Miss Al!ce Fields, photographer extrordinare and vegan chef, introduced me to the power of blogging!
I do my share of vegetarian/vegan cooking in my spare time, and hey, I want to share my expertise. =D
My first recipe I would like to share with you is one I made a few months after I transformed into a vegetarian. I call it Stuffed Sesame Tofurkey with Gravy. It turned out beautifully on that rainy Thanksgiving day in my sister's Walker, Louisiana residence. I was very proud. Even my 4 year old neice liked it, and she tells people straight up if she doesn't like things:
Stuffed Sesame Tofurkey with Gravy (Vegan):
Turkey/Stuffing/Basting Liquid/Gravy
-5 pounds of firm tofu
-2 tablespoons olive oil
-1 large onion, chopped fine
-4 stalks of celery, diced
-1 cup mushrooms, finely chopped
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-1 teaspoon dried sage
-2 teaspoons marjoram
-2 teaspoons thyme
-1 teaspoon winter or summer savory
-salt and pepper to taste
-1 teaspoon rosemary
-2 teaspoons celery seed
-1/4 cup soy sauce or tamari
-3 cups Pepperidge Farm Herb Stuffing
-1/2 cup toasted sesame oil
-1/3 cup soy sauce or tamari
-2 tablespoons miso (I used the powder from my tofu miso soup dry mix. I like it because it gave the gravy pieces of seaweed in it. =D)
-2 tablespoons orange juice
-1 teaspoon dijon mustard
-1 tablespoon Earth Balance Margarine
-1 tablespoon Flour
-Unused basting liquid
(I used half of the recipe for me because I was the only vegetarian there, but if you have a family to feed, make the whole thing. =D Half is quite a bit though.)
Mash tofu and place on a frying screen (one to prevent splatter when frying in pans) placed over a large bowl or your sink, and place a teatowl over it and place something very heavy on it. You are trying to get all excess moisture out by doing this. Leave it for 3 hours at least. If after 3 hours it is still not dry enough, put it in the tea towl, close and squeeze it, it'll work, but use as a last resort. Having the tofu sit at room temp. gives it a nice workable texture.
To make basting liquid:
Mix basting mixture ingredients together and set aside. (If it sits together long enough, the flavours will meld and it is best that way.)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
To make stuffing:
Heat a medium sautee pan to medium-high heat and put in oil and all the veggies except garlic. Cook for 5 minutes. Put in the rets of the ingredients except the stuffing and cook another 5 minutes. Stir in stuffing. Set aside and let cool.
To assemble Tofurkey:
Place about 2/3 of the tofu mash in a round bowl, sprayed with non-stick spray. Get a smaller bowl, press in center of tofu mash and push down. Make sure to have plenty of tofu on the sides for proper structure. Place the stuffing inside (Doesn't have to be all of it. DON'T OVERSTUFF, FOOL!). Put the remaining tofu on top and pack firmly.
Prepare a cookie sheet with non-stick spray and turn out the tofurkey. If it falls apart (which mine did), just pack the tofu around it. It's dry enough to work, so make sure it is dry.
Baste with half the basting liquid, cover with foil, and bake for 1 hour. after an hour, remove from the oven, take off foil, baste with a little more (use about half of what is left), and pop it back in the oven for another hour.
To make gravy:
In a small saucepan, heat to medium-low heat and put in margarine and flour. Stir with a wisk and let it get golden, about 7 minutes. pour in remaining basting liquid and let simmer until thick. if not thick enough, sprinkle in flour until it is. Trial and error will get you the right consistancy. Wisk constantly to prevent clumping.
---Serve and enjoy on your veg holiday!--- =D
