vegan enchiladas

these came out surprisingly amazing, despite the gross picture (but how do you make an enchilada look good anyway?!). this was the second time I'd tried making enchiladas- the first time I followed a recipe online, and this time I used what I had learned as a starting point but doctored these up to my liking.

tip: I'm a fan of making quick and healthy vegan meals. the first time I made vegan enchiladas, I made my own enchilada sauce as per the recipe I was using. however, this time around I found that buying a bottle of enchilada sauce not only was a lot easier, but probably cheaper.

what you need:

• 1 pound extra-firm or firm tofu


• 1 jar salsa


• 1 jar enchilada sauce


• 1 cup water


• 3 tbsp water mixed with 1 tbsp cornstarch


• tortillas (corn or flour)


• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast


• 1/2 cup vegan sour cream + a little extra


• 2 tsp cumin


• 2 tsp garlic powder

* preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. thoroughly drain the tofu and crumble very fine in a mixing bowl.
2. add the salsa, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp cumin, vegan sour cream, nutritional yeast, and a bit of salt and pepper. combine well.
3. in a separate bowl, add the enchilada sauce and water. after thoroughly mixing the cornstarch and water, add that to the enchilada sauce (this is to stretch the enchilada sauce). add 1 tsp cumin and 1 tsp garlic powder. mix well.
4. in a non-stick baking dish, spread a thin layer of enchilada sauce.
5. place a tortilla on a plate. scoop tofu mixture down the middle of the tortilla, top with a dollop of sour cream, and roll up like a crepe. set in pan, and continue doing this until your pan is full of enchilada rolls.
6. thorougly cover the enchiladas with the rest of the sauce (you want to make sure you coat all of the enchiladas to prevent drying out/burning).
7. cover dish with aluminum foil and bake for 30-45 minutes.

super easy fried tofu

I have to admit, I am not the best at cooking tofu. there really are only a handful of tofu dishes that I think I'm good at making (meaning, I can stomach them). I love tofu, it's just that I can never seem to get it right!
I just went to the "multicultural" shop on the corner. that place is insane. they sell everything from tofu to chinese fruits and vegetables to tortillas and other spanish staples, to curries and every type of rice noodle you can think of! anyway, I grabbed ingredients for my next few meals (enchiladas, coconut curry, and fried tofu).

here's the first of my tofu dishes!!

what you need:

• cornstarch


• garlic power


• salt


• pepper


• frying oil of your choice (I use canola, but vegetable or grape seed would be good too)


• frying pan or deep fryer

all of the measurements are approximate. you really can't mess this up! I probably used about 1/2 cup of cornstarch, 1 tsp garlic powder and a few shakes of salt and pepper.

1. mix cornstarch and spices in a bowl.
2. heat oil in a pan or in a deep fryer. I used a pan, and filled it about 1/2 an inch full.
3. while oil is heating up, press/drain the tofu and cut into desired shapes.
4. coat tofu pieces in cornstarch mixture, being sure to get all sides. when oil is hot enough, carefully place tofu into oil and fry until golden brown (flipping occasionally).

you need to have some kind of dipping/coating sauce. I was going to make sweet and sour, but the corner shop didn't have rice vinegar so I just used some of my trader joe's soyaki sauce and it was divine :)

Tofu Scramble and Canadian Bacon

Ok, so everyone makes their tofu scramble differently, and this is how I make mine! Let me start by saying that for the longest time I was afraid of this dish. I had tried making it once from a recipe, and I hated the taste so I didn't try it again for over a year. A couple of months ago I went to a vegan friend's apartment for dinner. He made tofu scramble with "canadian bacon" slices on english muffins and pancakes. I loved every bit of the meal, and it inspired me once again to take a stab at tofu scramble.
So this is my recipe! I apologize for the lack of measurements, but use this as a base and experiment :)

what you need:

• 1 box extra firm silken tofu


• nutritional yeast


• earth balance organic butter


• organic ketchup


• bread of choice

spices: yellow curry powder, cumin, garlic powder, kosher salt, black pepper
I pretty much use 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp of the curry, cumin, and garlic powder, and a pinch of salt and a few sprinkles of the black pepper. I just eye the nutritional yeast, but it's probably around 1/4 cup.

preparation:
1. Heat the butter over low/medium heat in a skillet.
2. Silken tofu doesn't really need to be drained. Cut the box open, hold it over the sink and squeeze out any stray moisture. Set on a cutting board or plate, and cut the tofu into 1/2 inch - 1 inch cubes (like cheese cubes). You don't want to make the cubes too small, because the tofu will break up in the pan and you don't want a bunch of tiny chunks!
3. Add the tofu to the pan, stirring occasionally. Add all spices and nutritional yeast to taste.
4. Push the tofu to one side of the pan, and place one or two slices of Canadian bacon in the pan. It's already prepared, so you just need to heat it.
5. Remove from heat, and assemble tofu and Canadian bacon on bread of choice (bagels, tortillas, english muffins, etc all work great!)
6. Optional: drizzle with ketchup
<3 erica