mojo tofu - "viva vegan!"

Continental

Deciding to make something from Viva Vegan! for our Continental Night, I made Terry Hope Romero's Red Beans with Dominican-Style Sazon, Yuca with Cuban-Lime-Mojo Sauce and Zesty Ornage Mojo-Baked Tofu. 

I didn't have any yuca, but since it is a starch almost like a combination of potato-and-yam, I used the last of my winter squash from my CSA - kabocha squash and acorn squash. The Mojo Sauce I am not sure should be called a sauce because it is a lot of oil with onions and a few tablespoons of lime juice. It was very good, but, no surprise, quite oily, so we used it very sparingly drizzled over the cooked squash.

One might think that Latin food is closely related to Mexican and Tex-Mex fare, but they couldn't be more different from each other than Chinese and Indian foods. Latin dishes use a lot of citrus and for those palates to whom this is something new, it will be a very unusual flavor profile. Not bad in any way, but very unexpected - as David is coming to find. He is not a citrus enthusiast and last night's meal gave his palate a workout. However, if anyone who has this lack of love-affair with citrus can really enjoy these dishes, you know the food is excellent. 

I found everything a bit tangy but delicious. The Baked Tofu was superb and very easy to make. Just press, cut and bake. Add marinade and bake some more. It's texture was nice and chewy and the flavors were wonderful. 

There is so much to explore in this cookbook, and even though I had a week of Viva Vegan! in April of last year, I've barely scratched the surface - looking forward to more.

Cost Breakdown:

beans: $4

peppers, onion, garlic: $2.50

cilantro, parsley, celery: $1

spices, seasonings: $.25

orange, lime, vinegar: $3

tamari, tofu: $4.25

olive oil: $1

squash: $3

Total to make 6 servings:

$19.00

  

black bean burger and feta

Tester

Another of Tami's recipes from her upcoming cookbook - Grills Gone Vegan.

This is a Black Bean Burger. Don't think this is another of those homemade veggie bean burgers that is all mushy and really tastes homemade; nope! This one is meaty, firm, smoky and delicious.

I formed mine more in order of a big fat, meat burger - and boy, was it a mouthful! The kids were complaining a bit, but that is because they've never actually had a burger made of meat- not even a flabby, thin Mc'D's one, so this threw them for a loop.

David and I really enjoyed it, though, and the thickness was not a deterrent. This is a wonderful recipe. It is hard to imagine Tami topping her Incrediburger, but she's done it. Oh...and those buns are also a tester from her book. Very easy to make, whole wheat, Onion Buns. If bread is this easy to make, this delicious and still whole grain, why would we need to spend $5 on a package of buns?

I topped mine with my Feta Cheese. I've made this recipe before, but every time it has come out a bit firm. I made a mistake somewhere along the agar-tofu-way and they came out just like real feta! I have to figure out where I went right and get a recipe up. It was fantastic!