Tofu Gnudi - Two Recipes

tofu gnudi made from the Washington Post recipe

Gnudi is a funny-looking word. It's not, however, pronounced as spelled. The G is silent, "noo-dee." Yes, it sounds like "nudie," and essentially that's what the word means--naked. Gnudi are ricotta dumplings that could be the lovechild of gnocchi and ravioli filling, less-starchy than the former and more-starchy than the latter. Generally, they are made from ricotta cheese and enough flour to keep them from becoming cheese sauce once they hit boiling water. I like gnudi, and find them a bit easier to make than gnocchi. (I tried making potato gnocchi exactly once, with disastrous results, and have no plans to try again.) But now that I am lactose intolerant--and a bit of a broken record on that point, sorry--it doesn't make sense for me to make ricotta dumplings of any sort. When I found a gnudi recipe in the Washington Post that suggested firm tofu could replace the dairy, I made them post-haste.

Sadly, there was far too much moisture between the combination of spinach, artichoke hearts, and tofu, and the dough was too soft and sticky to make proper dumplings. Perhaps if the recipe had instructed cooks to press the tofu in addition to draining it, and omitted the artichoke, they could have been better? In any case, the artichoke added no discernible flavor, so why waste the money? I added nearly twice the flour called for and doubled the seasonings, so the dumplings ended up tasty but messy. The first batch leached so much of themselves into the cooking water, it was hard to see what was dumpling and what was just lumpy water.

Washington Post Tofu Gnudi

The Post recipe called for a beurre blanc-ish sauce of vegan butter, white wine, and lemon juice, which sounded boring. Instead, I made a raw tomato sauce. Pesto would be nice, as well. And because I like a little crunch with my soft and squishy food, I crushed up some garlic croutons and hazelnuts for the top.

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

8 ounces fresh spinach (regular or baby), roughly chopped

One (14-ounce) package firm or extra-firm tofu, drained

1 cup (8 ounces) artichoke hearts, drained and roughly chopped

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

1/2 teaspoon fine salt, plus more to taste

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1/2 cup all-purpose flour, or gluten-free flour

In a medium or large skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil and garlic and cook, stirring until aromatic, about 30 seconds. Add the spinach and cook, stirring, until wilted, about 3 minutes. (Depending on the size of your skillet, you may need to cook the spinach in batches.)

In a food processor or blender, combine the tofu, artichokes, nutritional yeast, zest, salt, pepper and nutmeg and process until smooth. Scrape down the sides, add the wilted spinach and process until the mixture is a uniform green, about 30 seconds. Add the flour and process until incorporated, about 30 seconds more. Taste, and season with more salt, if desired.

Using a small ice cream scoop or two large spoons, shape dumplings slightly larger than cherry tomatoes (roughly 1 1/2 tablespoons’ worth) and begin to carefully slide balls of the batter into the boiling water. Work in batches and avoid crowding the pot. Boil the gnudi until they are bobbing in the water, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon or spider, transfer them to a platter and repeat with the remaining batter, if needed.

Tofu gnudi with spinach and a raw tomato sauce, made from a recipe generated by Chat GPT.

There was potential in the tofu gnudi concept, and I was willing to try again. Rather than search for another recipe on the web, I turned to Artificial Intelligence. The very first recipe I generated via Chat GPT seemed reasonable. I was pretty sure it would work better than the WaPo recipe, but I worried that it could have the opposite problem: dryness. Perhaps an egg would be needed to bind it all together. I wasn't sure that the small amount of lemon juice and oil would be enough.  

I used a food processor instead of my hands or a fork because I didn't want to work that hard. Rather than adding the ingredients to the processor in the order they appear in the recipe, I put in the tofu, nooch, basil, and 1/4 cup of the flour (I used oat flour) and whizzed that into a bunch of moist crumbs. I then added the lemon juice and oil and gave it another spin. Surprisingly, the dough came together quite well. I pinched a bit off and was able to roll a clean ball in my hands. I scraped it into a bowl and allowed the dough to rest in the fridge until I was ready to make dinner.

About half an hour before dinner, I removed the dough from the fridge and formed it into 28 sorta-equal balls, each of which I flattened lightly with a fork. I poured water into my largest sauté pan, enough to fill it about 2/3 of the way, and brought the water to a boil. After adding a pinch of salt, I put ten of the gnudi in the pan and hoped for the best. After 3 minutes, I gently flipped them with a fork and cooked them another 3 minutes. There was very little leaching of the batter into the water, though there was some. It was impressive how well the gnudi kept their puck-like shape. I cooked the rest in two batches, adding more water to the pan each time. I placed half of the cooked gnudi into a container with a light film of olive oil and put it in the fridge for later in the week. The rest I served with a raw tomato sauce and some sautéed spinach.

This version I will make again. Next time, I'll flavor it with a couple tablespoons of dehydrated tomato powder and cut back on the nutritional yeast. Perhaps I'll try artichokes again, but as part of the sauce.

