Let me just take a moment to wax poetic about vegetables.
I spent last week away for spring break, taking some much-needed space from papers and statistics and grading to sit on a beach, swim, read, and otherwise just not be at school. This was amazing, and I absolutely loved Mexico-~-but what I did not love was the serious lack of produce in my life! Because of concerns about water quality, I had to avoid a lot of raw fruits and veggies (a shame because at home I eat LOTS of fruit), and the restaurants I ate at had very few veggies on the menu, cooked or otherwise.
So this week, it’s time to detox a little bit, and get those fruits and vegetables back in my system. I’m so happy that it’s finally starting to be peach/nectarine season again-~-stone fruits are my favorites and spring/summer are when they are in season. Seasonal produce like corn, and bigger eggplants, are also starting to show up in my supermarket. It’s also time to start breaking out some fun springtime recipes, like this spring veggie pasta carbonara, this five-ingredient green curry with tofu, or this lemon chicken with asparagus. This week’s meal plan includes chicken with peas and mint, shrimp and asparagus carbonara, and veggie quesadillas. It also features this crispy tofu and broccoli in sesame-peanut pesto recipe, from Deb Perelman’s Smitten Kitchen Everyday cookbook.
I LOVE Smitten Kitchen and Deb Perelman’s recipes. There’s a reason I referenced her in my post on recipe sources. A few favorites include her zucchini fritters, shakshuka, and shaved asparagus pizza. My sister got me both of her cookbooks for the holidays, and I was so excited-~-I have combed both cookbooks and flagged a BUNCH of recipes that I really want to try out. Pretty much everything I have made from Smitten Kitchen has been great (except for the chicken meatballs, which I overcooked horribly, a fact which cannot be blamed on Deb Perelman’s recipe).
Anyway, as part of our detox, I decided to test drive this recipe and I was not disappointed. Broccoli, crispy tofu, and a delicious sesame-peanut pesto set this up for a new household favorite; it’s easy enough to make on a weeknight but it’s not remotely boring-~-exactly my favorite kind of recipe.
Just remember to start by draining the tofu so that it will actually crisp up!
I will note that with this recipe, I did have to bake the tofu a little bit longer than expected. I don’t know if that’s an issue with my oven (my stove is tilted so things sometimes bake really unevenly), or if I didn’t dry out the tofu enough, or what happened, but know that even if that does happen, the recipe still turned out really well.
The sesame peanut pesto is what makes this dish though. I loved how easy it was to pull this together. As with so many recipes, I had to use my blender instead of a food processor, but it worked out fine. The flavors in this recipe work really well together and I was surprised at how quickly I was able to make it.
My roommate and I are big tofu fans, and this will definitely be going on our list of recipes to make again. We’re trying to power through a six-pack of tofu blocks from Costco, so over the next few weeks, there will definitely be plenty of tofu on the menu.
Like I said before, the only hiccup with this recipe was that the tofu didn’t crisp up as quickly as I had hoped; I cooked it for about 27 minutes instead of just 20. But at the end of it, the tofu turned out great, so if this takes a little longer for you to cook, hang in there: it’ll be worth it.
Ingredients
For the tofu and broccoli:
1 block (12- to 15-oz) firm or extra-firm tofu
1 pound broccoli
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
1 tablespoon cornstarch
for the pesto:
1 tablespoon toasted (or not) sesame seeds
1/4 cup peanuts, roasted (salted are fine)
1.5 tsp minced fresh ginger
1 small garlic clove
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/4 teaspoon sugar or other sweetener
to finish:
3 scallions, thinly sliced
chili-garlic or other hot sauce
Instructions
Prepare the tofu: Drain the tofu, and place it on a few paper towels; place a few more towels over it. Place a heavy object—like a big frying pan—over the tofu, and let it rest for 10 minutes (and up to 30 , if you have the time) to press out the excess liquid. (I like to do this on a cooling rack set over a pan, see photos below).
Heat the oven to 400ºF. Line one rimmed sheet pan with parchment (for the tofu); leave another one bare (for the broccoli).
Prepare the broccoli: Trim and chop the broccoli into florets. Don’t discard the stems (they are so good!): peel off the tough outer skin and knots, then cut the stems into 1/2-inch rounds. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the oil over the bare sheet pan, swirl it to coat, scatter the broccoli over top, drizzle with another tablespoon of oil, season generously with salt and pepper, and toss to coat with your hands. Spread into an even layer.
Remove the tofu from the towels, and cut into 1-inch cubes. In a large bowl, gently toss the tofu with the remaining tablespoon of oil, the soy sauce, and the cornstarch until evenly coated. Spread out on the parchment-line sheet pan.
Cook the tofu and broccoli: Place both sheet pans in the oven and roast for 20 minutes, then toss the pieces around for even coloring and roast another 10 minutes. At this point, the tofu is usually done, which is to say golden at the edges and lightly crisp. Remove the pan from the oven. If necessary, roast the broccoli for another 10 minutes to get an extra char on it.
Meanwhile make the pesto: Pulse all of the ingredients together in a food processor until ground. Adjust the flavors to taste. If the sauce is super thick, you can thin it with some water.
To finish: In a large bowl, combine the broccoli and tofu, and toss with some of the sauce. Garnish with the scallions. Serve extra sauce and hot sauce, if using, on the side.
***All credit for this recipe goes to Deb Perelman at Smitten Kitchen***
Grad School Girl Eats 