Tofu with Pan Roasted Asparagus, Browned Cauliflower and Rice Cakes
So after writing my last post about the rules of food blogging, I promised myself I would try to post more pictures of my food during the cooking process. Oops (I had to steal one from another foodie blog this time). This meal had too many things going on at once for me to stop and take pictures of what was happening. I was too busy trying to prevent food items from burning, so forgive me. I hope to have pictures of the dish during various phrases for my next recipe.
But don’t be sad for too long, because this was one of those dishes that makes me feel like a chef. That is, it is a meal I researched, thought out, incorporated some ingredients that looked good at the grocery store and then executed perfectly.
I knew I had left over rice cakes and tofu from my red pepper and caper dish from last week. I almost copped out and bought more tomatoes knowing I could fall back on that dish, but I felt like being adventurous. I found an epicurious recipe that looked like it would go nicely with “Korean gnocchi” aka rice cakes, and set out for yoga and then the grocery store.
Below, what I’m calling Tofu with Pan Roasted Asparagus, Browned Cauliflower and Rice Cakes. I adapted it from this pasta recipe at epicurious.com.
(It can serve as many as you need it to, I made it for one)
Ingredients:
Super firm tofu, cubed (enough for X amount of people)
Mini Rice Cakes (ditto)
4-5 Cauliflower florets per person
5 spears of asparagus per person
Garlic (I used one big clove for a single serving… mmmm garlic)
Dash of butter
White Wine
Olive Oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
Grated Parmesan cheese
1.) Brown cauliflower in a pan with a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. Turn occasionally and take off heat when done.
(This photo is from Amateur Gourmet’s review of Momofuku’s Ginger Scallion Noodles, where I got this idea from)
2.) In another pan (while the cauliflower is browning), heat another drizzle of olive oil and add minced garlic, until fragrant, about a minute. Then add chopped asparagus pieces and sear for about 3-4 minutes, stirring a bit.
3.) Add the mini rice cakes and a splash of wine, enough to make the cakes not stick to the bottom of the pan. I also added a little butter a la Paula Dean to thicken the sauce a little bit. Add salt and pepper at this time as well.
4.) Once the cauliflower is off the pan, use the same pan (and maybe more olive oil) to cook the tofu. Brown and when done, add it and the cauliflower to the main/asparagus and rice cake pan.
5.) Squeeze some lemon juice over the whole dish and let it simmer a little bit (a minute or two). Turn off the heat and add Parmesan cheese, stirring to melt it. Serve immediately.