ChatGPT-generated Tofu Gnudi 

14 ounces (400g) firm tofu, drained and pressed

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup all-purpose flour (plus more for dusting)

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large mixing bowl, crumble the drained and pressed tofu using your hands or a fork.

Add nutritional yeast, lemon juice, olive oil, flour, chopped basil, chopped parsley, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to the bowl with the tofu. Mix well until all the ingredients are evenly combined and form a cohesive dough-like consistency.

Dust a clean surface with flour. Take a small portion of the tofu mixture and roll it between your palms to form a small ball. Place the gnudi on the floured surface and repeat until all the mixture is used. You should have approximately 20-24 gnudi.

In a large pot, bring salted water to a gentle boil. Carefully drop the gnudi into the boiling water in batches. Cook for approximately 3-4 minutes or until the gnudi float to the surface. Remove them using a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate.

Note: If desired, you can sauté the cooked gnudi in a little olive oil until lightly browned for added texture before serving.

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Flashback Friday - Observing Lent

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on March 14, 2014.

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Lent is upon us, and for you practicing Catholics, it's time for Friday fasting. No meat for you!  To help you with Friday meal planning, here are some of my favorite meat-free (but not seafood-free) recipes from Minxeats.

Alton's Mac & Cheese
Asian Pasta Salad
Avocado Soup with Crab Salad

Black Bean Ragout
Black Bean Soup
Clam Chowdah

Clamburgers
Corn, Crab, and Coriander Fritters
Crespelle di Mare e Pesto
Drunken Noodles with Seafood a la Minx
Gagooch (fried zucchini with eggs)

Greek Shrimp Pasta
"Healthy" Spinach Lasagna
Mushroom and Tomato Ragout with Polenta

Oatmeal Risotto with Roasted Vegetables
Panfried Tofu with Asian Caramel Sauce
Parisian Gnocchi with Caponata
Seafood Louis

Shellfish Etouffee
Simple Black Bean Burgers
Spicy Fish Soup
Spicy Korean Tofu
Tomato Bread Pudding

Warm Tofu with Spicy Sauce



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Flashback Friday - Ma Po Tofu

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on November 9, 2012.

Mr. Minx here. It's been a while since I've reported on one of my weekday dinner adventures, so Ms. Minx thought this would be a good time for me to attempt a recipe she found in Fushia Dunlop's book, Land of Plenty. It's a Sichuan dish called ma po dou fu, or ma po tofu for us uncultured sorts. A spicy concoction using tofu and ground beef, the dish looked like it would fulfill our desires to have something healthy and flavorful. To add to the healthy nature of the dish, we replaced the ground beef with ground chicken.

At this point, I think it is important to bring up an issue that has daunted me since I started preparing our evening meals Monday through Friday. That issue is timing. Minxy takes the bus home from work, and the bus system is notoriously unreliable. Just when I get used to my beloved walking through the door at a certain time for several days in a row, she will unexpectedly be 15 minutes late. Although not necessarily a big deal in the vast scheme of things, it can be lethal for the taste and quality of a stir-fry or pasta dish. Therefore, I've taken to getting as much prep work done as possible before she arrives home, and then starting the final assembly after I've kissed her hello.

When I looked at the recipe for ma po tofu, it was clear there was a lot of quick sauteeing with the overall cooking time amounting to a scant 10 minutes or so. I decided to be clever and do all my chopping and measuring of ingredients first, and then wait to do the actual cooking. Setting about the prep work about a half hour before the expected cooking time, I ran into my first snag. The recipe called for leeks and, as anyone who's cooked leeks knows, they have to be thoroughly washed because they can often be filled with sand. Sometimes I get lucky and the leeks are pretty clean. This was not one of those times. I chopped the leeks into rings and soaked them in a bowl of cold water. Once the sand settled to the bottom of the bowl, I drained the water and washed them again. And again. And again. I had just started, and I was already falling behind.

I started assembling the other ingredients. The recipe called for fermented black beans. After scouring the pantry, I came up empty. Then I remembered that I had purchased a container of Korean fermented black bean paste a while back which I was going to use for some undetermined experimentation at a later date. This seemed like as good a time as any, so I guesstimated how much paste might equal the required quantity of black beans. Another crisis averted.

Next step was to cook the ground chicken. This is when I realized that I hadn't thoroughly defrosted the meat, which had lingered in the freezer waiting for some good use. I decided to start cooking the meat right away and hope for the best. The meat is supposed to be crisped up over a high flame, but a chicken popsicle doesn't exactly crisp up; it stews in its own moisture and becomes a crumbly soup. I tried not to panic. I figured I still had just enough time to cook it. Then I hear the Minx walk through the front door 15 minutes early.

Seeing that I was clearly in the weeds, she jumped in to help, but I could sense her disappointment in my lack of planning. Anyway, we forged ahead. Although the recipe is not exactly complicated, there are several steps, adding each ingredient separately and allowing them to cook for short, but specific amounts of time. Chili bean paste, black bean paste, ground chiles, tofu, and leeks are all added to the meat and cooked for short intervals. Fine if you know what you're doing, but a little crazy for me as I ran back and forth to the cookbook, fumbling with my reading glasses, trying to make sure each step was properly executed.

In the end, the ma po tofu turned out to be a wonderful dinner choice. The tofu, ground meat, and black beans provided sufficient heartiness, while the clean spiciness so prevalent in Sichuan cooking made it seem somehow light. I'm sure the use of ground beef would've given it a more savory flavor, but the ground chicken worked just fine for my palate, and I could feel better that is was less fatty. It's a dish I would like to attempt again when I have more time and properly thawed ground meat.



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Uncle's Hawaiian Grindz

I've always had a fascination with Hawaii, probably because as a child I spent many hours watching Hawaii 5-0 with my grandmother. And while traveling to Hawaii still remains one of those bucket list items, I was excited to find out that a new Hawaiian restaurant called Uncle's Hawaiian Grindz had opened in Fallston. Oahu native Kaiman Chee, grand prize winner on Food Network's Cutthroat Kitchen, is the chef/owner of this casual dining restaurant. Along with his partner, Fallston native Kosmas “Tommie” Koukoulis, Chef Chee is bringing the flavors of Hawaii to Maryland while sourcing his ingredients locally.

Recently, The Minx and I decked ourselves out in Hawaiian shirts and visited the restaurant to see what Hawaiian cuisine was all about.

Since poke (pronounced poe-kay) is becoming a trend in this part of the country, we started off with the poke boat, featuring four different styles of poke. Both the Queen Street Tuna and Walu Poke had bright, fresh flavors thanks to elements like lime, ginger, and avocado. The Minx does not like raw salmon, but she enjoyed the salt-cured Lomi Salmon, which was enhanced by the addition of tomato, scallion, onion, and "firecracker" aioli. The biggest surprise, however, was the deep fried tofu poke which uses tofu sourced from the Eastern Shore. The tofu is tossed in red pepper flakes and citrus shoyu before being battered and deep fried. Anyone who says they don't like tofu will be converted by this dish.

Since WWII, Spam has been beloved in Hawaii, and a sushi-like dish called musubi is a staple on the Islands. Uncle's Spam Musubi is teriyaki-marinated Spam wrapped in rice and nori, served atop a combination of kabayaki glaze and Uncle's secret sauce. Although I ate Spam regularly as a kid, I could not stand the saltiness as an adult. However, this Spam was surprisingly mild and the overall texture of the musubi was quite pleasant.

One of that evening's specials was a pineapple corn fritter, which was both unusual and delicious. The pineapple flavor was subtle, and somehow lent a bit of lightness to the fried dough ball.

Kalua pig is a Hawaiian preparation in which a whole pig is wrapped in ti or banana leaves and buried in the ground where it is slow cooked. To simulate this preparation, the restaurant invested in a special $17,000 oven that somewhat approximates the conditions of a traditional underground oven, or imu, producing moist, succulent pork. The Kalua Pig Lumpia appetizer mixes the smoke-braised pork with carrot and cabbage and stuffs it inside a spring roll wrapper before frying. The delicate, crunchy wrapper is the perfect vehicle for the sweet pork and veggie mix. There's additional sweet sauce on the side if you like it extra sweet, but we didn't find it necessary.

For our entrees, we thought we should try one of the mixed plates so that we could experience several menu items at once, and also select one of the sandwich offerings. We went with the Uncle's Mixed Plate which had Huli Huli Chicken, Shrimp Shack Skewer, and Beef Teriyaki, along with an Asian stir fry of mixed vegetables. We also added the Kalua Pork to the plate so we could try the meat on its own. Unlike the full entree version of the Huli Huli Chicken, which is a full half chicken, the sample on our plate was a shredded pile of flavorfully brined meat. The pork and beef were also boldly seasoned, and the grilled shrimp had that wonderful briny flavor that we love so much. It was a delight to sample each type of protein in a rotation and get a different bite with every forkful.

Macaroni salad is a big thing in Hawaii, so it is served family style, along with white rice, for the entrees. The macaroni salad was creamy and mild, and surprisingly not as sweet as typical picnic-style mac salad.

Sandwiched within a large King's Hawaiian sweet bread bun, the Chicken Katsu-wich features a crispy fried chicken breast topped with bacon lardons, baby swiss, and shredded cabbage. Firecracker aioli oozes from this spicy, unctuous sandwich that is at once exotic and familiar. The sweet potato fries were a great accompaniment, but you can get regular fries if you prefer.

Uncle's Hawaiian Grindz has a varied list of tempting Hawaiian-inspired desserts, but after all the food we had already eaten, we didn't think we could indulge any more. Tommie Koukoulis insisted that we at least partake of one of their lighter desserts, the Whipped Otai. Fresh mango, pineapple, and shaved coconut are mixed into a whipped coconut cream, then topped with crushed macadamia nuts and fresh mint. Light and refreshing, and very fragrant, it's a perfect dessert for a hot summer evening (or any time really).

Before we went to Uncle's Hawaiian Grindz, I wanted to find out what the word "grindz" meant. As I discovered, it simply means "good food." In that case, the restaurant certainly lives up to its name.

Uncle's Hawaiian Grindz
2315 Belair Rd Suite 2B
Fallston, MD 21047
(443) 966-3999



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NY Dining, June 2017

When I went to the Fancy Food Show in June, I was prepared for an orgy of eating. The show itself is a festival of cheese, charcuterie, pastries, and more nutritious snacks like kale chips and fruit juices, but woman does not live by grazing alone. I also ate lots of real food.

I started off with a Cambodian sandwich of five spice-glazed pork belly at Num Pang Kitchen in NoMad. Like a banh mi, the sandwich involved meat, spicy mayo, carrots, cukes, and cilantro on a crisp baguette. I felt the pork belly was slightly tough and didn't have much of the advertised five spice flavor, but overall the sandwich had a nice combination of flavors and textures.

Later, after walking through the Fancy Food Show for a couple of hours, I needed a pick-me-up,. An Earl Gray milk tea with "3js" (boba, pudding, and herbal jelly) at Gong Cha--a tiny tea shop in Koreatown down the street from my hotel--looked good, and it was. Except that I picked up a skinny straw, which made drinking fairly impossible. Every sip was blocked by a big black tapioca pearl. Eventually I managed to finish the liquid and soft additions and ate the boba by shaking them into my mouth. Awkward, but tasty.

For dinner, my roommate--the beloved and legendary Dara--her friend Jeff, and I had Chinese food. The Pride parade had ended minutes before; 5th Avenue and its cross streets were eerily quiet, apart from the sound of street cleaning machines and leaf-blowers. Our first choice for dinner, Cafe China, was packed, with an hour wait for a table, so we wandered up a few blocks to the bigger and less-full Szechuan Gourmet. We ordered Szechuan Pork Dumplings with Roasted Chili Soy, Beef Chow Fun, Braised Whole Bass with Sichuan Chili Miso, and Braised Crispy Tofu with Chili and Sliced Pork.

I used to love the Szechuan won tons at a place in Randallstown called Szechuan Best; they've sadly been closed for quite a number of years. The dumplings at Szechuan Gourmet were tender with a nice porky filling, but the sauce wasn't spicy enough and was also quite sweet. And garlicky. I was afraid to breathe near people for a good part of the next day because I was sure I had awful garlic breath. (Nobody recoiled in horror, I'm happy to say).

The fish was the best of the other three dishes, with tender meat in a tasty sauce. The tofu dish was odd, as something labeled "braised and crispy" should be. The tofu was not at all crispy, but it had been fried before braising, which gave it a firm-ish texture. The pork had been quick cooked, so it was tender, but curiously flavor-less. The whole dish was, actually. It was definitely the least-sweet Chinese dish I've ever tried, and also most bland. The chow fun was just ok, maybe a bit greasy, as it often can be, and seriously lacking in wok hay. The term "wok hay" means "breath of the wok," and refers to a particular quality that is achieved through cooking food quickly in a properly hot wok. It's rare, but most often I have found it in beef chow fun. Wok hay has a flavor that is hard to describe, but once you taste it, you will always recognize it.

The next morning, I met my friend Daisy at The Breslin for breakfast. I think The Breslin is my favorite restaurant serving modern American cuisine in NY. It's close to my hotel, the food is good, and breakfast is uncomplicated yet not boring. I enjoyed my sunny-side-up eggs with harissa-braised kale and applewood-smoked lamb bacon, even without toast (which apparently is a la carte). The kale was super tender and lightly spicy, and the bacon tasted like...bacon. I wasn't even offended by the brown edges on the eggs, which are not usually the way I like them. Daisy had a lovely little charred ramp frittata, and we also drank plenty of coffee to fuel our day. She went to the Fancy Food Show, but I had other plans: perfume sniffing at Bergdorf's, Barney's, and Saks.

I figured that Urbanspace Vanderbilt was somewhat on the way back to the hotel, so after a disappointing morning of sniffing but not buying, I stopped in for lunch. Urbanspace is a food court near Grand Central Station with 19 vendors, including Roberta's pizza, Red Hook Lobster Pound, Dough donuts, and lots of other good stuff. After I walked around the place twice, I decided I wasn't hungry enough to eat anything more than a single al pastor taco from La Palapa Taco Bar. It was piping hot and fresh, good without being anything to write home about. The horchata I got to drink was excellent though. Next time, I'll go with a friend and skip breakfast.

Saks was next, then Penhaligon's. I did finally find a scent I liked--Creed Vetiver Geranium--but the price is a whopping $315. The sales associate said they were doing a $20 discount, which would have taken the price down to $295. I had $150 worth of gift cards, but even then, the scent would cost me $145--an insane price considering the over 50% discount. The SA at Penhaligon's was helping a couple, but still took the time to mansplain to me how to smell perfume. I left.

By the time I got back to the hotel, I felt I could use something sweet and popped into Paris Baguette next door for a treat. I had a "cruffin," one of the laminated pastry inventions inspired by Dominique Ansel's "cronut." Basically a croissant manipulated into a muffin shape, filled with a bit of vanilla custard, and garnished with a sprinkle of sugar and a chocolate straw, the cruffin hit the spot.

Later that evening, Daisy and I went on a Hornblower cruise to the Statue of Liberty. Sponsored by Urbani Truffles, the cruise involved loud live music and plenty of food: whole pig porchetta, arancini, truffled burrata, meatballs in truffle cream sauce, truffled pasta, risotto. Despite a decent dinner on the high seas, we stopped at Joe's Pizza for a slice afterward.

It was perfect--thin crisp crust that crackled when I folded it, an unsweetened sauce, and just the right amount of cheese. I'll definitely have to make a habit of stopping there when I'm near Bleecker Street.

Grom was conveniently located a few doors down, so we stopped in for (very expensive) gelato. I don't remember the price being so astronomical on past visits; I'm betting the whipped cream (which I never had before) was the culprit. What other reason would two small gelati cost $16? In any case, I had pistachio and it was as delicious as ever.

We made one more stop at a cocktail bar called The Up & Up for a nightcap. I enjoyed The Quilt Room (Jim Beam Black Extra-Aged Bourbon, rooibos and rose hip tea blend, lime cordial, lemon juice, honey, and Angostura bitters) and should look more into making tea-based cocktails at home.

They call NY the "city that never sleeps," at least in a song. I can attest to the Herald Square area being very sleepy and deserted at 2:30am. My only company on the way back to my hotel were the homeless people snoozing on the sidewalks.

The next morning, I had absolutely no desire to eat breakfast. I needed coffee, because I was exhausted from lack of sleep, but my feet ached too much to look for a Starbucks. Instead, I went straight to the Javits Center for another day of Fancy Food Show wandering. I was happy to find a local vendor giving away decently-sized samples of cold brew coffee right out front, and I gulped one down before heading to the show floor (where I indulged in a latte from the Ethical Bean Coffee booth, as I usually do).

I was leaving for home after the show, but I had just enough time to stop somewhere for dinner. The idea of Korean tapas was intriguing, so I tried a few things at Barn Joo 35. I really wanted to try everything on the menu, but had to settle for just a few items.

Check out the online menu, which is gorgeously photographed.

My waiter steered me toward the crunchy tofu balls with caramelized kimchi. It was a little on the sweet side, which I expect in Korean food, and the balls were indeed crunchy on the outside (and fluffy on the inside). The kimchi wasn't as intense as fresh (well, non-caramelized) kimchi, more mellow and sweet, and with a softer texture. I enjoyed it.

I also enjoyed the galbi buns. Galbi is normally made with flat-cut short ribs which cook up to a chewy deliciousness, but the filling in these buns was a more tender cut, perhaps conventional short ribs. They were lightly glazed with galbi sauce and topped with a scallion and cabbage salad and served in folded steamed buns. Two buns plus the crunchy tofu made for a nice medium-sized dinner. I also enjoyed a housemade yuzu soda because I felt it was too early for a cocktail. "What???" you say, "It's always 5 o'clock somewhere!" It was 5 o'clock in NY, but I was going to stagger several blocks with a very heavy backpack and didn't need any more impediments to walking.

I picked up three donuts at Underwest Donuts at Penn Station for Mr Minx before I boarded my train. Underwest was Underwhelming. The rest of the eats I had, however, were pretty darn good.

Barn Joo 35
34 W 35th St, New York, NY 10001

Gong Cha
12 W 32nd St New York, NY 10001

Grom
233 Bleecker St New York, NY 10014

Joe's Pizza
7 Carmine St, New York, NY 10014

Num Pang Kitchen
1129 Broadway New York, NY 10010

Paris Baguette
6 W 32nd St, New York, NY 10001

Szechuan Gourmet
21 W 39th St, New York, NY 10018

Underwest Donuts
2 Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10121

The Up & Up
116 Macdougal Street New York, 10012

Urbanspace Vanderbilt
East 45th & Vanderbilt Ave, New York, NY 10169



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Ekiben

Ekiben has been on the lips and Instagram accounts of Baltimoreans ever since it opened its doors in Fells Point last March. Before the brick and mortar shop opened, owners Nikhil Yesupriya, Ephrem Abebe, and Steve Chu sold their pan-Asian wares at the Fells Point Farmers' Market. I love the fact that the three partners are from completely different ethnic backgrounds (South Indian, Ethiopian, Taiwanese), and that they met at UMBC. That's what college is for, right? Not only to get an education, but also to branch out from one's potentially insular upbringing and see the world. In the case of Yesupriya, Abebe, and Chu, it was the world of food. While the dishes they serve at Ekiben (itself a Japanese word referring to a specific style of bento box served at railway stations) have a strong Taiwanese bent, the partners season their dishes with flavors from each of their heritages.

The must-try dish is the tempura fried broccoli, topped with shallots and fresh herbs and seasoned with rice vinegar. For $2 more, non-vegetarians can get thinly sliced Chinese sausage, too.

Back when Harborplace first opened, there was a stall selling deep-fried, batter-coated vegetables. I tried to avoid the broccoli, because invariably the florets were soggy with uncooked batter. That is not the case at Ekiben, where every bite is encased in a thin and crisp coating. The combination of flavors and textures in this dish is terrific.

We also did two of the buns that are available every day - the Neighborhood Bird and the Tofu Brah. The former includes a Taiwanese curry fried chicken thigh of vast proportions topped with spicy sambal mayo, pickles, and fresh herbs. The latter is tofu in spicy peanut sauce, topped with seasonal slaw, and fresh herbs. All their sandwiches are mammoth, served on steamed buns that are positively cloud-like in appearance and texture. They are well-suited for a sturdy filling like the chicken thigh, but not substantial enough for the sloppy tofu and its mountain of toppings. Make sure to equip yourself with lots of napkins if you're going to tackle the tofu sandwich, and lean over your plate (cardboard takeout container) so if you do have a spill, you won't waste it on the floor.

Though a tad difficult to eat, the tofu sandwich was delicious. Next time, we'll try it over rice. Also next time, we'll get the Original bun, which features Thai chicken meatballs in a coconut black peppercorn sauce. We hear the catfish is tasty, too, as is everything else on the menu.

Why couldn't Ekiben have been around when I lived in Fells Point, just three blocks away?

Ekiben
1622 Eastern Ave
Baltimore, MD 21231
410-558-1914
ekibenbaltimore.com



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Indonesian Fusion

The Indonesian dish, Gado Gado (literally "mix mix") is a potpourri of various ingredients served with a spicy peanut sauce.  Though traditionally a salad, I decided that gado gado would make a fine burrito filling. (Actually, pretty much anything and everything tastes pretty good wrapped up in a flour tortilla.) I was heavily inspired by the yummy bulgogi burritos I get from the KoCo Truck that parks in front of my office once a week. If that Korean dish of meat, rice, and fiery gochujang sauce can translate into a Cal-Mex favorite, why can't a favorite dish from another Asian nation?

My Gado Gado Burrito is cheap, filling, and easy. You really only have to make the peanut sauce. Leftover rice is fine, as are leftover veggies. You can use cold roast chicken in place of the tofu, if you want. Hate cilantro? Use basil or arugula. Use all three. Hate burritos? (Seriously? How can you hate burritos?) Then assemble all the ingredients in a bowl, top with the peanut sauce, and eat it as a salad. Allergic to peanuts? Sub in almond butter. Allergic to almonds, too? Well, then you should probably eat something else.

Gado Gado Burrito

For the peanut sauce:
1 tablespoon grated ginger
3 cloves garlic, crushed
Oil
1 cup creamy peanut butter
3 tablespoons brown or palm sugar
1 cup coconut milk
4 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Hot sauce
Salt

For the burrito:
4 large eggs
2-3 small potatoes (I used heirloom All Blue potatoes, which is the purple color you see in the pic)
Burrito sized flour tortillas
1 cup cooked jasmine or basmati rice
2 ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges and seasoned with salt
1 package baked tofu in plain, sesame ginger, or teriyaki flavor, cut into strips
Cilantro

To make the peanut sauce: In a medium saucepan, cook the ginger and garlic in a bit of oil until fragrant. Stir in the peanut butter and the brown sugar. Whisk in the coconut milk to thin the mixture, then season with the lime, soy, and fish sauce. Add your favorite hot sauce and additional salt to taste.

To make the burrito:  Bring a saucepot of water to a boil over high heat. With a slotted spoon, gently lower the eggs into the water. Set a timer for 7 minutes, and cook the eggs at a simmer. Prepare an ice bath by putting several ice cubes and cold water in a medium bowl. When the 7 minutes is up, gently remove the eggs to the ice bath and allow to cool completely before peeling.

Cook the potatoes in boiling water until tender. Allow to cool, then peel and cut into small cubes. Set aside until ready to use.

Place a tortilla on a microwave-safe plate and cover with a damp paper towel. Nuke on high 30-45 seconds until the tortilla is hot and pliable. Top with a few spoonfuls of the rice, some tomato wedges, a few strips of tofu, one of the boiled eggs, cut in half, a couple spoonfuls of potato, and a healthy drizzle of the peanut sauce. Top with several sprigs of cilantro. Roll up, burrito style, then cut in half. Serve with additional peanut sauce for dipping.

Makes 2-4 depending on how generous you are with the fillings.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Tofu for Tofu-Haters

Fried tofu bao, plus one bao with fried eggplant, just because.

I know there are those out there who say they will eat tofu no how no way. "It's yucky," or "it doesn't have any flavor" are common complaints. For one thing, it's not at all yucky, and for another, the lack of inherent flavor is one of the things that makes tofu so versatile. You might have heard that it absorbs the flavors around it, but that's not necessarily true unless you simmer it in a very flavorful sauce for a long time. However, a neutral protein like tofu can really make other ingredients shine because they will stand out in contrast to the soy's bland smoothness. One of my favorite tofu recipes is very simple and very delicious. In it, bold garlic, soy sauce, and chile flavors are emphasized by the milky tofu, which also provides a silky and soothing foil to the palate.

Another thing one can do with tofu is to fry it until it's crispy crunchy, like potato chips or fried chicken. It becomes all about terrific texture and works really well in something like Taiwanese-style steamed buns, or bao. You can buy frozen bao in Chinese supermarkets, or you can make them at home, or, you can totally cheat by using refrigerated biscuit dough (find that recipe here). Pillowy buns, crispy tofu, a bit of creamy Sriracha mayo or sweet hoisin sauce, sliced cucumber, cilantro, and an optional topping of crushed peanuts and sugar (to which I added black sesame seeds), makes a mighty tasty snack.

If you don't want to go to all that trouble, just mix up a dipping sauce of mayo, sriracha, a bit of sugar, some minced green onion, and a pinch of salt. Dip in crispy tofu squares and enjoy.

Super Crispy Fried Tofu

1 14- to-16-pounce package extra firm tofu (the refrigerated kind)
Corn starch
Vegetable oil for frying
Salt

Remove the tofu from the packaging and discard the liquid. Wrap the tofu in a layer of paper towels and place on a plate. Put another plate upside-down over the tofu and weight plate with a jar or can. Refrigerate for at least four hours, changing the towels at least once during that time.

When you're ready to cook the tofu, remove the soggy towels and discard. Cut the block of tofu in half lengthwise, then cut each half into 5 or 6 slices.

Put a half cup or so of corn starch in a bowl. Dredge each slice of tofu in the cornstarch, patting it into each piece and shaking off excess. Put dredged tofu pieces on a plate until you finish coating the rest of them.

Add a couple tablespoons of oil to a large non-stick skillet and heat over high heat. Add the tofu pieces in one layer and cover the pan. Cook until crisp and brown on the bottom, 4-5 minutes. Check the browning process occasionally (it will seem to brown slowly at first) by picking up a piece with kitchen tongs. (Be careful when lifting the lid off the pan! Condensation will have accumulated and will drip off the pan into the oil, causing spattering. It's best to lift the lid straight up, not on an angle, and move it away to the side quickly.)

Once tofu is browned on the bottom, turn pieces and cook an additional 4-5 minutes until the other side is brown. If you feel the tofu is browning too quickly, turn the heat down a bit. (If it browns too fast, not only can it burn, but it won't be as crisp because there will still be moisture inside.)

Remove tofu pieces from the heat and drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Season tofu with a pinch of salt while still hot.

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Flashback Friday - Grub Street Diet

My diet is pretty boring.

--Kathy

This post was originally published on April 24, 2013.
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Grub Street Diet

One of my favorite features of the New York Magazine Web site is the "Grub Street Diet." Every week, some NY-based celebrity (actor, musician, director, media mogul, etc.) is asked to keep track of everything he or she eats during the week and submit it to the magazine in essay format. Some folks have an interesting life but a boring diet, and with some others it's vice versa.

Recently, Mr Minx and I found ourselves eating in restaurants a lot more than usual, which made me think of the Grub Street Diet. We're in the "interesting diet, boring life" category, as you'll see.

Monday, April 15
Monday is usually Panera day, and my regular order is a large coffee and a breakfast sandwich. I've been stuck on their Mediterranean egg white, which has pesto, spinach, cheddar, and roasted tomatoes on ciabatta. It's quite a tasty combo - love the roasted tomatoes - and plenty filling to satiate me until lunch.

Around 1pm, lunch was a Voskos exotic fig non-fat Greek yogurt. It tasted ok, but the fig seeds made it unpleasantly crunchy.

Mr Minx always has dinner in the works when I get home from work. This evening, he was in the process of making a day-glo yellow Curry of Indeterminate Origin from a recipe he found on teh Innernets. He insisted it was supposed to be a Thai-style curry, but it looked Indian. Smelled Indian, too. In any case, it was brightly colored and slightly sweet and went nicely with a big pile of basmati rice. It also used up the block of super-duper-firm tofu we picked up at Trader Joe's a few weeks ago that was on the verge of expiration.

Tuesday, April 16
Today, I went to Au Bon Pain for my coffee. I like iced coffee when the weather is warm. ABP only offers the caffeinated stuff, so I make my own by overfilling my cup with ice and mixing hot decaf and their Irish cream flavor half and half (their hazelnut is rather flavorless) with some milk. Their large iced drinks are so huge, I end up finishing it with lunch. But first, breakfast, which is a boring cup of Muller FruitUp yogurt in the Peach Passionfruit flavor. It's tasty enough, I suppose, though the fruity part on the top is a bit gelatinous. And now that I've gone to look for the nutrition label online, I've decided that I can no longer eat this particular yogurt. Why? Because it contains tilapia. Yes, I realize that is a fish, but I wonder if Muller knows that?

