lime

Colorful Asian Salad with Baked Tofu and a Cilantro Lime Dressing

November 5, 2014

Autumn’s first birthday is coming up and her party is now just in 10 days. Cue my freak out moment!!!! ahhh!!

As I continually pack away the clothes that she (very slowly) grows out of, I just want to grab her and hold her tight while whispering not to grow up too quick. But she is. It’s happening in a blink of an eye. One day she was trying to figure something out and the next day she can do it, and then some, with ease. It’s amazing to see them learning.

With the party fast approaching we are in a mad dash to get the party decorations and food nailed down. Plus, do a major clean up. Dang you dust! All while finally wrapping up moving my craftiness stuff from her room (former office) to the den. Plus, finish projects around the house…you know like the 4 dining chairs we have s-l-o-w-l-y been refinishing this past year. I will be soooo excited to have our dinning chairs all done.

That means our nights and weekends are jam-packed with stuff to do. It feels like we never stop moving. Seriously. I love being busy (and actually organizing stuff!) but it is draining. The last thing I am caring about now is dinner. But it’s important. While I’d love to order some Chinese take-out we are really trying to eat healthy. Plus, who needs to toss money at take-out when they have a party to host!

The key to keeping my sanity lately are quick, healthy dinners so I am not spending tons of time prepping and cooking. Tossing a spaghetti squash into the oven right when I get home works well but when I have been craving and enjoying the most lately are salads. I think the cold air and shrinking day light has me craving bright, fresh veggies. I have not yet caved to soups just yet!

Salads are great but you still need a protein. While I love steak and chicken it’s yet another thing to cook and another pan to clean. So the fully prepared baked tofu that I have been using in my salads has been a huge help. Life saving!

I used Nasoya’s Organic Sesame Ginger TofuBaked in this Asian inspired salad. Since I wasn’t getting my Chinese food any time soon I wanted to at least have something that reminded me of bright, fresh Asian flavors.

In September, Nasoya’s launched a brand new product called TofuBaked. It’s a marinated and fully cooked tofu that is great to toss on salads and veggie stir fries. Even making a vegetarian Bánh mì would be super simple when using TofuBaked. It comes in two flavors, Sesame Ginger and Teriyaki that are jam-packed full of flavor. Now you don’t have to worry about draining, pressing, marinating, and cooking tofu… it’s all done for you!

It’s great the creating a meal is a breeze but I love how it is a USDA Organic, Non-GMO food. It has 32g Protein per package. If you divide the package into 4 servings, like I did, it makes for 8g of protein from a preservative and cholesterol free food!

I have made plenty of salads that have lots of chopping involved but I tried to keep that to a minimum with this salad so that I can get it on the table in about 5 minutes. I swear it takes just that long!!! You are mainly tossing together fully prepped ingredients- prewashed kale, grape tomatoes (you can even skip cutting them!) a veggie slaw, and pea sprouts. There is just so fun about the crunch from pea sprouts, plus they remind me of the long bean sprouts that are used throughout Chinese food recipes.

You can’t not make this as it’s so quick, healthy, and flavorful.

Promise me that you will give tofu a try if you have never had it before because this Nasoay TofuBaked is so flavorful that you will have to brush off any misconceptions you have about it. Pinkie swear!

Colorful Asian Salad with Baked Tofu and a Cilantro Lime Dressing

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the salad

5oz package of baby kale
6 oz shelled edamame
2 oz pea sprouts
6 oz broccoli slaw or a mixture of shredded carrots, broccoli, and even zucchini
1 Cup grape tomatoes, halved
1/3 Cup Salted Peanuts
1 8oz package of Nasoya’s Organic Sesame Ginger TofuBaked

For the Dressing

1/4 Cup rice vinegar
1/3 Cup extra virgin olive oil
juice of 1 lime
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 Tablespoon minced cilantro (I used Gourmet Garden’s Stir-in Cilantro Paste)
salt and pepper

Process

To make the salad, toss together the kale, edamame, sprouts, slaw, and tomatoes together in a very large mixing bowl.
Cut a piece of tofu cross into 4 equal pieces and then again in the other direction, resulting in 16 pieces. Repeat the process for the other 3 pieces.
Sprinkle the top of the salad with the tofu and peanuts.
To make the dressing, combine all of the ingredients together in a bowl or a mason jar with a lid, and mix/shake well.
Dress the whole salad or dress each plated portion. Enjoy!

____________________

AND NOW THE GIVEAWAY!!!!

If you would like to win some Nasoya TofuBaked coupons for your own salads, stir fries, sandwiches, and more, then all you have to do it leave a comment on this blog post telling me how you would use tofu in your own cooking.

For an extra entry just tweet the following & then come back and leave a comment telling me you did.

“Give @Nasoya‘s TofuBaked a try in this Colorful Asian Salad with Baked Tofu and a Lime Cilantro Dressing. yummy! http://wp.me/pzEAP-4Zq“

Contest ends Wednesday, November 12th at midnight.

