Garlic Tofu Sandwich

One of my fonder memories of the Northwest is eating at Paseos in Seattle. It is an amazing place to eat and definitely worth standing in the line that almost always pours out onto the sidewalk. I always enjoyed eating their tofu sandwich. It is a relatively simple sandwich consisting of tofu, caramelized onions, some romaine and a good slathering of their garlic mayonnaise but the flavor is immense.


This recipe is similar to Paseos but could use some work to get closer to their flavor. For starters, I chose not to go with the garlic mayonnaise spread, but a replica of this spread can be found here for those interested. Call me a hypocrite but while I may indulge in mayonnaise at Paseos, making it and seeing what goes in it is less than appetizing for me. However,  I would recommend trying this recipe with a product like, Vegenaise. Unfortunately I don't have access to such a substitution so I opted for a non-eggy condiment instead making more of an oil sauce:

Makes Two Sandwiches


The Bread:
A fresh baguette sliced in half
or a Pita Pocket
or your other favorite type of chewy bread


The Dressing:
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
1/2 block of tofu, cubed
5 cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons of lime juice
1/2 Tablespoon of relish (optional)
1 Teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
2 pinches of salt, or to taste
2 Turns of Pepper, or to taste


The Innards: 
Caramelized onions (about 2 medium onions)
Romaine Lettuce, Fresh OR Kale, lightly steamed


Instructions for making the dressing:


In a medium size bowl, toss cubed tofu with oil, minced garlic, salt, pepper, lime juice, relish and crushed red pepper flakes.


Then pour concoction into a small oven safe bowl. Cover with lid, and roast at 425 for 40 mins.
Spoon tofu onto the bread, making sure to drizzle the excess dressing onto the bread.


Pile on a good dose of caramelized onions and top with the green of your choice.

Pita Bread

Every now and then we have the tendency to think that any recipe involving flour will be an ordeal and not worth making for the everyday occasion. Of course some recipes are impractical to whip up for lunch, many bread recipes require a minimum of two days of preparation. Even good pizza dough falls into this category. Fortunately there are breads that can be made quickly. This pita bread recipe only requires a 30 minute rise, making it the perfect recipe if you don't have a lot of time. It is an extraordinarily simple recipe and fun to make. It is perfectly well suited for those days when you just don't feel like taking a bike ride to the bakery or making a loaf of bread yourself. I like to celebrate pita bread's versatility and sometime use it outside of the hummus/falafel circuit. Why not wrap up a veggie dog in it? Or even make a pocket of peanut butter and jelly? Today I ate my pita with black beans, cheese and salsa, but tomorrow why not try stuffing it with a spicy garlic tofu mix (like Seattle's Paseo wonderful sandwich)? On thing is clear, this is a bit more versatile than your basic sandwich loaf.

The Recipe:

1 tablespoon Instant Yeast
1 ¼ cup warm water (about 100 degrees F)
1 teaspoon of salt
2 cups of Bread Flour (or all purpose flour, unbleached)

1 cup of Whole Wheat Flour (or white flour if desired)

Dissolve yeast in water for about 5 minutes in the bowl of an electric mixer. 

Add salt and 1 cup of the white flour and 1 cup of the wheat flour and mix with the dough hook. Then slowly add additional AP flour until a rough, shaggy mass is formed. Continue to knead with the dough hook or by hand for about 8 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic. Feel free to use enough flour as it takes to achieve a tacky, not sticky, dough.  

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into six pieces for large pitas or ten for smaller. Shape dough into balls, then flatten with a rolling pin into ¼ inch thick discs. Try to make the thickness as even as possible. 

Let rest on the floured surface 30-40 minutes, they will slightly puff. Meanwhile Preheat oven to 425F.

With a large spatula or dough knife/paddle, flip the rounds of dough upside down on to a baking sheet. Bake 10-15 minutes until light golden. 

These store for up to two days well wrapped or frozen for three weeks.

Adapted from under the highchair

Stuffed with black beans, salsa, and cheese, burrito style.

Pizza Tourism

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to speak at a conference at Yale University which meant a trip down to New Haven, CT. Now while the trip was mostly business, my friends and I had intended to make this trip a pizza tasting trip. We had hopes of eating pizza all weekend. Unfortunately we only had the chance to eat at one of New Haven's classic pizzerias. We chose to go to Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana (The Spot location) or better known as Pepes Pizzeria.

