protein – An Exercise In Trivial Pursuits

Meatless Monday: Braised Tofu & Eggs

Posted on January 20, 2014August 23, 2014 by Chloe Happ

Hello! I hope some of you have tried my recipes! Please tell me if you do and if you have ways of improving them.

This is a modified recipe that I used a long time ago to make braised pork belly in Soy Sauce (Tau Yew Bak). I no longer eat pork but still crave that slightly caramelly taste of this sauce. Today’s recipe is essentially Vegetarian Tau Yew Bak or Tau Yew Bak no Bak. Heehee… *Tau Yew is soy sauce. Bak refers to flesh or meat (in this instance, pork).

This braising method is easy and fuss free. I’m using dark soy sauce because it produces a darker sauce though milder in taste (less salty) compared to light soy. But otherwise it’s about the same as regular soy sauce. If you don’t have dark soy, regular soy will do too. Add a total of 5 tablespoons of light soy instead. It’ll be equally salty but lighter in colour.

What I like about this modified recipe is that, it’s fast and easy to make, yet still satisfies my craving. I love braise sauces over plain steamed rice – my kind of comfort food.

Braised Tofu & Eggs (Vegetarian Tau Yew Bak)

Serves 2 -4. Prep time: 5 minutes. Cooking time: 45 minutes.

3 cups water

4 hard boiled eggs

4 garlic cloves (smashed with the back of a knife to release flavour)

4 tbsp dark soy sauce

3 tbsp light soy sauce

3 tbsp brown sugar

Salt & pepper to taste

1/2 block of tofu (cut into small rectangular pieces)

1 stick of cinnamon

2 star anise

3 cloves

Method:

1. Heat up a pot with 3 cups of water and bring to boil then lower heat.

2. Add tofu, garlic, soy sauces, brown sugar, soy sauce, cinnamon, cloves and star anise. Then stir gently to mix everything.

3. Bring to a boil then add peeled hard boiled eggs.

4. Lower the heat to medium and braise for 15 minutes.

5. Turn the heat to lowest for another 25 – 30 minutes.

6. Serve with steamed rice.

And there you have it – vegetarian tau yew bak aka braised tofu and eggs!

Meatless Mondays

Meatless Monday: Easy Baked Eggs

Posted on December 2, 2013October 31, 2013 by Chloe Happ

I was looking at ways to up T’s protein intake and I do try to vary it from soy-based products (soy meats or tofu). There’s definitely something to be said about eggs being high in cholesterol and that people are advised not to eat more than 2 egg yolks a week. However, bearing in mind that vegetarians do not eat a lot of foods that are high in cholesterol – generally meats and seafood, we are sorta in the clear – especially since T and I watch out for trans fats and avoid things like vegetable shortening or margarine.

In this recipe, you’ll see that I made 6 baked eggs in muffin cups (the cupcake baking tray), of which there are only 5 egg yolks because I had egg whites leftover from making a delicious Banana Cream Pie the day before. I ended up serving T two eggs with yolks and 1 baked egg that’s all whites for lunch. I saved the remainder in the refrigerator for another time! Convenience is great!

Easy Baked Eggs

Serves 1 to 6. Prep Time: 3 minutes. Cooking time: 15 minutes

6 eggs

Pinch of curry powder

1 tablespoon of diced tomatoes

Pinch of Black Pepper

Pinch of Paprika

Pinch of Garlic Powder

1/2 tablespoon of cooking oil (or cooking spray to grease the pan)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350degF.

2. Grease each cup. (I used a silicon brush and some Canola oil.)

3. Break eggs into muffin pan cups (use as many or as little as you want).

4. In each little cup, vary your toppings for flavour.

4. Pop the pan into the oven for 15 minutes.

5. Remove from oven and pop each egg out once they’ve cooled.

TAH DAH!

Easy peasy! Just remember that you shouldn’t have too many yolks a week if you’re watching your cholesterol intake but you should still have them because the nutritional value of eggs largely lie in the yolks!

Meatless Mondays

Meatless Monday: Quick Quick Quiche

Posted on November 25, 2013October 31, 2013 by Chloe Happ

Again, I tried to be “witty” with the title but it really is a super easy quiche that can be made quickly, especially if you do it without the crust. I’ve researched several recipes and this is my final product. It is yum and easy!!! Another one of those things I’d make if I were a busy mum. This is good refrigerated for up to 24 hours, so you can prep this in advance, then pop it into the oven to warm about 45 minutes before serving (or microwave if you’re lazy).

The quiche recipe first, followed by the super easy crust (because some people want to go low carb or make it even quicker without a crust). I swear, it tastes just as great without the crust but T insisted on a crust and I had to learn to make one quickly. It works and I’ll continue working with it (and improving it along the way).

Quick Quick Quiche (Spinach & mushroom)

Serves 4 to 6. Prep Time: 5 minutes. Cooking time: 1 hour.

