Shawarma-Spiced Tofu Pita Wraps

These are our take on Al Basha Falafel wraps using shawarma-spiced tofu instead of the falafel. Even though it does seem like a lot of ingredients and stuff to make this is easy and fast and you definitely don't need all of the sauces for a good wrap.

 Shwarma-Spiced Tofu Pita Wraps

 Tofu recipe from Epicurious

• Pickled Turnips Or:  1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced, and 3 Tbsp. seasoned rice vinegar 

For Tofu:

• 2 (14-oz.) blocks medium tofu, drained (this makes enough for 6 hungry people)
  
• 6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 tsp. ground coriander
• 2 tsp. smoked Spanish paprika
• 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp. kosher salt, plus more

For Pitas

• 6 pitas, warmed
• 3 Persian or mini cucumbers, thinly sliced lengthwise
• 1 1/2 tomato, sliced
• sliced lettuce
• sliced red onion
• hummus
• Red Hot sauce if desired
  

Yogurt sauce (optional): (this one is not on the Al Basha rolls but I thought the kids might like it so I am keeping it here to try next time)

• 1/2 cup whole-milk Greek yogurt
• 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
  

For Best Tahini sauce (simplified recipe from cookie and kate):

• 1 clove garlic, pressed or minced
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• ½ cup tahini
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• Pinch of ground cumin
• 6 tablespoons ice water, more as needed

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. 

2. If you don't have pickled turnips, Toss onion and vinegar in a small bowl to coat; set aside. 

3.  Squeeze tofu over a medium bowl, gently at first, then more firmly to expel some of the water (like squeezing out a big sponge). Don’t worry if it starts to crack a little but be careful not to crush it into crumbs. When no more liquid comes out, tear tofu into 1" pieces. Arrange in a single layer on a large rimmed baking sheet. Toss with oil, then add coriander, paprika, cinnamon, and salt. Toss well to coat. Roast tofu, turning once or twice, until crispy around the edges and well browned, 20–25 minutes (the tofu will get crispier as it cools, so don’t be tempted to take it too far and dry it out in the oven).

4. Make Yogurt sauce, if desired, by stirring yogurt and garlic in a small bowl; season with salt. 

5. Make Tahini sauce:

1. In a medium bowl, combine garlic, lemon juice, tahini, salt and cumin. Whisk until the mixture is thoroughly blended.
2. Add ice water 2 tablespoons at a time, whisking after each addition until smooth. (It may seize up, don’t worry.) After about 6 tablespoons, you will have a perfectly creamy and smooth, light-colored tahini sauce.
3. If desired, thin with additional water for a more drizzly sauce. 

 6. Assemble Pita as follows:

    1. Rip pita bread around the edge into 2 pieces. Place on plate, overlapping any holes. Place ingredients on the half sitting on top.

    2. Spread the top half with hummus. 

    3. Add lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, onion, and pickled turnips. 

    4. Add tofu. 

    5. Drizzle with Tahini sauce, red hot sauce if desired, and yogurt sauce if desired. 

    6. Roll up and enjoy!

 

 

 

egg salad

I tried two egg salad recipes, one had sweet relish, Kiran liked that one but he was the only one. This one we all liked.


EGG SALAD

makes 4 sandwiches

-- 4 eggs, hard boiled, peeled and chopped (boil approx. 10 minutes)
-- 2 T. minced onion
-- 2 T. minced celery
-- 1 heaping T. capers
-- 1/4 c. mayo

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Put on bread. Add lettuce if it doesn't make you cry. 

Vegetarian Muffuletta Sandwich

I've never had a real muffuletta sandwich, but I've drooled over many a photo of the meat-laden Italian classic online. For a long time I've wanted to try making a vegetarian version for us at home but hesitated because M doesn't really like vinegary things that much. Last night M was out and it was a sandwich kind of night for dinner, so I tried making my version of this recipe for Kiran and I. It turned out delicious! M tried it and loved it when he came home. I think it would make an excellent quick easy sandwich dinner for a picnic, or anytime really.

