Tofu & Soba: A Ladies' dinner

About 6 years ago, while I was in Australia, I fell in love with tofu. I don't remember why I decided to pick it up at Coles in Bondi, but I did.
In my single life, tofu was one of my staples. With my late nights out,went my tofu....although I am sure a lot of men like it, my bet is that most don't....My good friend, Talia, and I made dinner on Tuesday night. It was healthy, Asian and vegetarian.

Mint and Scallion Soba Noodles- Sarah Moulton, Gourmet
Makes 6 servings

12 oz dried soba noodles (Japanese buckwheat noodles)
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar (not seasoned)
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/4 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped mint
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced scallions (1 1/2 bunches)

Cook noodles in a large pot of boiling noodles until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking and drain well. While noodles are cooking, stir together vinegar, oil, soy sauce, sugar and salt until sugar is dissolved. Toss noodles with dressing, mint and scallions.

This was my first time using soba noodles, they have a very unique taste. They mix so well with the ingredients in this recipe to make a perfectly healthy side dish that can be made easily in advance and thrown in the fridge. The soba noodles would make a great side dish to my tequila lime chicken for a summer bbq. This recipe will be a staple in my house.

Ginger-Sesame Grilled Tofu (Cooking Light Magazine, Aug 05)
Serves 4

1 lb reduced fat, firm tofu steaks ( I like Nasoya brand)
2/3 cup ginger sesame vinaigrette (see below for recipe)
1 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
8 lime slices

1. Place tofu between paper towels and cover with cans to make water come out. This is a must when working with tofu, so the water comes out and the marinade clings to the tofu better. Let stand for 20 minutes, pressing down occasionally. Combine ginger sesame vinaigrette, soy sauce and cilantro. Remove 1/4 cup of cilantro marinade and set aside. Pour the rest of the marinade over tofu in a 13 x 9 baking dish, cover and marinate for 30 minutes, turning occasionally.

2. Prepare grill (or grill pan in my case!) to medium high heat

3. Add lime slices to marinade. Grill tofu and limes on both sides for 2 minutes each and baste frequently.

Calories: 307 , Fat: 9.3 g, Protein 16.3 g, fiber 4.8 g

Ginger-Sesame Vinaigrette

1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup yellow miso paste
1/4 cup chopped green onions (shallots in Canada)
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp fresh ginger
2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
4 tsp canola oil
2 tsp dark sesame oil

Combine first 2 ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring with a whish until smooth. Stir in green onions and the remaining ingredients. This yields 1 1/3 cups. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days, stir well before using.

This recipe is high maintenance cause of the making of the vinaigrette and the marinating. I would recommend making the vinaigrette in advance.

Enjoy!