Now what is interesting about Pepes is that it is known for originating the New Haven style pizza. While it is similar to Napoletana style pizza it has its own specific qualities because it is baked in a coal fired brick oven. Since Pepes opened in 1925 other pizza places have opened and serve this style pizza, even New Haven's BAR serves a similar pie. Next time I visit, I plan on checking out Sally's Apizza which is also said to serve some amazing pizza.

We left late, just after closing.

White Spinach, Mushroom & Gorgonzola Pie

Margherita Pie

Reinhart Cinnamon-Raisin Bagels in Montreal

      New York or Montreal? While the debate over which city has the best bagels persists, I suggest that you just make your own. Whatever happens it will taste great and if it doesn't live up to your expectations then try again after tweaking your recipe a bit. 
      A few weeks ago while showing a guest around Montreal we stepped into Fairmount Bagels. It wasn't my first time there, but this was the first time we picked up a bag of freshly baked bagels. Biting into a cinnamon-raisin bagel hot out of a wood fired oven while walking around in 10˚F weather did just the trick to rekindle my interest in bagels. Of course to indulge in a fresh bagel is not always a possibility or convenient, so why not try making them at home?
      Like a lot of other types of bread recipes this one involves a two day process or could possibly be condensed into one long day. Peter Reinhart, the author of this recipe, stresses the importance of the delayed fermentation to allow the bread to develop more complex flavors and cannot be recommended enough. 

Portland Poutine

       Before we came to the poutine capital of the world we first experienced poutine at a Portland food cart. Over the past couple years, we have tasted some fine poutine in Montreal, specifically La Banquise, yet Hollin will argue that the Portland food cart Potato Champion beats all. Potato Champion does Portlandize Quebec's traditional dish. Their gravy is vegetarian and there is even a vegan option (made with faux cheese curds). Vegetarian poutine is the furthest I have seen Canadians venture. Naturally we were excited to find Potato Champion's gravy recipe. 

I hesitate to recommend eating poutine - Fries, gravy and cheese curds does not exactly fit with the Eating for the Rest of Us motto of healthy living. So eat in moderation! The upside to making your own poutine is that you can moderate what goes into your gravy. 


See Hollin whip up some poutine on a Saturday night in the video below: 

Mango Quinoa Pudding

      It may not be the most highly regarded dessert joint, but I came to really enjoy Pudding on the Rice when we lived n Portland. Novelty perhaps but there was something very satisfying about the colorful and wonderfully sticky globs of rice that your average cup of topped frozen yogurt couldn't compete with. I have to believe this has something to do with rice pudding's certain affinity to comfort food, but a dessert comfort food. 
      As with most comfort food, rice pudding does not rate highly on the nutritional scale. But what if that white rice was switched out with a very healthy grain instead and milk was exchanged for say almond or coconut milk? In keeping with our dietary restrictions this month Hollin prepared a sugar free, gluten free, vegan dessert that really hit the spot for me - my rice pudding spot. Mango is always a great pair with coconut milk but I have to wonder what other fruits might be equally delicious to try in this recipe. 

Field Trip: San Francisco

   This past summer, we had the opportunity to visit some friends in San Francisco. Because Tartine Bakery is located in San Francisco I was especially thrilled to make this trip. Last spring I was gifted the Tartine Bread book and ever since I have desperately desired to make this bread. I've had some issues and have not completely been successful, but I was pleased to find out that the flavor that I achieved at home was similar to Tartine's own bread. If you are ever in the San Francisco area, I can't recommend Tartine enough. The croissants alone are reason enough to visit. While the staff may not be the friendliest and you will most likely have to wait in a long line that goes out the door, you'll forget about all this once you're biting into the flakiest croissant you've ever had or what I feel is simply the best bread ever produced. 

   A note about the bread. If you do plan on picking one up, you will need to know that the bread comes out of the oven at 5pm. It is said by the staff that they do run out from time to time, so be early or pre-order a loaf (or three). I highly recommend the rosemary olive bread. Don't let the $7 dollar loaf shy you away, it's a large loaf and completely worth it.