Ingredients (for the tapenade):

• 1/2 cup pitted black olives
• 1/2 cup pitted green olives
• 1.5 Tbsp capers
• 1.5 Tbsp canola oil (or olive oil, for best flavor)
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic
• fresh thyme leaves from about 3 sprigs, or 1/2 tsp dried
• salt and pepper

Process all ingredients except salt and pepper in a food processor until uniform but still coarse.  Add salt and pepper to taste.
Ingredients (for 4 sandwiches):

• One loaf ciabatta bread, cut into 4 squares and sliced open like rolls
• 4 small roasted red bell peppers, jarred or home-roasted
• 4 to 6 marinated artichokes, quartered (I used jarred marinated, already quartered)
• 4 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced
• 4 slices tomato
• 8 fresh basil leaves, torn
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• olive oil for drizzling

Preheat oven or grill if you want to serve the sandwiches warm.  In a bowl, combine basil, vinegar, garlic, roasted peppers, and artichokes; let sit for 5 minutes.  After optionally warming bread, spread some of the tapenade on one side of each of the ciabatta rolls, then top with tomato, roasted pepper and artichoke mixture, and mozzarella.  Drizzle with extra vinegar from bowl and olive oil.  Easy!
- See more at: http://www.nomeatathlete.com/meatless-muffaletta-sandwiches/#sthash.T5C50aj2.dpuf

Vegetarian Muffaletta recipe

serves 2-3 very hungry people

Tapenade:

-- 1/2 cup pitted black olives (I used kalamata)
-- 1/2 cup pitted green olives
-- 1 1/2 Tbsp. capers
-- 1 1/2 Tbsp. oil
-- fresh thyme leaves from about 3 sprigs, or 1/2 tsp. dried
-- 1 clove garlic (optional, I left this out but might try next time)
-- 1 Tbsp lemon juice (I left this out but might try adding in next time)

Sandwich:

 -- 1 loaf ciabatta bread, or 1/2 large round italian loaf, sliced in half (I hollowed some of the bread out of the middle of the loaf to leave more room for fillings)
-- 2 large roasted red bell peppers, roughly chopped
-- 1/2 to 3/4 cup marinated artichokes, roughly chopped
-- 100 ounces (1/4 pound) fresh mozzarella, or provolone cheese, sliced. (I used provolone, and a bit more than this I think)
-- 2 large tomatoes, sliced
-- 1 bunch fresh basil
-- 3-4 pepperoncini, chopped (optional, I liked this but Mahesh preferred his sandwich without)


1. Turn on oven to 350 degrees. Wrap bread in foil and put in oven to heat up a bit while you make the tapenade.

2. While the bread is warming, make tapenade by processing all ingredients in a food processor until uniform but still coarse. Add salt and pepper to taste (although I didn't feel like I needed any)

3. Take bread out of oven. Spread tapenade on each side of the bread, as thick as you like. Top with tomato, basil leaves, red bell peppers, artichokes, cheese, and pepperocinni, if using.

4. Close sandwich. You can serve it right away, or wrap tightly in plastic wrap and leave in fridge for a while for the flavors to mingle and some of the juices to soak into the bread.

5. Slice up into edible portions, and enjoy!

Ingredients (for the tapenade):

• 1/2 cup pitted black olives
• 1/2 cup pitted green olives
• 1.5 Tbsp capers
• 1.5 Tbsp canola oil (or olive oil, for best flavor)
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 clove garlic
• fresh thyme leaves from about 3 sprigs, or 1/2 tsp dried
• salt and pepper

Process all ingredients except salt and pepper in a food processor until uniform but still coarse.  Add salt and pepper to taste.
Ingredients (for 4 sandwiches):

• One loaf ciabatta bread, cut into 4 squares and sliced open like rolls
• 4 small roasted red bell peppers, jarred or home-roasted
• 4 to 6 marinated artichokes, quartered (I used jarred marinated, already quartered)
• 4 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced
• 4 slices tomato
• 8 fresh basil leaves, torn
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• olive oil for drizzling