*While I did receive complimentary product from Nasoya, these opinions are entirely my own.

____________________

Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.

Crispy Tofu Tacos with a Mango Salsa and a Creamy Lime Drizzle

February 3, 2014

I’m skipping this week’s edition of Monday Munchies post to bring you a great recipe and GIVEAWAY!

I’ve been on a taco kick recently. In 1 week I had tacos 3 times. 3 times!! But the best part was that each were so different. I just love how versatile they are. I made ground turkey as the filling, then I had fish tacos when my mom and I were out to lunch when she was visiting last week, and then I made these tofu tacos. Each were so good in their own way.

Have you ever made tacos with tofu before? I never had but once I saw this recipe I knew I had to give it a try. I’ve used Nasoya’s great Organic non-GMO tofu in endless stir fry’s but I figured that I would change things up and give this recipe a try.

Boy, it did not disappoint!

The tofu was firm, crispy, and flavorful. It was great for a filling as a taco. In fact, it kinda reminded me of fish tacos. The texture was light like fish and it had a nice crisp coating on the pieces as well. No, it didn’t taste like fish so I wasn’t fooled there but the way that tofu absorbs flavors is spot on in that is soaked up the umami rich Worcestershire sauce and then it became best friends with the cumin in the dredge. Bestest of friends. (ugh, where is my mind?)

Anyway… the Nasoya TofuPlus is great to use in recipes like this, as well as stir fries, such as this Spicy Peanut Stir Fry. But if tofu is new to you then you should know that tofu comes in different firmness. You can use something like silken which you can use in these Carrot Cake Squares. Nasoya’s TofuPlus is verasitle so you can use it from everything to breakfast smoothies, grill it and serve it on a salad, to even making dessert with it!

The tofu is great but you can’t ignore that the mango salsa and the creamy lime drizzle add great flavors to the tacos as well. They really pack a punch to tie the flavors of the tacos together. Kinda creates the perfect bite sorta thing. You get the heat and tang from the creamy lime drizzle and then there is great balance from the sweetness from the mango in the salsa. Plus you get some crunch from the red pepper to add some nice texture to the tacos. yum!!

So in conclusion- what? is this a essay or something?- these Crispy Tofu Tacos made with Nasoya tofu are just perfect for a Meatless Monday dinner. Have you done Meatless Monday before? You should give it a try. It’s a great night to change things up to kick off the week. You know, so you can take the week by the horns and kick some butt!

If you want to try these tofu tacos, or other great recipes using tofu, then be sure to enter my Nasoya GIVEAWAY after the recipe!!!

Crispy Tofu Tacos with a Mango Salsa and a Creamy Lime Drizzle

Makes 8 Tacos

Ingredients

For the Filling

1 package Nasoya Extra-firm tofu, rinsed and patted dry
2 eggs
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon grill seasoning or seasoned salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons canola oil

For the Mango Salsa

1/2 cup diced mango
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup diced avocado
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

For the Creamy Lime Drizzle

1 teaspoon lime zest
2 Tablespoons lime juice
1/2 cup sour cream
1 Tablespoon minced pickled jalapeno peppers

8 flour taco sized tortillas or 16 taco sized corn tortillas

Process

Prepare the lime drizzle by zesting the lime rind into a small bowl. Juice the zested lime into the bowl and then add the sour cream and jalapeno peppers. Mix well to combine.
Prepare the mango salsa by combining all of the salsa ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.
Prepare the filling by slicing the tofu lengthwise into 6 slices, and then quarter each piece resulting in 24 total rectangles; set aside.
In a shallow bowl, beat eggs with the Worcestershire sauce. In another shallow bowl, mix together the cornstarch, grill seasoning and cumin.
Heat oil in large, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Dip each piece of tofu in the egg mixture, dredge in the cornstarch mixture, and then cook in the skillet for about 3 – 4 minutes per side (top and bottom) or until brown. Do not crowd in the skillet, so prepare the pieces in batches, if necessary.
Heat tortillas according to the package directions. Assemble the tacos by placing 3 pieces in taco then dressing with the mango salsa and topping with the creamy lime drizzle.

Slightly adapted from Nasoya

____________________

If you would like to win some Nasoya coupons for your own tacos, stir fries, smoothies, and much more, then all you have to do it leave a comment on this blog post telling me how you would use tofu in your own cooking.

For an extra entry tweet the following: “Tofu Tacos? Yes! perfect for #MeatlessMonday. These Crispy Tofu Tacos are a must try! http://wp.me/pzEAP-44I Plus a giveaway!” Come back here and leave a comment telling me you did this.

For an extra entry LIKE Nasoya on Facebook. Come back here and leave a comment telling me you did this.

*While I did receive complimentary product from Nasoya, these opinions are entirely my own.

____________________

Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.

