp right at very warm, but not hot.

Next wet the disk. My method is to hold it with both hands and gently spin it under the water vertically, so the water is washing down over the sides and into the sink. When it starts getting slick and about 50% softer than it was.. Let most of the water drip off ( a little us ok, it will be soaked into the wrapper, I promise.). It will get softer as it sits on the plate, don't fret...

Carefully lay the wrapper on your plate, flatly. 

Now, fill the roll so the ingredients lay in a nice line, and are NOT centered but a bit closer to one side (which is the side you'd start rolling from). Don't overfill....a couple of sprinkles of each ingredient should do it plus 4 or 5 drips of peanut sauce.

Roll it up like a burrito and make sure to fold in the sides before you are done rolling.

Gently place to the side on a different plate or something. It will feel very tenuous and delicate! If you manage not to break them, a short stint in the fridge will firm up the wrapper for easier eating.

Things to remember: 

You could fill with anything, shrimp would be grand!

Practice makes perfect with these, you get the hang of it much quicker than it seems.

These are ridiculously healthy and GF

They DO keep in the fridge for a couple days and are great for lunches, however the older they are the weirder they look.

Don't over fill. I know I keep saying it but, You'll be sorry. I think the wrapper should be able to be consumed in 5 bites...if that helps.

FAMILY TALLY: 4 out of 5 give this a huge thumbs up.

Family Tally: 3 if us love these!

THE HOLY GRAIL - Savory Broiled Tofu

Day one, recipe one.

We are going to need alot of tofu in this house and to put it mildly...and some of us are ambivalent.

Ok, I think this first recipe came out well. I plan to wrap it up and disguise it in peanut sauce and lettuce....because that's how i roll. (Get it roll?)See my summer roll recipe!

This recipe was from Gwyneth Paltrow's newest cookbook (yes...i caved) 

I realize this isn't the most inspired pic but I'm new at this...bear with me.

THE HOLY GRAIL - Savory Broiled Tofu 

SOURCE: It’s All Good – Gwyneth Paltrow

1/4 cup soy sauce*
2 tablespoons raw honey
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
2 small garlic cloves, finely minced
A 14-ounce box firm tofu, drained and cut into 1/2-inch strips. 

Whisk together the soy sauce, honey, oils, and garlic in a mixing bowl. Add the tofu to the bowl and gently stir to coat it with the mixture. 
Transfer the tofu to a baking sheet and pour over it whatever liquid remains in the bowl. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Broil, Carefully turning ONCE, until the tofu is browned and has a few crispy edges, just 4 to 5 minutes total, depending on the heat of your broiler.

JENN NOTES: 

i cut it too thinly and it was hard to manage. I also ended up baking for about 10 minutes on 350,after i GENTLY turned them once.

i added 1 tbsp black and white sesame seeds.

i used the second highest rack setting because they seemed to be burning, as opposed to being super sweetly crisping.

These were WAY too salty. I would use low sodium next time, or just take down the amount of SOY altogether.

FAMILY TALLY: The vegetarian and I mostly loved these 2 others (THE PICKY ONE and THE MEAT EATER) refused to try this time.