Recipes: Vegetables with Tofu and Grains, Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Vegetables with Tofu and Grains

Serves 4.

Note: If you use potatoes, sweet potatoes or yams as a fresh vegetable, they need to be precooked.

Grain:

• 2 c. cooked grains of choice (such as brown rice, barley, wild rice, quinoa, millet, couscous or white rice, prepared according to pkg. directions, and for best flavor using half water and half stock

Vegetable and tofu:

• 1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 2 c. chopped fresh mushrooms (shiitake are very good)

• 2 bell peppers, red, orange or yellow, chopped

• 1 small serrano chile pepper, minced, optional

• 1 lb. chopped fresh seasonal vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach, kale, yellow or green zucchini, see Note

• 1 pkg. firm tofu, chopped

Sauce:

• 1/4 c. rice vinegar

• 1/4 c. Bragg's liquid aminos (or substitute tamari sauce or low-sodium soy sauce)

• 2 tbsp. dark toasted sesame oil

• 1/2 c. raw, unsalted cashews or black sesame seeds, for garnish

Prepare grains according to package directions. Heat 1 tablespoon sesame oil in a large skillet or a wok over medium high heat. Add onion, garlic, and mushrooms and cook for 3 to 5 minutes.

Add peppers, vegetables, and tofu and cook an additional 5 to 7 minutes. The vegetables should be a bright color. Turn off the heat and cover the pan with a lid.

In a small bowl whisk together the rice vinegar, Bragg's liquid aminos and sesame oil. Season to taste with more oil, vinegar or Bragg's. Pour the sauce over vegetables and tofu and toss.

Fluff the grains with a fork, scoop a half-cup on a serving plate and top with a generous serving of vegetables and tofu. Sprinkle with cashews or black sesame seeds.

Nutrition information per serving:

Calories 736

Carbohydrates 95 g

Protein 30 g

Fat 30 g

including sat. fat 5 g

Cholesterol 0 mg

Sodium 674 mg

Calcium 280 mg

Dietary fiber 13 g

Diabetic exchanges per serving: 1 vegetable exch., 6 bread/ starch exch., and 6 fat exch.

Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Makes 2 cups.

This sauce is delicious as a dipping sauce or sandwich spread, over a bowl of brown rice or with fish and chicken. You can find miso in a market's refrigerated section near the tofu or in the Asian food section.

• 3 red bell peppers, seeded and cut into large chunks

• 3 to 4 cloves garlic, peeled

• 2 tsp. olive oil

• 3 tbsp. light miso

• 2 tsp. rice vinegar, preferably brown rice vinegar

• 1/2 cup tahini (or other nut butters such as macadamia or hazelnut)

• 1/4 c. olive oil or flax seed oil

• 1 c. vegetable broth

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Brush peppers and garlic with the olive oil. In a roasting pan or on a cookie sheet lined with foil, roast the peppers and garlic for 15 to 20 minutes.

Transfer the peppers and garlic to a food processor and puree until smooth. Add light miso, rice vinegar, tahini and oil and process. . Scrape sides and bottom of processor bowl; add half of broth and process until smooth. Add more broth until desired consistency.

Nutrition information per serving:

Calories 91

Carbohydrates 4 g

Protein 2 g

Fat 8 g

including sat. fat 1 g

Cholesterol 0 mg

Sodium 188 mg

Calcium 37 mg

Dietary fiber 1 g

Diabetic exchanges per serving: 1 vegetable exch. and 1 1/2 fat exch.