Thirsty Thursday: Raspberry Lime Rickey

April 18, 2013

raspberry lime rickey_a

One of my favorite things to do in the summer is to go to Brimfield Antique Show. I love wandering around the dusty fields packed full of vendors while I find some great treasures to take home. Last year was a banner year. It was incredible. We rocked it.

Well, besides the fun things I find at Brimfield, I love getting Raspberry Lime Rickey’s there. I get them every year from the same vendor. I can’t imagine going and not getting one to sip on while browsing the near by porch full of old books. Just makes a visit complete.

So I couldn’t pass up a chance to make a Raspberry Lime Rickey while featuring berries for this month’s Thirsty Thursday posts. This is a perfect way to enjoy a refreshing drink while enjoying fresh spring raspberries.

raspberry lime rickey_b

Raspberry Lime Rickey

Makes 4

Ingredients

1/2 dry pint of raspberries
1/2 cup simple syrup
2 limes, halved
32 oz of seltzer water
ice

Process

Blend together the raspberries and the simple syrup. Straining the mixture is preferred.
Pour in 1/4 of the raspberry sauce into a tall glass. Add the juice of half a lime to the syrup and add it to the glass. Then add a cup of ice and the seltzer. Mix and enjoy!

Thirsty Thursday: Cranberry Lime Cooler

November 1, 2012

So this little storm came through named Hurricane Sandy. Well, let me tell you Sandy it was a Bitch with a capital B. As anyone with a pulse knows, she has wrecked havoc on a whole hell of a lot of the country. Prior to the storm’s arrival I was glued to the TV watching weather channel like my life depended on it. Dear Jim Cantore, you had me at millibars. Since I’m a weather channel junkie I knew this was going to be bad but in no way did I anticipate just how bad it would be. My little town of Chelsea MA lost 15% of power, obviously including us- hence the blogging hiatus and crazy back log I have to catch up on. But loosing power is nothing compared to what the people in NY and NJ are dealing with. It is heartbreaking. Please consider helping if you can, I can’t make a big financial contribution but I am donating blood next week since, according to Red Cross “Hurricane Sandy has affected blood collections in the Northeast, forcing the cancellation of more than 240 American Red Cross blood drives, resulting in a shortfall of more than 8,000 donations thus far.” That’s huge! I just think that if help in anyway you should try.

Anywho, this week Amanda and I bring you drinks centered around the ‘cranberry’ theme. This is the season for cranberries so be sure to get ready for some cranberry sauce, cranberry jelly, dried cranberries in just about everything. It’s an awesome thing, esp in Massachusetts, where there are a crazy amount of bogs. My coworker’s family even has a bog and they are profiled on Ocean Spray bottles- she is in the back, on the right. Cranberries are great for you as they contain antioxidants, such as vitamin C, that will boost your immunity, which is great for the upcoming cold and flu season.

I made a Cranberry Lime Cooler that is really refreshing, so simple to make, and a great alternative to sugary soda. Amanda made a Frozen Cranberry Margarita that will just knock your socks off… there is a pretty cool ingredient in there!!

Cranberry Lime Cooler

makes 1

Ingredients

3 oz cranberry juice (not cocktail)
juice of a lime
tablespoon of simple syrup
4 oz of seltzer
1 cup ice
wedge of lime and mint for garnish, optional

Process

In a tall glass, combine the cranberry juice, lime juice, simple syrup, and seltzer over ice.
Garnish is a wedge oflime and mint.

Honeydew Melon Sorbet

July 17, 2012

When I was growing up I would remember my dad eating melons (typically cantalope and honeydew) at night. He would cut them and throughout the week would eat the pieces slowly, one at a time, with a toothpick while watching TV. I think that has led to my love of melons, specifically honeydew melons.

Since it has a roasty, toasty summer I have been trying to keep cool all the time so that I don’t hate my favorite season. I sure would love to eat ice cream all the time but that is just not going to happen so I have been loving mixing up sorbets. My newest favorite is honeydew sorbet. Bliss on a hot, steamy night.

Honeydew melon sorbet lets the flavors of the honeydew melon shine through. The simple syrup just sweetens and brightens up the natural flavors. I like to add a bit of lime or lemon to mellow out that sweetness and enhance the flavors as well, similar to adding a bit of salt to a tomato. It just works! To keep with the citrus flavors, I like to garnish the melon with a bit of lemon verbena instead of mint. Dig in and cool off!

Honeydew Melon Sorbet

serves 4

Ingredients

1 cup of simple syrup
approximately 1/2 a honeydew melon, depending on size
juice of 1 lime

Process

Cut the honeydew into small pieces. Blend the honeydew until it a very smooth consisency. Blend the melon until you have 3 cups of puree.
Add the simple syrup and juice of the lime to the3 cups of puree and blend to combine the ingredients.
Chill the mixture for at least 30 minutes.
Pour the honeydew puree mixture into your frozen ice cream make bowl and follow your ice cream maker’s directions to process the sorbet.