Preheat oven or grill if you want to serve the sandwiches warm.  In a bowl, combine basil, vinegar, garlic, roasted peppers, and artichokes; let sit for 5 minutes.  After optionally warming bread, spread some of the tapenade on one side of each of the ciabatta rolls, then top with tomato, roasted pepper and artichoke mixture, and mozzarella.  Drizzle with extra vinegar from bowl and olive oil.  Easy!
- See more at: http://www.nomeatathlete.com/meatless-muffaletta-sandwiches/#sthash.T5C50aj2.d

New category: Toddler food -- First recipe: Tofu Egg Salad

Our beautiful boy Kiran is 11 months old already, and he is eating up a storm! He is eating mostly "people food" and not purees at this point. He can chew pretty well with his gums and 8 teeth, but since he doesn't have molars yet he can't grind difficult things like raw vegetables.

I try to cook as much of his food as possible, which was causing a problem because I was cooking Kiran a meal, then feeding him, then cooking myself a meal, then eating. The whole thing would take like 2 hours! So I decided to try and come up with some meals that both of us can eat at the same time! But there are many constraints, especially at lunchtime when time is short.

I have been looking for/creating meals that:

1. Use mostly foods I tend to have on hand
2. Include a protein source (varied throughout the day), vegetable and/or fruit, carb, and fats.
3. Are vegetarian (baby is vegetarian for now)
4. Are quick to prepare (for lunch this means under 20 minutes for sure, usually under 10)
5. Are yummy for baby and parents!
6. Bonus points go for foods he can pick up and eat himself (i.e. not purees)

I am lucky Kiran is a pretty adventurous eater, if he was picky things would be so much more difficult.

The other night I had some leftover tofu in the fridge so I put together a fast tofu egg salad for us to eat. It was good and I would like to share the recipe.

Tofu Egg Salad

modified from this link

• 1 block firm tofu, drained (I used medium firm and it was fine)
• 1/2 cup cooked soft vegetables (I used frozen spinach, cooked and chopped finely, but you could use cooked peas, cooked diced carrots, cooked brocolli chopped finely, or whatever you have on hand)
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup sweet relish (or chop up some sweet pickles very finely, like I did)
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. celery powder (or 1/2 stalk celery, very finely minced)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder (or 1/2 small onion, very finely minced)
• 1 tbsp mustard
• dash paprika for garnish (optional)

Preparation:

In a medium-sized bowl, mash the tofu with a fork. Add remaining ingredients and stir together until well combined. Sprinkle with paprika for garnish, if desired. Serve on bread for an "egg" salad sandwich.

Tofu barbecue sandwiches

One day I had a hankering for a pulled pork sandwich, the kind that comes with cole slaw in it. The only problem is that I hardly ever cook meat at home, and when I do, pulled pork is just not one of those things I would ever make. Plus Mahesh can't eat it. So I came up with this tofu version which provides some of the same flavors, but is much easier to make, and healthier too. Mahesh loves it, there aren't too many vegetarian sandwiches that taste this good. I am pretty proud of myself that I made up this recipe.

This is a good recipe when you have mixed meat and vegetarian guests over because you can make the cole slaw and marinate some flattened chicken breast and some tofu in the bbq sauce ahead of time (in separate containers please!). Then, it all cooks fairly quickly on the grill, and the sandwiches are fast to make up after that.