3 cups frozen spinach

1 cup chopped onions

1 cup sliced mushroom (I used fresh button mushrooms but you can get the tinned ones too)

1 tablespoon cooking oil

4 oz cream cheese

1 cup shredded cheddar

1/2 tablespoon salt

1/2 tablespoon black pepper

5 eggs beaten

1 cup milk

1/2 tablespoon paprika

Method:

1. Heat up 1 tablespoon of cooking oil to cook the spinach, mushroom and onions. Put aside to cool.

2. If you’re using a crust, scoop cream cheese onto the bottom of the pie crust, then top with the cooked spinach, mushrooms and onions. (If not, mix in pinched dollops of the cream cheese after you pour in the egg custard in step 4).

3. Beat eggs, mix in shredded cheese, milk, salt, black pepper and paprika in a bowl.

4. Pour custard mixture into the crust or pie pan. Then cover the pan with aluminium foil.

5. Bake in a preheated oven at 400f for 30 minutes then remove the aluminium foil and bake again for another 10 – 15 minutes. This is to prevent the top from becoming too brown. Also, I put a tray at the bottom of the pan, just in case it spilled over. It actually made it a lot easier for me to carry the glass pan in and out of the oven.

6. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Simplest Cheesy Pie Crust

Prep time: 35 minutes (including 30 minutes refrigerating) Cook time: 10 minutes

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

6 tablespoons butter, cut int small pieces

1/4 cup shredded cheddar

2 tablespoons cold water (I used tap)

Method:

1. Mix flour and chopped butter by rubbing them until crumbly. I used my hands to mush mush mush!

2. Pour in grated cheddar and sprinkle water over mixture. Stir slowly with fork until a ball forms.

3. Refrigerate dough in plastic wrap for at least 30 minutes (I made mine in the morning and left it till late afternoon)

4. Preheat oven to 375f.

5. Roll out dough and spread over pie pan (I have just 1 rectangle Pyrex pan that I use for EVERYTHING because I’m not fancy). Using my fingers, I pressed the dough into the pan’s bottom and sides after I lightly grease it with cooking oil using a silicon brush. I reckon it’s rustic!

6. Poke holes at the bottom of the pastry with a fork before popping into oven.

7. Bake crust for 10 minutes before filling with quiche custard (I spread cream cheese before pouring the mixture).

TAH DAH!

I served this for dinner with a batch of Marie Callendar’s cheese biscuits when T’s Dad and Step Mom came to stay with us for the wedding weekend. It was warm, home cooked and happy food. There was more than enough for the 4 of us!

As you can tell, my cooking is not exactly sophisticated or trained but it certainly isn’t instant or frozen foods all the time. It’s the same as my fashion philosophy. I make the best of what I have and have fun with it. I’m not a fashion lookbook and neither am I the “perfect” size to be talking about fashion. I’m not your grandmother and I’m never going to be a trained chef. But who cares? If I can do it, so can you!

Meatless Mondays

Meatless Monday: Tofu Omelette

Posted on October 7, 2013October 8, 2013 by Chloe Happ

This is a power protein dish – to me.

It’s not everyday that I feed T so much for breakfast – we usually have soy milk, cereal and yoghurt. But because I was giving him less for lunch on this particular day, I thought I should help him load up a little bit more. Also, we had a conversation a few days ago about vegetarians getting enough protein fuel through different foods. He’s a big guy and he thinks he hasn’t been eating enough protein for his weight.

So anyway, if you don’t eat meat, what are your sources of vegetarian protein? Not all protein need to be from animal flesh. Did you know that whole grains like quinoa, whole grain bread and brown rice are great for protein. Also, beans, nuts, soy, nuts and eggs!

This high protein recipe for tofu omelette is quick and easy to make. I served it with a side of steamed spinach and a grilled cheese sandwich for a power-packed breakfast! You can eat it any time of the day too!

Tofu Omelette

Serves 1. Prep Time: 2 minutes. Cooking time: 5 minutes.

2 large eggs

3 tablespoons worth of chopped spring onions

1 tablespoon of vegetarian oyster sauce (mushroom flavoured)

1 cup of mashed silken tofu (about half a normal brick and mashed crudely with a fork)

1 tablespoon of cooking oil (or a small pat of butter)

Method:

1. Mix oyster sauce, 2 tablespoons of chopped spring onions and 2 large eggs in a bowl.

2. Heat up cooking oil in pan.

3. Pour egg mixture into pan and turn heat up on high.

4. Spread the mashed tofu over the egg mixture immediately.

5. Take a lid and cover your pan. Then turn heat down to medium for 30 seconds.

6. When the edges cook and become firm (you can test by trying to lift the omelette), fold the omelette in half (some of the tofu will spill but it doesn’t matter).

7. Turn off the heat and cover your pan with a lid for 1 minute.

8. Serve hot with a sprinkle of the remaining chopped spring onions.

TAH DAH!!! Easy peasy!!!

If you only eat egg whites (that’s where most of the protein come from anyway), then instead of 2 large eggs, use 3 egg whites. Feel free to add pepper to taste but I don’t think salt is necessary as the oyster sauce is quite salty as it is.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: