YUMMY X 4 Billion!

Last week as a family, we went to EVO in Worcester. Kids got their usual fav, the gluten free-vegan pizzas that they adore & are always so happy with. One had olives & sauce. One had daiya cheese & sauce & olives. The kids only real complaint, they wanted MORE pizza! Oh and they also had tons to drink & tons of fries to devour, so don't let them fool ya, they had plenty to munch on! Hubby ordered two meals, cause let's face it, he's a pig. ;) He got the quesedillas & vegan black bean burger. He said he was gonna share the quesedillas, and he was nice to let us all try it. YUM! I chose the Stone Baked Avocado Tuscany. It was so delish! I wanted to eat it all over again, the very next day! I decided I should try to recreate it. Sorry EVO, I was lazy today & tried to make something similar. I was so hungry & I'm pregnant. I hope that is enough of a reason to be lazy & not come visit. Lazy lazy lazy..





Anyways, that's the finished meal in the photo of above. I skipped making the aged balsamic reduction (yes we have no balsamic vinegar) that they served with the meal & I also skipped using the fire roasted tomatoes. What can I say? I didn't feel like lighting the bonfire & I don't happen to have a stone oven. I used sun dried tomatoes instead. I found that I used the wrong tomatoes, when I checked their website & the menu to see the name of the salad I had. It's called the Stone Baked Avocado Tuscany. It is divine! I know it's not raw, but I am lenient with myself right now, that I'm not trying to actively do raw & lose weight. Plus I'm pregnant & baby wanted it! ;) It was really yummy! I even managed to save some of the tofu so I can make some more in another day or so. Well.. that's if the tofu kids don't steal it from me. I saw them eyeing it up.

My marinade:

A pinch of the following spices (you can use more, I'm using the less is more philosophy. Pregnancy, remember?)

Pink Himalayan Salt
Dried Mustard Powder
Black Pepper
Onion Powder
(you can add some fresh onion instead, none for me thanks)
Garlic Powder
(you can use fresh garlic if you like--again my tongue says it's too strong)
A splash of ACV, that's apple cider vinegar
Splash of Gluten free vegan soy sauce.
A splash of Wegman's Basting oil.
(easy to recreate this: Grapeseed oil, parsley, garlic and thyme)
Water, since I splashed too much ACV in the marinade bowl.

Then MIX MIX MIX the marinade & cut the tofu into thick slices. I put the slices into a glass baking dish & poured the marinade over the top & let it sit in the fridge for an hour. OK I didn't wait the whole hour. I was HUNGRY! You might like it to marinade a bit longer. So let it sit in the marinade a while and let it soak the flavour up so it will taste yummy. Mine was bland. I'm OK with bland right now. Then next you can bake the tofu or put it into a cast iron pan. I used stainless steel today & steamed off the spinach & spices (salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder) & tomatoes, first. Next I took the tofu & cooked it in the pan with some of the marinade. Added the veggies back in & turned it out onto my plate. Then I ate the whole thing. Oh my YUM!! It is not exactly the same as EVOs version. Not even close actually. Theirs is far better. I will be back to get it again. I loved it. I guess this is what they call a pregnancy craving?

Mmm now to figure out what to have for dessert tonight. Wish I had some plantains. I miss them. Hmmm google time.

XOXO Heather :)