Tofu barbecue sandwiches
Makes 4

Ingredients:

-- 1 recipe homemade bbq sauce, or just buy your favorite bottled sauce (check the ingredients to make sure it is vegetarian if you are serving it to vegetarians though)
-- 1 recipe southern-style cole slaw
-- 1 package extra-firm tofu
-- 4 buns

Instructions:

1. Cut tofu down the middle to make two square chunks, then cut each chunk sideways into 4 slabs, making a total of 8 slabs
2. Put the tofu and bbq sauce in a tupperware container and let marinade 24 hours or as long as you can wait (I am not good at planning ahead so I often skip the marinating part, it is fine)
3. Heat up the bbq, or some oil in a frying pan. Fry tofu on each side until heated through and barbecue sauce is toasty and caramelized. Be careful not to burn though!
4. While the tofu is frying, toast your buns
5. Layer the cooked tofu on the buns, adding on 2-3 Tablespoons extra bbq sauce from the marinading container (it's okay because it's not meat!) and then a big handful of cole slaw, squeezed to remove excess liquid.
6. enjoy!!

Portabella Burgers with goat cheese and basil

I have made a lot of portabella burgers in my life but this method works the best I think. There are millions of ways you can flavor them but this is what we did tonight and it was delicious so I will blog this one.

Portabella Burgers with goat cheese and basil

Makes 2

Ingredients

2 large portabella mushrooms, stems removed
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 t. soy sauce (approx)
2 t. olive oil (approx)
black pepper
spicy sauce to taste (I used like 3 splashes of habanero sauce)

4 Tablespoons goat cheese
2 large hamburger buns
mayonnaise
1 tomato, sliced
salt and pepper
some lettuce or spring mix
sliced onion
6 large basil leaves, minced (maybe 2 teaspoons minced)
1 tablespoon minced parsley

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Lay portabellas gill side up in oven-safe baking pan.
3. Mix together the garlic, soy sauce, olive oil, black pepper, and spicy sauce in a small bowl. Pour over the gills of the mushrooms evenly.
4. Bake portabellas in the oven for 30 minutes
5. When portabellas are done, turn off oven, break goat cheese into chunks and spread evenly over portabellas, and put back in warm oven to melt while you prepare the buns.
6. Toast the buns, prepare one half with: mayo, tomato slices, salt and pepper, lettuce, and onion.
7. Take the portabella mushrooms (with softened cheese) out of the oven and put on the topped bun. Sprinkle basil and parsley over the cheese. Top with other bun.
8. Enjoy!

Good Tofu banh mi sandwich

Really good! Just the tofu recipe itself is very good also. I bought a fresh baguette but then didn't use it for 2 days, so it got a little stale. A fresh baguette is very important!

http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2012/06/13/tofu_banh_mi_a_vietnamese_caramelized_tofu_sandwich_that_shatters_prejudices.html?wpisrc=obinsite

Buffalo Veggie Burgers

So I have been experimenting with veggie burgers for a long time. The biggest problem with many vegetarian burger recipes is that when you're eating them it can be hard to tell what part is the burger and what part is the bun. Finally I have found a veggie burger that is packed with flavor and, if you love buffalo wings like I do, simply delicious.

BUFFALO VEGGIE BURGERS
adapted from this veggie burger recipe. 

Makes 5 burgers

Ingredients

For the patties:

• 1/4 cup quinoa
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup oatmeal
• 1/4 cup minced yellow bell pepper
• 2 tablespoons minced onion
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce (such as Frank's RedHot®)
• 1 egg
• 2 1/2 ounces mild blue cheese
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

To make the burgers:

• 5 burger buns
• lettuce
• tomato slices
• red onion slices
• generous amount of hot pepper sauce (such as Frank's RedHot)

Instructions:

