Helpful on Fast Days! Low Cal Recipe Share Here

[Georgia 2,908]

I cook every day. It's comforting and enjoyable and stress relief for me. For me' date=' it's been really fun to come up with great things to eat for fast day that my husband will eat with me. You know, without breaking the calorie bank on them, or having to skip half the meal! I love chicken but really, chicken breasts can only take me so far. I get sick of the same things over and over again.

So, yes, the chorizo is a spicy sausage. I get the freshly made stuff at Whole Foods. I enjoy it once in a while but well, many people don't. I also enjoy chopped liver, remember? I have a wide variety of tastes.

Minestrone Soup - from a modified recipe I found on allrecipes:

3 links of sweet Italian turkey sausage (casings removed) - optional, I make it vegetarian sometimes

2 Tbs. olive oil

4 cloves chopped or minced garlic (adjust to your taste)

1 large onion, chopped

4 stalks celery, chopped

5 carrots, chopped

3 cups chicken or vegetable broth

2 cups Water

1 (28 oz) can Tomato sauce

1/2 cup red wine - optional

1 can kidney Beans, drained

1 can green Beans, drained

1 cup baby spinach, rinsed

1 large or 2 small zucchinis, quartered and sliced

1 Tbs. fresh oregano, chopped

2 Tbs. fresh basil, chopped

Salt and pepper, to taste

1/2 cup seashell or mini farfalle Pasta

Grated Parmesan or romano for garnish

Heat oil in a stock pot over medium heat and cook turkey sausage (if using) until no longer pink. Break into small chunks. Without draining (there should not be much excess oil), add garlic and onion to the pan and saute for five minutes. Then add the celery and carrot and cook an additional 2 or 3 minutes.

Add the stock, Water and Tomato sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil, then add in the wine. Reduce the heat to low and add in the kidney beans, green beans, spinach, zucchini and spices. Go easy on the salt until the mixture has time to blend well and you can be sure it's needed.

Simmer for an hour. While Soup is simmering, boil Pasta according to package instructions.

When soup is ready, do the final seasoning, stir in pasta and garnish with cheese to serve.

Soup is always best after it's had time to cool completely and is reheated. Also, you might find that your vegetables absorb a lot of your water if this sits in the fridge for a few days; just add a little more water when reheating and it will be fine!

Makes a ton of soup and will feed you for several days.[/quote']

Thank thank thank you!!!!!!

[No game 14,437]

Georgia,

I dry fry my tofu first to get the moisture out and crisp it up a bit then you can marinade .

To dry fry, I cut up my tofu and SLOW fry it with no oil or butter on a non stick griddle or you can use a cast Iron pan. I fry it on a lower heat to get the moisture out and crisp it up. I buy mine at trader joes (extra firm) Also after you dry fry it you can do different things with it...like marinade in anything (it is tasteless so will soak up any flavor) and stir fry with veggies I like it marinaded sometimes but I will also eat it just straight from the fridge cold with hummus.

.Simple, All-purpose Tofu Marinade:

1/2 cup Braggs liquid Aminos (for a salty, smoky flavor)

Splash of rice vinegar

1/2 large sweet onion,

diced 5 cloves garlic, crushed

Water to cover

Marinade a few minutes then cook with your veggies

[Georgia 2,908]

Georgia' date='

I dry fry my tofu first to get the moisture out and crisp it up a bit then you can marinade .

To dry fry, I cut up my tofu and SLOW fry it with no oil or butter on a non stick griddle or you can use a cast Iron pan. I fry it on a lower heat to get the moisture out and crisp it up. I buy mine at trader joes (extra firm) Also after you dry fry it you can do different things with it...like marinade in anything (it is tasteless so will soak up any flavor) and stir fry with veggies I like it marinaded sometimes but I will also eat it just straight from the fridge cold with hummus.

.Simple, All-purpose Tofu Marinade:

1/2 cup Braggs liquid Aminos (for a salty, smoky flavor)

Splash of rice vinegar

1/2 large sweet onion,

diced 5 cloves garlic, crushed

Water to cover

Marinade a few minutes then cook with your veggies

[/quote']

Well, we do t have Trader Joes so ill check at Whole food or new urban Kroger deli. And after you dry fry it, it gets crisp enough to eat with hummus? Sounds good

[No game 14,437]

Well' date=' we do t have Trader Joes so ill check at Whole food or new urban Kroger deli. And after you dry fry it, it gets crisp enough to eat with hummus? Sounds good[/quote']

Whole foods will definitely have it! I always buy extra firm. The silken tofus are better for blending or Soups I think...

But the firm is hearty and stands up well with frying and crumbling into recipes.

Its one of those foods you just have to experiment with!

I wonder if FYE has any yummy things she does with it???

