A Day Off: Frech Toast & Texas Barbeque Tofu Sandwiches

After the Pre-Easter Picnic Brunch, I took home half a baguette, which was left mostly open overnight. This morning I thought I'd better save it by making it into French Toast

French Toast

1/2 baguette, sliced
About 1 cup Milk (I actually used Vanilla Soymilk, Unsweetened)
3 eggs
Cinnamon (optional)
Butter for cooking (or oil)



I never measure when I make it, so I can't tell you exactly how much milk I used, but the basic idea is to mix up milk and egg and dip some bread in it, then fry it (medium-high heat, use a thick pan, and lots of butter helps).

French Toast is really easy, especially once you've made it a few times. The hardest part if getting the ratio of batter to bread accurate. Some people like to lightly dip their bread, but I like my bread to soak up as much batter as possible. I also like to add cinnamon, and usually vanilla extract, too. Today I got the ratio just right - not a drop of batter leftover, and every piece of toast saturated thoroughly. Oh yeah, and I had some "Ambrosia" and strawberries leftover from the brunch so I served those up as well.



After the Pre-Easter Picnic Brunch, I also ended up with a LOT of potato salad! Somehow, I inherited a very large and very full container. I wanted to make something that would go with potato salad. In fact, I think I will be making things to compliment potato salad all week. And what goes better with potato salad than barbeque?

I was really hungry, so I made my quick version. I post it here today with the promise that I will also make my involved version sometime.

(Quick) Barbeque Tofu Sandwiches

1 package baked tofu (terriyaki flavor)
4 slices jalepeno cheese (or jack, cheddar, etc)
1/2 heirloom tomato, sliced
2 foccacia buns (mine had rosemary, which added an interesting flavor twist)
Barbeque sauce

My buns were frozen, so first I heated them up in the microwave to defrost them a bit. Then I sliced them in half. I also sliced the baked tofu into 4 thin slices.

I placed two slices tofu on one half of each bun, then placed two slices cheese on top of that. I put them in the toaster oven, toasted them once, then turned it to broil for 5-10 minutes. Then I added the other half of the bun and toasted one more time.

I pulled out the sandwiches, added the barbeque and sliced tomato, and voila! I served it with a heap of potato salad, 1/2 of a sliced up avocado with slat and pepper, and the leftover brussel sprouts from Friday.



Marshall says: "Yum! That was an amazing sandwich!"
And later he says: "That sandwich was so good!"
Time: 15 minutes
Leftovers: Well, I actually took some of the tofu and cheese I would have put on my sandwich, and put it one piece of bread sliced in half to make a half sandwich for lunch tomorrow.

Sunday Morning: Waffles

I like to double all the recipes I make on the weekend, so that I have those leftovers to eat during the week. This Sunday Marshall and I had planned to eat breakfast together. Usually I want him to get up and make the food, but I wake up so much earlier than him that most of the time I end up making it anyway.

This morning I decided to make waffles. This was partly because I recently read a book about clutter and getting rid of stuff, and a waffle iron was listed as one of the least used kitchen appliances. In order to justify the space it is taking up under the counter, I decided I had to use it more often. The other reason is because I like waffles and because they make the prefect weekday morning leftover - a minute in the toaster oven or microwave and your breakfast is ready! I try to make my waffles pre-sweetened and pre-flavored, and then you can even skip the butter, syrup, etc, making them truly "out the door" food.

Mix and Match Waffles

Whenever I make food, I usually look at a recipe and then don't follow it. The waffles were no exception. I looked in my trusty Diet for a Small Planet, which almost always has a recipe for the basics that other cookbooks often leave out. I usually have to change these recipes because they are based on making "complete proteins", and I don't always have the ingredients. (And I don't really worry too much about complementary foods... I figure that kind of stuff works itself out if you eat a healthy, diverse diet).

2 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour (this is a light whole wheat flour; you can probably use regular whole wheat, or white, or half and half and they would still turn out fine)
1/4 cup whey protein (I try to add this to carb-a-licious recipes, to increase protein)
2 teaspoons salt
4 teaspoons baking powder

Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. I use a whisk to try to fluff them up a little. I like to think it's a close approximation to using a sifter (which I still don't own).

4 eggs
2 1/2 cups milk (I used plain soymilk)
1/2 cup sugar (I used vanilla sugar)
6 tablespoons oil (I used grapeseed - it's good for high temperatures)

Mix the wet ingredients into the dry. Whisk together well.

I used about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of batter mix for each pour into the waffle iron. I oiled the iron only for the first batch (using spray oil). I also added a small handful of "mixings" into each pour of batter. I used a handful of each of the following:

Chocolate chips
Dried mixed berries
Shredded coconut
Pecans
Candied ginger

Then the last two pours I also added about a tablespoon of cocoa powder and a small handful of chocolate chips (to each pour). Oh, and I did one plain pour as well.

Marshall says: I like chocolate chip the best. And I agree, with mixed berries as a close second.
Time: about an hour, with cooking (you can eat after the first batch or two, becuase each pour takes at least 5 minutes to cook)
Serves: at least 8 servings (about 8 pours). We pigged out this morning - at least two pours each (wanted to try all the flavors), but I will probably only eat 1/2 of a pour on the weekdays.

Sunday Morning: Classic Oatmeal

Classic Oatmeal

I had oatmeal twice this weekend. I had it Saturday morning at a yoga retreat, with lots of do-it-yourself toppings. I told Marshall about it, and he said it sounded good. It did, so I decided to make it again.

1 cup whole oats
2 cups water

Mix together in a medium pot/saucepan. Once boiling, turn down to medium or low. If you leave it on high (as I did) the bottom will burn or at least stick.

1 apple
1 handful dried cranberries
1 handful date pieces
Several dashes of cinnamon

Cut up the apple into bite size pieces. Mix the apples, cranberries, and dates into the oats. Cook everything until the water is absorbed and the oats are soft. Feel free to try a bite if you aren't sure if the oats are soft yet. It takes maybe 10 minutes. I wasn't paying attention. I will next time.

Maple syrup
Brown sugar
Milk or soymilk

Serve warm with any of the toppings. If it sits around too long the oatmeal gets really thick and almost rubbery. It still tastes good, but it looks funny. This combination of fruits is sweet and tangy - delicious!


Serves: 2
Total time: maybe 20-30 minutes
Leftovers: none. We ate it all up!