1. Bring the quinoa and water to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender and the water has been absorbed, about 15 to 20 minutes.
2. While that is happening, roughly mash the black beans with a fork leaving some whole black beans in a paste-like mixture.
3. Mix the cooked quinoa, bread crumbs, bell pepper, onion, garlic, cumin, salt, hot pepper sauce, and egg into the black beans using your hands. If the mixture is too wet add in breadcrumbs until it gets to a moldable consistency.
4. Form the black bean mixture into 5 equal-size portions.
5. Now, take each burger portion and divide it into 2. You want to make 2 really thin patties the size of the final burger you want to make. I do this by putting each burger half between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and carefully pressing them thin. 
6. For each burger, take one really thin patty, sprinkle it with about 1/2 ounce of blue cheese, then lay the other thin patty on top and seal them together. You may need to re-form the patty a bit to make it look burger-like. Do this for all 5 burgers.   
7. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet.
8. Cook the patties in the hot oil until browned and heated through, 3 to 4 minutes per side. 
9. Lightly toast each hamburger bun. Layer: bottom bun, lettuce, onions, tomato, salt and pepper, cooked burger patty, and then liberally coat the patty with hot pepper sauce. Remember hot wings are basically dipped in red hot sauce, and that's the flavor we're going after, so don't be afraid to be generous! 
10. Put on the top bun and enjoy!

a couple awesome recipes

What makes allrecipes.com my default go-to recipe resource are the reviews. Whenever I want to make some dish, especially a more well-known item, I often go there, find a recipe, then sort by reviews. Anything rated four stars or above by over 100 reviewers is bound to be good. That worked out great for me today, these are the recipes I made:

Old-fashioned Vanilla Pudding
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/old-fashioned-vanilla-pudding/detail.aspx

Super good and quicker than going to the store to buy instant! I used this to make a red, white, and blue trifle to celebrate the fourth of July.

Quinoa Black Bean Veggie Burgers
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/quinoa-black-bean-burgers/detail.aspx

Good with a texture remarkably similar to meat burgers. I liked that you didn't have to pre-cook the veggies in the burger like most veggie burger recipes. The taste was a little bland, probably because I skimped on the salt, next time I would add the full amount of salt at least, maybe even more.

Mock Tuna Salad

I sometimes find it difficult to find vegetarian stuff to take for work lunches that a) fills me up all afternoon b) tastes good and c) is easy to pack and eat. That's why I was happy to find this recipe. It tastes surprisingly similar to tuna salad. You can add all sorts of different things in there. Here is the version I made yesterday:

Mock Tuna Salad

Ingredients:

• 15 ounces chickpeas, drained and rinsed (about one cans worth)
• 2 whole celery stalks
• 1 carrot, grated
• 2 Tablespoons minced onion
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp mayo
• 2 Tablespoons minced black olives (optional)
• 1 Tablespoon minced dill pickle or capers (optional)
• 1 squirt lemon juice (optional) 
• 2 tsp nutritional yeast (optional)
• ½ tsp kelp or other seaweed (optional, I leave this out because Mahesh doesn't like it but it can make it taste more tuna-like)

Instructions:

In a large mixing bowl, mash chickpeas with a fork or flat bottom of cup until coarse and no whole beans are left. Alternatively, pulse beans in a food processor a few times -- careful not to puree, and transfer to a mixing bowl. Mince celery, onion, and other vegetables if using, or pulse a few times in a food processor. Transfer to the mixing bowl and add remaining ingredients, stirring to combine. Add more mayo and/or kelp as necessary or desired and salt and black pepper to taste.

Chef's notes: There are a lot of optional ingredients because this recipe is so variable! Just put what you like in it.

Baked or pan-fried Falafel with tahini sauce

We are big fans of falafel, BUT it is typically deep-fried, so for the first time I tried making a pan-fried version at home. It came out very good (for healthy falafel, anyway) and I really loved the tangy sauce on the sandwich. Mahesh said he would like the falafels to have more flavor but I just thought they needed a little more salt so I have doubled the soy sauce below, but I also might try increasing the parsley, spices and/or onion and garlic too (not sure by how much though). The recipe below is based on the recipe in this video:

For the Falafels:
1 15 oz can of garbanzo beans, washed and drained (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup fresh parsley
1 T lemon juice
3 T onion
1 clove garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp coriander
2 tsp soy sauce
1/4 cup garbanzo flour (also called chana flour, I found this in the bulk section of a health store)
1/4 tsp baking powder

