Sweet, Sour and Spicy Tofu - variation

Originally use this recipe c2012.  I made it again, with a few variations shown here. Originally designed to serve with rice, but I chose to serve it on a bed of quinoa and steamed kale.  The recipe here serves 4. The nutrition analysis is for 1 serving including the quinoa and bed of 1.25 cups of steamed kale.

Prep - Tofu
Drain 14 oz brick of tofu.
Cut into cubes.

Prep - Quinoa
Rinse 1/2 cup quinoa
Cook per instructions until fluffy

Saute until browned - about 10-15 minutes; stir occasionally. Put in a bowl and set aside when done.
1 Tbsp olive oil
Cubes of tofu.


Saute
1 Onion, chopped

Add and continue saute, stir this up and mix in the spices
3 garlic cloves, minced or canned
1 tsp ginger root, minced or canned1/3 cup  dried apricots, chopped small
3 dates, chopped up
2 tsp curry powder

Return Tofu and mix up with the spices and onion.
Add and simmer until liquid is absorbed - about 15 minutes or so
1 1/2 cups  water

2 Tbps  balsamic vinegar

Serve on bed of quinoa and 1.25 cups steamed kale.

Rated a 4.75 on Kale Scale.

Farro Kale with Fruit and Walnuts

This side dish was delicious!  I hadn't used Farro before - one of those ancient grains. Looks like it can replace rice in dishes. I took the option to soak the farro overnight, drain. And then simmer in enough water to cover it for 10-15 minutes. Drain again and it's ready to be used. 1 cup makes about 2 cups.  I was using Farro from Bob's Red Mill.

Even though this was delicious ... it was a bit high on the calorie count. If I were to make it again, I'd do something to reduce the number!

Saute
1/3 cup onion
1-2 tsp olive oil

Add and continue saute
4 dried apricots, cut up
4 dried, pitted dates, cut up
1 tsp or so, raisins
5 green olives, pitted, halved
3 Tbsp walnuts, chopped up

Add and mix up with the fruit and onion
1/3 tsp Shiba's Hot Curry Chutney 
2 oz orange juice
1/2 cup cooked Farro
a bit of water

Add cover, and wilt kale
1+ cup kale, ripped up to bite size pieces

Serve and enjoy!

Rated a 4.69 on the Kale Scale

Pineapple 'n Apricot Kale Salad

Hot day calls for simple salad. Quite tasty. I really like the Tangerine Vinaigrette Dressing from Cindy's Kitchen from Whole Foods.

Toss, layer or otherwise pile in a bowl and mix up:
1+ cup of Kale, ripped up to bite size pieces
2/3 cup pineapple, freshly cut, cubed
1 apricot, chopped up
2 Tbsp Cindy's Kitchen Tangerine Vinaigrette Dressing

Top with 

1 tsp of sesame seeds

Enjoy!

Rated a 4.6 on the Kale Scale.

Fruit Spiced Sauce on Kale

Making a side dish to go with a salmon fillet. Started with the tomatoes and olives, then pulled out an apricot that has been too tart to eat outright. And this just evolved from that start.

Saute
2 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, slice fine

Add and continue
10 grape tomatoes, halved
5 green olives, halved (castle vetrano)
1 apricot, raw, cut up

Add, mix it up, lower heat and simmer for a few minutes
1 oz Pomegranate juice (100% POM brand)
1 oz sherry
1 oz soy milk
1 tsp Gulden's brown mustard
2 Tbsp date crumbles (Bob's Red Mill)
1/8 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp black pepper
3/4 tsp ras el hanout

Steam on the dinner plate (use a steam cover)
1+ cup kale, ripped up to bite size pieces

Top the kale with the fruit spiced sauce and enjoy!

Rated a 4.6 on the Kale Scale

Spiced Apricot Kale Saute

The apricots I picked out at the store were too tart to eat out of hand. So what to do? Put in a kale sauté.

Saute
2 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup onion, cut up
1/8 tsp brown mustard seed

Add and continue sauté
1/2 cup pineapple, raw, cut up
1 apricot, cut up
7 green olives, halved (castelvetrano)
1 tsp ras el hanout
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground pepper

Add, cover, wilt
1 cup Kale, ripped to bitesize pieces
2.5 Tbsp white wine

Serve with just a few sesame seeds.

Rated a 4.57 on the Kale Scale.

Tipsy Kale

After sauteing the veggies and fruit, I decided to simmer in wine for a bit. And when I was ready to steam the kale, I spritzed it with 2 tsp of wine.  It all worked well!  The one thing I'd do differently is to leave out the tomatoes, and up the number of apricots. The apricot was actually an after thought when it looked like I needed more veggies for the amount of kale I ripped up. All in all, a fine side for a Sunday salmon dinner.

Saute

This is a fully packed cup o' kale and then some.

2 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup onion, cut up (sweet Walla Walla onion)
2 tsp raw ginger, cut up fine

Add and continue saute
9 grape tomatoes, halved
1 apricot, cut up

Simmer, uncovered about 2 minutes, with
2 oz white wine

Cover with steam lid, and steam in microwave, about 2 minutes

1+ cup Kale, ripped up
2 tsp white wine, sprinkled around on the kale

Serve with cut up cilantro garnish and a splash of Worcestershire sauce.

Rated a 4.58 on the Kale Scale.

Vitamix Orange Kale

After I put the fruit and veg in the Vitamix, I noticed it was all orange food. The end result still came out green - I guess that's the power of kale!  I find that citrus alone fails to make for real yummy kale drink. Thus the rating below 4.5. But, it is still good. Grapes and citrus have made the best base for a kale blender drink, so far.

Mix in blender:

1 cup milk
1 orange, peeled and sectioned
1 carrot, cut up
1 apricot, cut up
1 cup+ kale, ripped up

Serve!

Rated a 4.48 on the Kale Scale