Mango-Ginger Tofu Delight

Last night for dinner I decided to make this recipe. I got it out of one of my favorite cookbooks, Vegan With A Vengeance and modified it to meet the needs of our family. For instance, the recipe calls for a jalapeno, but that kind of heat doesn't work too well with a 4 and 2yr. old! It is one of my favorite meals...oh and my two boys love it too. You're going to want to press the tofu to get all the extra water out of it. I like to wrap the tofu in cheesecloth or paper towels, put it between two plates, then put a big book on top. This seems to work pretty well.



Once the tofu is pressed, to get the isosceles triangles cut the tofu into eighths (Cut tofu block in half, then cut each half in half, then each piece in half again...I hope that makes sense!). Then simply cut each piece along the diagonal to get a triangle! Viola! :)

If I think about it ahead of time I like to marinate the tofu overnight, but sometimes my day is just too crazy and the last thing I want to do after I put the boys to bed is make another dish. So, chilling the tofu for at least an hour before dinner works too. I like to serve it with steamed broccoli and brown rice, but you can use any side or rice of your liking. Sauteed chard or kale would be good too.

Ingredients:

For the Marinade:
*2tsp. peanut oil
*3 cloves garlic
*1/4C fresh ginger, chopped (Or, I buy the jar of chopped ginger and use 2Tbl.)
*2 large mangoes, peeled and coarsely chopped
*1/4C maple syrup
*1C white cooking wine or vegetable broth
*2Tbl. rice vinegar,apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar
*Juice of 2 limes
*1C orange juice
*1/4 tsp. ground allspice
*Salt and pepper to taste
*1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped (optional)


For the Tofu:
*2lbs. extra-firm tofu, drained and pressed cut into isosceles triangles
*1 mango, peeled and sliced into thin slices
*1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into long, thin slices



Directions:

Make the Marinade:
1. Preheat a medium sized saucepan over medium heat.
2. Combine the oil, garlic, ginger, and jalapeno if using, and saute' for 5min., being careful not to burn the garlic.
3. Add the chopped mango and saute' for 5 more minutes
4. Add the maple syrup and wine, cover and simmer for 35minutes. Uncover and simmer for 5 more minutes.
5. Add the vinegar, lime juice, orange juice, allspice, pepper, and salt; let cool, then transfer mixture to a blender and puree until smooth. Or, I use my immersion blender to puree it and it works great!
6. Place the prepared tofu in the marinade in a sealable plastic bag or lidded Tupperware container. Marinate for at least as hour or overnight.


Bake the Tofu:
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Reserve about half the marinade. Lay the marinated tofu in a single layer in a large rimmed baking sheet/pan and bake for 20 minutes.
3. Flip over the tofu and add more marinade.
4. Coat the peppers and mango slices in the remaining marinade and add them to the pan. Bake another 15 minutes.



5. Serve over rice with a vegetable side of your choice! Enjoy!