For the Tahini Sauce:
Yield: 2/3 cup
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp salt
a few grinds black pepper
3 T tahini (a fermented sesame seed paste, can find it in the middle eastern section of stores)

Plus:
4 pita bread
4-8 lettuce leaves
1 cup chopped tomato
16-20 slices of cucumber
red hot sauce

For the Falafels:
Put all ingredients except the garbanzo flour and baking powder into a food processor. Process everything until it becomes smooth but not quite a puree. Add the flour and baking powder and pulse until mixed in. Scoop by tablespoon and form into balls. Flatten them slightly (about 1/2 inch thick). At this point you can deep fry them, pan fry them, or bake them. Deep fry in 2 inches of oil at 350 degrees for 5-7 minutes OR Pan fry in lightly oiled pan on medium-high heat until browned on both sides OR Bake in 400 degree oven for 40 minutes turning them half way through the baking process.

For the Tahini Sauce:
Whisk all of the ingredients together in a bowl.

To Assemble the Pita:
Cut 1/2 inch off the top of pita. Open pocket and insert lettuce, 2-3 falafel balls, 1/4 cup tomato, 4 slices of cucumber, 1-2 tablespoons of tahini sauce, and red hot sauce to taste.

 Enjoy!

Greek Salad Rolls

This is one of our favorite vegetarian wrap sandwiches!

GREEK SALAD ROLLS

for 4 rolls (dinner for 2)

Ingredients:

-- 1 cup cooked garbanzo beans
-- 4 tortillas
-- 2 tomatoes, chopped
-- 4 small cucumbers or one large cucumber, chopped
-- 15 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
-- a 1x2 inch chunk of feta cheese, crumbled
-- 2 Tablespoons of red onion, sliced thin
-- 1 large handful curly parsley, minced
-- Chopped lettuce (optional)
-- salt and pepper (go easy on the salt because the olives and feta are salty!)
-- Little Creek salad dressing, Original (or just some lemon juice)
-- Red Hot sauce!!!

1. Toast the tortillas on a frying pan until warmed through but still flexible
2. Mix everything else together except red hot sauce.
3. Put about 1 1/2 cups filling on each tortilla
4. Add red hot sauce on top
5. Fold the bottom up, and roll each tortilla tightly into a wrap. Previous experience making breakfast burritos at McDonalds helps with this step greatly.
6. Enjoy!!

really good beet goat cheese sandwich

Everything that's so good about those ubiquitous beet and goat cheese salads that are on like every restaurant menu, in a sandwich! It's the goat cheese that makes this. And the bread -- I used a fantastic cibatta (sp?) baguette.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Warm-Goat-Cheese-Beet-and-Arugula-Sandwiches-102737

rapini wrap

After a weekend of parties, I needed a health kick for dinner, so using some vegetables and leftovers from the party I whipped up this delicious wrap:

-- 1-2 cups brocolli rapini, cut in 1-inch pieces
-- 2 cloves garlic, minced
-- olive oil
-- salt and pepper and red pepper flakes
-- 1/2 small red bell pepper, sliced
-- a couple small pieces feta cheese, maybe 1/2 ounce (leftover from party)
-- 1 pita bread (leftover from party)

------
1. Sautee garlic in olive oil until fragrant, add in brocolli rapini, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, and sautee until tender/crisp, I added in some water and steamed it a bit to get it done enough.
2. Rip apart pita along the edges to make 2 circles, lay the circles sort of overlapping to make a rectangular type shape
3. Layer red bell pepper, feta cheese, and rapini, fold up the bottom and roll up

mmm so green and so good

roasted Cauliflower and asparagus sandwiches

I made this tonight (minus the egg because I wasn't that hungry) but it was SOOO good, would be even better with an egg on top! http://dishingupdelights.blogspot.com/2009/03/open-faced-cauliflower-and-asparagus.html

Just the cauliflower/shallot puree is a great find! But I find the cauliflower takes more like 45 minutes to roast at 400 degrees. So delicious!

Also, for some reason, my ear is ringing.