Citrus Chili Panko Crusted Tofu

While I was out shopping, browsing around bottles of sauces, I spied this -  

It looked like a sweet chili sauce, which I very much like, so I threw it in my cart. I got home and thought "What am I going to do with this now?" 

I got out a block of tofu, and sliced it 

Then to seem a bit more fancy, I cut it into triangles 

Brushed it with some of the Citrus Chili Sauce

On a plate, I mixed up a panko crumb mix to use as a coating

Carefully turned the tofu so all of the sides were coated with crumbs 

I laid the triangles out on a parchment covered baking sheet, because who wants to have to scrub pans any more than they have to. Certainly not me. 

After these were baked, I served them with some more of the chili sauce and with some Easy Aioli from Celebrate Vegan. 

These were crispy with a little bit of sweet heat. 

I opened a bottle of this Spanish wine which went very nicely. Spanish wines are a favourite of mine. Usually reasonably priced, they are very often passed over for more "popular" countries. 

The chili and the little bit of cinnamon in the crust worked well with this Garnacha (also known as Grenache). These wines are generally, soft with low acidity which makes them very easy to drink with a wonderful flavour and will compliment a wide array of foods. 

The recipe for the coating, was inspired by a posting on Oh She Glows which in turn was inspired by Cornmeal Tofu from Veganomicon 

Citrus Chili Panko Crusted Tofu

1 14-16 oz. block firm or extra firm tofu
½ cup panko crumbs
¼ cup cornmeal
½ tsp. cumin
½ tsp. chili powder
¼ tsp. onion powder
¼ tsp. cinnamon
few shakes of salt
½ cup Citrus Chili Sauce (or other sweet chili sauce)

Drain tofu and press if necessary. Slice into 6 slabs, then cut the slabs diagonally in half so you end up with 12 triangles. Pat pieces dry with paper towels. 

In a bowl, mix together remaining ingredients, except for the chili sauce. Pour a small quantity of the crumb mix onto a plate and shake to evenly distribute. 

Working one piece at a time, brush chili sauce on each triangle, making sure all sides are coated. Place the tofu piece onto the plate with the crumbs and coat all sides with breading. Place on parchment covered baking sheet in a single layer. 

Bake in a 350°F for 15 minutes. Turn over and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. 

Serve with some of the chili sauce for dipping or any other sauce of your choice. 

Kale Pie

I love pie, so when my friend, Dynise said she was writing a new cookbook all about pie I couldn't wait to get my mitts on it.

This is a beautiful book. There are colour pictures of every recipe, chapters on classic pies, sweet pies, savoury pies, raw pies, pies that aren't pies, different crusts, tarts and so on. I tested a few of the recipes for this book and everything I made was fabulous. I was so excited to see all of the other pies that I wanted to make.

I scored some kale at Goodness Me! for $1.49! Can you believe it? The regular stuff was $2.99 at the grocery store. I'd gotten some a couple of weeks before that at $1.69 which I thought was a deal. This just blew the other out of the water. 

I found a recipe in Dynise's book for kale pie that sounded magically delicious. I had all of the ingredients on hand, so my dinner dilemma was solved (for that day anyway). I started by following Dynise's intruction for a grain crust. She suggested millet, but I didn't have any in the pantry, so I did a brown rice crust. 

Then I got to work on the filling which included nuts and raisins. I love the sweet-savoury combo of pretty much anything. 

Just a little time in the oven and voila! (sorry the colour is weird in the photo. My camera settings were off) 

North African-Inspired Kale Pie

I quite liked this. I had a big slice for dinner and it kept well in the refrigerator for a couple of days and was easily heated up in the microwave, which makes it great for transporting to work for lunch. The filling stayed moist, and the crust didn't get soggy. Soooo.....what should I make next?  

Want to get your own copy of  "Pies and Tarts with Heart"? Click here.

Field Roast Came To Me

For years now, I've been reading about Field Roast products. My American veg*n friends and fellow bloggers have been raving about this company, extolling the virtues of it's tastiness and even though I scoured what stores are available to me when I cross-border shop, I never found Field Roast products. Not to worry, they came to me! While browsing in Goodness Me one day, I spotted them - dogs, sausages, roasts - I think I actually squealed out loud a little bit. A little orange sign said "New" and a little yellow sign said "Special" - meaning 'on sale'. Yes! I decided on the sausages and chose "Smoked Apple Sage"

Even on sale, these were a little pricey. I got a package for 4 for $5.99 and I couldn't wait to try them. On that same shopping trip, I also scored on another sale - 

Silver Hills hot dog and hamburger buns 2 for $6, so of course, I got one of each. Jim is a white bread lover. As much as I try, I can't get him to embrace the lusciousness of whole grain bread. I've brought home different brands, different seed and grain types but he still goes for white. The best I could hope for was the unbleached kind - until now. He will eat these! I think it's because they have a familiar texture and he can't see the "stuff". 

Last year, President's Choice introduced a line of condiments, some of which we tried and thought were very good. The zucchini relish is outstanding. I was super excited to see this 

And look - no weird, funky ingredients. 

Here's my sausage hot off the barbeque with some fried onions and smothered in maple mustard. Yummy! Although these were tasty - the price is a little steep. Tofurky sausages are about $2 less a package, and I really like Tofurky's Kielbasa and Italian ones. Granted, Field Roast has some different flavours.....what a conundrum! I'll be watching for the sales and checking out Wegman's  (again!) when I do some cross-border shopping.