[Georgia 2,908]

Whole foods will definitely have it! I always buy extra firm. The silken tofus are better for blending or Soups I think...

But the firm is hearty and stands up well with frying and crumbling into recipes.

Its one of those foods you just have to experiment with!

I wonder if FYE has any yummy things she does with it???

Yes, I would love to know. Hint hint

[feedyoureye 3,087]

I take a box of tofu (You can use silken, or firm for this for different results) cut into 1/2inch slices. pour all liquid off and return to box.

Take 1/2 cup of miso paste... I use the light colored brown rice variety. Mix with 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice OR 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar and 1/4th cup Water. Pour over tofu, make sure it gets in between pieces. cover. Let sit in your refer for a week or more! If you use the firm, you can gently rinse the marinade off, and crumble like feta or use in a sandwich or lettuce leaf. The flavor is sharp and cheesey. If you used the silken, wash very gently, you can mash it for a dip, or spread it on toast, or just eat it like I do. Its really a cheese replacement,if you are trying to get away from dairy, this is nice.

I also pan fry it, grill it, and smoke it (not in a pipe) Sometimes I just like it cold, dried off and sprinkled with soy sauce and a few sesame seeds. Simple and fresh on a hot day.

[clk 3,519]

We do the same thing - if you skip the step of frying first like Laura does I find the texture unpalatable for anything but Soups or salads, though. My son who will hardly eat meat at all loves tofu. I make it just marinated and baked sometimes and other times I'll fry it then cool it and bread it up and make it like a chicken parmesan. He likes that, too. His favorite way is just sticks of it lightly breaded with seasoned flour and fried with a touch of oil. He'll gobble those up by the dozen if I let him.

There's an AMAZING recipe for corn chowder by Nava Atlas - uses silken tofu instead of cream. We love it in our house. If you like tofu and seitan, buying one of Nava's cookbooks is a sound investment. We have several left over from our veg years and still use them frequently.

~Cheri

[clk 3,519]

Oh, and if you have a large supermarket near you - one with a solid "natural" or "organic" section that includes a fridge and freezer case they'll have your extra firm tofu, too.

~Cheri

[No game 14,437]

Good stuff FYE and cheri!

And yes my daughter likes tofu cold uncooked and patted dry... It's the only way she will eat it now, she will not touch it after I cook it.

Hehehe.. I told you guys I suck at cooking

[Georgia 2,908]

I take a box of tofu (You can use silken' date=' or firm for this for different results) cut into 1/2inch slices. pour all liquid off and return to box.

Take 1/2 cup of miso paste... I use the light colored brown rice variety. Mix with 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice OR 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar and 1/4th cup Water. Pour over tofu, make sure it gets in between pieces. cover. Let sit in your refer for a week or more! If you use the firm, you can gently rinse the marinade off, and crumble like feta or use in a sandwich or lettuce leaf. The flavor is sharp and cheesey. If you used the silken, wash very gently, you can mash it for a dip, or spread it on toast, or just eat it like I do. Its really a cheese replacement,if you are trying to get away from dairy, this is nice.

I also pan fry it, grill it, and smoke it (not in a pipe) Sometimes I just like it cold, dried off and sprinkled with soy sauce and a few sesame seeds. Simple and fresh on a hot day.[/quote']

Gonna try this

[Georgia 2,908]

We do the same thing - if you skip the step of frying first like Laura does I find the texture unpalatable for anything but Soups or salads' date=' though. My son who will hardly eat meat at all loves tofu. I make it just marinated and baked sometimes and other times I'll fry it then cool it and bread it up and make it like a chicken parmesan. He likes that, too. His favorite way is just sticks of it lightly breaded with seasoned flour and fried with a touch of oil. He'll gobble those up by the dozen if I let him.

There's an AMAZING recipe for corn chowder by Nava Atlas - uses silken tofu instead of cream. We love it in our house. If you like tofu and seitan, buying one of Nava's cookbooks is a sound investment. We have several left over from our veg years and still use them frequently.

~Cheri[/quote']

What do you marinade yours in?

[Georgia 2,908]

Okay, y'all have convinced me. One of my favorites at Pei Wei is Kung pow with their tofu. It is sliced thin and stir fried with the veggies and sauce and I think it tastes like potatoes. So I'm hoping I can swing something that tastes similar

[Globetrotter 1,340]

Is cauliflower really that much better for us than the carb product it is replacing? Has anyone ever tried baked greek yogurt?

[feedyoureye 3,087]

Is cauliflower really that much better for us than the carb product it is replacing? Has anyone ever tried baked greek yogurt?

Cauliflower is just higher Fiber, lower calories. Lower glycemic index...

[Globetrotter 1,340]

awesome, is it carby-crunchy satisfying?