Meatless Monday - Buffalo Tofu Po-Boys

Here in the Panhandle, everyone is gearing up for the Mardi Gras season, so I thought this week we'd focus on Mardi Gras on the blog!  Before I moved here, I thought Mardi Gras was only celebrated in New Orleans, but there are actually some great family friendly activities all along the Gulf Coast!

One of the great things about Mardi Gras is all of the wonderful food.  This is the only time of year you can buy King Cakes everywhere, and traditional foods such as Po-Boys abound.  This Tofu Po-Boy is super-easy to make, and one of my favorite ways to have tofu.

Buffalo Tofu Po-Boys

1. Press 1/2 of a package of tofu for at least 30 minutes.
2. Cut tofu into strips.  Put into a glass dish and coat tofu blocks with Bragg's.
3. Bake tofu blocks at 350 for about 30 minutes - I sometimes cook longer because I like mine to get rather crispy.  Turn after 15 minutes.
4. Coat tofu with your favorite Buffalo Wing sauce, or make your own sauce with Frank's Red Hot and butter.  
5. Cook tofu another 10-20 minutes.  
6. While the tofu is cooking, saute some mushrooms, onion, and bell pepper.
7. Pile tofu and sauteed vegetables onto some good quality french bread.  Add lettuce if you'd like, and enjoy!  I serve mine with oven-baked fries.  

CSA Cooking - Mushroom, Spinach, and Barley Soup

Malabar Spinach actually isn’t spinach at all. Although its taste is similar to spinach, it tolerates heat much more, so it’s easier to grow in the Southern states during the warm months of summer. It’s fast growing, which is another added benefit. It is high in Vitamins A and C, iron, protein, and calcium. Like okra, it has mucilaginous properties, giving it high fiber content. This, combined with the fact that it stands up to heat better than spinach, makes it a great thickener for soups and stir fries. I found it to not be nearly as “slimy” as okra, and really enjoyed it in this soup! I like that you can put it in the hot water and it doesn’t immediately wilt, as spinach does.

I was planning on making this in the slow cooker, but had a power outage that interfered. Despite that, the soup turned out amazingly good.

Mushroom, Barley, and Spinach Soup

Ingredients:

• · ½ sweet onion, chopped

• · 8 oz sliced mushrooms (I used baby bellas)

• · 2 cloves garlic

• · One package Lipton soup mix (I used mushroom and onion)

• · ½ cup barley, rinsed

• · Handful of shredded carrots

• · 4-8 oz Malabar spinach (or regular spinach), sliced

• · 1 tsp balsamic vinegar

• · 1 bay leaf

Instructions:

1. Put barley, soup mix, bay leaf, and 4 cups of water in slow cooker set on low.
2. Once barley has softened (about 3 hours), sauté onions until browned, then add mushrooms and garlic and cook until their liquids are released. Add carrots and cook a little longer.
3. Transfer vegetables to slow cooker, adding additional water if needed.
4. Add sliced Malabar spinach and vinegar. If using plain spinach, do not add until right before serving.
5. Cook for 1-2 more hours, until ready to serve.

The beauty of this recipe is that you can really add as many or as few vegetables as you would like. The barley makes it very hearty, and the soup mix gives it depth of flavor with little effort on your part. If you want a little spice, add one sliced jalapeno in at the very beginning.