Molten Tofu: Another Vancouver Next Time

There were so many things we wanted to do in Vancouver and unfortunately, time was limited. We had so many adventures but there are so many more left .. like hiking through Indian Arm Provincial Park, visiting Vancouver island, camping .. and sampling food and drink from places we just couldn't squeeze into our adventure-packed days: drinks at Alibi Room (too big a line-up from when tried), coffee from  Elysian (we always had our mugs full of Matchstick brew when we biked past this place), vegan goodies from Edible Flours, (closed for a vacation when we got there) and a chilled-out dinner at The Foundation.

I really have no excuse for not eating at The Foundation since it was on our way home. But despite my perusing the menu a couple nights while we were there, it just never happened. At one point, I even picked out what I was going to order. Hands down, I had to have the molten tofu, described as "brown and spicy brokly and tofu served on rice." The picture of it, also looked delicious -- comforting and filling. So when we got back to Toronto, and I needed a bit of tofu love to soak up all that excess coffee, I thought I'd make my own version of molten tofu.

It was quite a task at first, seeing as it's kind of hard to re-create something you've never tasted, but a little googling led be to Johnny Hetherington's website (lead vocals in the Canadian band Art of Dying) where he describes making his version of molten tofu -- veggies, fried tofu and a rich, spicy peanut sauce. Awesome!

I'm not too big a fan of hot sauces like tobasco or sriracha, so I don't keep any in the house. Instead, I heated my peanut sauce with lots of fresh ginger and pinch of hot smoked paprika. Other usual suspects go into the mix -- dark soy, light soy, a touch of toasted sesame oil and a big squirt of lime juice. After that, it was just a question of mixing the sauce with the veggies and tofu and eating it up over rice.

This version of molten tofu satisfied me, but I'm still putting The Foundation on my list for our next visit to Vancouver.

Molten Tofu Rice Bowl
inspired by The Foundation, with help from Johnny Hetherington 

For the Sauce:
2 tablespoon of natural peanut butter
juice of a lime
2 teaspoons of finely chopped ginger
pinch of salt and pepper
pinch of hot smoked paprika
1 teaspoon each of dark soy and light soy
1/4 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil

1. To make the sauce, simply whisk all the ingredients together. Taste, and add more lime juice or seasonings as needed. Add in a squirt of hot sauce if that's your thing.

For the Bowl
1/2 cup of brown rice
1 cup of water or stock
1/2 small head of broccoli, chopped into florets
6 oz of tofu, cut into cubes
a big handful of baby spinach leaves
a few good grinds of black pepper
splash of water
2-3 basil leaves, chopped (I used beautiful purple basil)

1. In a small pot, add the rice and water or stock. Bring it up to a boil, stir gently, then turn down the heat and cook uncovered for about 10 minutes.

2. Add the broccoli to steam with the rice. Replace the lid and cook for an additional 10 minutes. The brocoli and rice should be tender and the water should all be absorbed. Separate the broccoli from the rice and set aside.

3. In a pan, heat a bit of olive oil, then fry the tofu for about 2-3 minutes on each side, until they get nice and brown. Add the pepper and the peanut sauce and stir well.

4. Add in the broccoli and spinach leaves. Stir gently until the spinach wilts. You may need to add a splash of water to help it along.

5. Divide your rice among two bowls and top of the molten tofu mixture. Enjoy!

Some Spice and a Unique Gift

I've mentioned on more than one occasion that the best gifts in the world are the ones that we make ourselves. It's pretty awesome to bake up a batch of cookies or whip up some homemade chocolate hazelnut spread, put a bow on it and give it to someone you love.

It's also pretty awesome to be on the receiving end of some homemade goodies. I received a very unique homemade gift just this weekend. In between breakfast, coffee, girl talk and lots of giggles, my friend pulled out a package for me. "I made you curried lentils," she said, and followed that with "I also put together all the ingredients you'll need to make a full batch." Isn't that awesome! Not only did I get a container of thick, rich, spicy lentil curry, but I also got a goody bag filled with red lentils, a tomato, an onion, tons of garlic, and a little packet filled with the curry paste and spices. It totally solved my dinner problems -- especially today with the rainy spurt that we're having. It was great to tuck into a spicy, tomato-y bowl of comfort.

When I heated up the "sample" I got, I added a little extra water, stirred in a handful of spinach and ate it as is -- like a thick stew. It needed nothing else. When we actually made the full recipe, we snuck in some cauliflower in the end for a little extra veggie love, and had it over bowls of brown rice. Delicious both ways! This curry is spicy, but not so spicy as to leave you sweating. It's got a flavour kick from both curry paste and powder, and so you know that it'll be tasty.

This recipe comes together in a snap, thanks to the quick-cooking red lentils, and was stress-free to make, even on a Monday night when I got home later than usual, soaked to the skin from the downpour outside. this recipe makes a nice big pot, so if you're like us with only two in your family, you'll have plenty of leftovers to last you the week.

If you're craving little weeknight spice and want to share the love with some friends, give this recipe a go. While you're waiting for a it to cook, grab a couple zip lock bags, toss these pantry staples together and give someone the amazing gift of a stress free supper.

Red Lentil Curry
adapted from allrecipes via TodayisBananas

1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons of curry paste
1 tablespoon of curry powder
1 teaspoon of tumeric
1 teaspoon of cumin
1 teaspoon of chili powder
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 large tomato diced
3-4 cups of water, vegetable broth or tomato juice (alternately you could just use a can of crushed tomatoes)
2 cups of red lentils, rinsed well
Optional add-ins: half a head of cauliflower cut into florets, a few handfuls of baby spinach

1. In a large pot, sweat the onions and garlic in the olive oil over medium low heat until things get soft, fragrant and translucent -- about 3 minutes

2. Add in the curry paste, and all the spices, plus the salt and sugar. Stir well.

3. Add in the tomato, liquids, lentils and turn up the heat. Stir well.

4. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until the lentils are tender, but not falling apart. You may need to add extra liquid if things get too dry.


If you're add the cauliflower, add it now -- bury the florets in the bottom and let them hang out there for about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let it sit for another five minutes. If you're adding the spinach, now is the time. Stir them in gently to wilt.

5. Serve -- rice is awesome with it, obviously, but so would some nice whole wheat flat bread.