You probably know that I have some tactics to get people to like vegan food. You will see that I did a variation on one of these by covering my vegan dessert with ice cream. However, this main-course dish is so good that I didn't need to trick anybody into eating it.
Umami Sensation Un-ashamed Vegan Baked Tofu Stir Fry
In case you are getting intimidated by that awesomely-long title, rest assured that it will take you little more time to make this dish than it took me to make that title.
For the tofu:
Oil a glass baking dish.
Slice one cake of extra firm tofu into thin rectangles (they can be big, jut not thick, if you know what I mean).
Combine 4 T peanut butter, 4 T brown sugar, 2 T tamari, and 1 T lime juice. Melt this in the microwave until it's mixable and then season to taste.
Line the baking dish with one layer of tofu and then pour/dollop the sauce all over it, repeating if you have more tofu and sauce.
Bake at 425 degrees until you are really convinced it's about to burn. If the sauce gets kind of broken up/crumbly, no worries. That just adds to the umami sensation.
For the stir fry:
Saute 1/2 (each) onion, red pepper, and green pepper in some oil until the onion starts to brown. Then add 1 can (each, drained) straw mushrooms and baby corn. Add 1 T tamari, 1 T lime juice, 1-2 T brown sugar, and 1-2 t siracha. Cook just until the canned veggies are hot and the liquid is just starting to boil off. Top with tofu and enjoy.
For dessert, I tried an apple pave that was inspired by this awesome cookbook, although the authors would probably sue me if they found me appropriating their techniques so loosely. This was interesting the first day, but it was really good after it had been in the fridge for 48 hours, kind of like a really sophisticated fruit cocktail. If it's too vegan for you, you can always cover it with some homemade custard (I used my usual base and added maple syrup, vanilla extract, and chopped pecans at the end).
Raw-inspired (but don't tell them) Apple Pave
Slice two different (like one sour and one sweet) apples and one Asian pear paper thin (I know).
Line a square tupperware container (one about the size of a salad plate) with plastic wrap. Make sure there is enough hanging over two edges that you will be able to wrap it over the top of the container when you're done.
Combine 2 T honey, 2 T maple syrup, juice of 1 lime, and 1 t rose water. Taste it. Isn't it awesome? See, those vegans are on to something.
Spread some of this sauce on the bottom of the lined-container and then alternate layers of apples/pear and sauce (like lasagne). Drizzle some sauce over the top when you are done.
Close the plastic wrap and place another similar-sized dish or container over the top. Then place a 2-lb weight (like a big can or something) on the top container. Basically, you need to press this so you can slice it later, and you don't want a big sticky mess. That's the goal. Put your contraption in the fridge for at least an hour.
When you're ready to eat, slice with a sharp knife and serve with custard, or vegan custard. Garnish with pecans if you are fancy.
Enjoy,
Tofu
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