Tofu-Stuffed Portabellos

Moosewood calls this a "showstopper" -- and it SO is. This is totally our new favorite recipe! We made it with the lemon-ginger noodle recipe that I'm about to post and the combination was fan-tabulous.

for stuffed mushrooms:
1 cake of firm tofu, 16 oz
1/2 cup diced red bell peppers
1/2 cup diced canned water chestnuts
1/3 cup minced scallions
1/2 cup cooked brown rice
1/4 cup peanut butter
3-4 tbs light miso (or to taste)
2 tsp minced fresh ginger
4 tsp dark sesame oil
1/2 tsp cayenne
4 portabello mushrooms, about 5 inches in diameter
2 tbs soy sauce

for sweet and sour sauce:
1 cup unsweetened apple juice
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs rice vinegar
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 tsp sugar
1 tbs cornstarch dissolved in 1 tbs cold water

preheat oven to 350. Oil a baking pan. In a bowl, crumble tofu with your fingers. Add the peppers, water chesnuts, scallions, rice, peanut butter, miso, ginger, 1 tsp sesame oil, cayenne, and 1 tbs soy sauce. Stick your hands in it and mush it all together. set aside.

Twist off mushroom stems and gently rinse caps to remove dirt. place the caps gill-side up on the oiled pan. In a small cup, stir together remaining 3 tsp sesame oil and soy sauce. Brush the mushrooms with the mixture, then mound one-quarter of the filling on each mushrooms. Bake for 35 minutes until mushrooms release juice and filling is firm. While the mushrooms bake, prepare the sweet and sour sauce.

sweet and sour sauce:
In a small saucepan, combine apple juice, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, sugar, and bring to a boil. stir the dissolved corn starch into the boiling sauce; reduce heat and stir for one minute, until sauce thickens. serve hot over mushrooms.

Miso Soup

8 C water
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 TBSP grated fresh ginger
3 TBSP dried wakame seaweed
1 lb soft tofu, cubed
4 scallions, white and green parts sliced thinly
3 TBSP miso (or more, depending on flavor)
Fistful of buckwheat soba noodles, cooked according to directions on package

Mix garlic, ginger, and seaweed into the water in a large pot. Bring to a boil and cook about 5 minutes until seaweed is tender. Add tofu and scallions and simmer 2 minutes. Remove about one cup of liquid to a small bowl and dissolve miso into the broth. Add back to soup and mix well. Add soba noodles, simmer another 2 minutes, and serve hot.

Miso-Ginger Salad Dressing

This dressing is technically supposed to go over eggplant, but I liked it better over mixed greens. Serious yummy. Also, a general miso recommendation, based on recent experience; don't buy the floofy expensive organic miso you find in health-food stores . . . it might be organic, but it's not as good as the stuff you get in Chinatown. (I will never make that mistake again!)

1/3 cup rice vinegar
1 tablespoon miso
1 tablespoon chopped basil (I used fresh, which was really good, but I bet it would be fine dried)
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Whisk first 6 ingredients in bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in the vegetable oil. Season with salt and pepper.

The best tofu burgers EVER

This recipe is adapted from Moosewood . . . it'll make anyone who says they don't like tofu change their minds. (Well, at least it's made my meat-and-potatoes-kinda-guy Dad actually ask me to make tofu). You can also use the mixture to stuff portabello mushrooms.

Serves 4

1 cake firm tofu
1 tbs vegetable oil
1 cup diced onions
1/2 cup peeled and grated carrots
1/2 cup diced bell peppers
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1 1/2 teaspoons dried dill
1 teaspoon dried sage
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons tahini
2 tablespoons light miso
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 to 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Drain the tofu very well. Heat the oil in a frying pan and saute the onions, carrots, peppers, oregano, basil, dill, and sage for about 7 minutes, until the veggie are just tender. Crumble the tofu in a large bowl. Stir in walnuts, bread crumbs, tahini, miso, soy sauce, mustard, and veggies. Mix well.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and generously oil a baking sheet.

Form the burgers into four patties and place on baking sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes until burgers are firm and browned. Yummy!