I was hoping that the UMB farmers' market would have started up already so I can get my summertime fix of two tacos from Ruben's Mexican Food. Instead, I ate the lunch I brought, which was home-made sweet potato hummus with baby carrots and sweet potato tortilla chips.

Mr Minx picked me up from work today. When I asked what he wanted to do for dinner, he suggested we could eat the leftover pasta from Friday. Except for the tilapia in my yogurt this morning, I hadn't eaten meat since Saturday, so really wasn't in the mood for that particular pasta, which had a vegetarian goat-cheese-and-tomato sauce. Mr Minx then suggested we go to Burger Brothers, which at that point on our ride was about a block away, so that's what we did. The first time we ate there, the burgers and fries both were super-salty. This time, the saltiness of my cheeseburger with bleu cheese, pickles, and tomato was my own damn fault, since bleu cheese is salty, but it wasn't anything like the first time. The fries were pretty good, too.

Wednesday, April 17
On Wednesday, I took the day off work so we could get a bunch of errands done. Breakfast was a bowl of cereal - a handful of Honey Bunches of Oats to finish off the box, and another handful of Mini-Wheats, topped with 2% milk.

Squire's everything pizza
We then went to Home Depot to pick up stuff for our new vegetable garden, made a trip to the storage locker to pick up some furniture, including a much-needed office chair. We had been using one of my Dad's old chairs from probably the late 80s. It was so wonky that after sitting in it for more than ten minutes we found ourselves sliding so far forward our knees were in danger of hitting the ground. That one was disposed of in a quick trip to the dump. We had borrowed my brother-in-law's truck, so after returning that to him, we visited with my mother-in-law who lives in the same area. By the time 3pm rolled around, our stomachs were growling and Mom suggested we order a pizza from Squire's, which we did. Almost nothing satisfies a ravenous appetite more than one of their hearty "everything" pizzas topped with pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, and meat sauce. I was a pig and ate three slices, but other than the cereal, didn't eat anything else all day.

Thursday, April 17
I was home on Thursday, too, and after a breakfast of toasted Panera honey wheat bread topped with a bit of Richard Blais's recipe for pimento cheese (post on that coming soon!), I decided to tackle a recipe from a cookbook that I received for review. The pineapple upside-down cake from Tate's Bake Shop: Baking for Friends turned out extremely well. Except for the part when the caramel oozed up the side of the pan and out onto the bottom of my oven. Luckily, it was lined with a sheet of foil that caught the now-burning and smoking caramel, and I quickly whipped it out and replaced it with a fresh sheet, all without: 1) burning myself; 2) causing the cake to fall.

No lunch again today because we planned to have dinner with my brother at Birroteca. He's been threatening to move out of town and has been trying to eat at as many of the restaurants I've recommended as possible. Earlier in the year, Mr Minx and I had a terrific meal at Birroteca with our friend Melinda, but it was mostly vegetarian in nature. This time, we ordered dishes fit for a carnivore (and a post about that meal will be forthcoming). We again ate the calamari alla plancha because it's so freakin' good, but we also tried the meatballs, the duck duck goose pizza, and the Thursday special of Sicilian steak.

Friday, April 18
I was back to work today and had an Oikos Café Latte yogurt for breakfast. No fish in that yogurt, but it does have "black carrot" juice for color. Huh? It was really good - I'll buy this one again. Lunch was leftover hummus from Tuesday with more baby carrots.

For dinner, we had the leftover pasta that we eschewed on Tuesday, beefed up (literally) with some of the steak left over from Birroteca. We try to be really good about eating all of our leftovers, whether they come from meals eaten at home or in restaurants. There's too much waste in this country as it is.

Four days a week, we eat nothing between dinner and bedtime, but on the weekends, we indulge in a bit of ice cream. Tonight we had it with some of the pineapple upside-down cake from Thursday.

Saturday, April 19
Breakfast was leftover black bean enchiladas from last Sunday's dinner, topped with a fried egg. We need the protein for the day ahead.

For the past three Saturdays, we've been attempting to downsize our storage locker. This week, we made still more progress before calling it quits and going home to wash up a bit. Honestly, I can deal with dust and grime for only so long before my dirty hands trigger my semi-compulsive need to wash them.

After washing up, we decided to have dinner at Earth, Wood, & Fire. The last time we were there, I fell in love with their coal-fired chicken wings. They're perfectly cooked, tender and juicy, with a nice crisp skin with patches of char and a light smack of cumin. I had some of those with a small arugula salad with bleu cheese and seedless grapes.

Late night dessert was a bowl of ice cream with pineapple upside-down cake.

Sunday, April 20
The original plan was to meet my brother and Dad at the Nautilus diner for breakfast. Mr Minx and my brother were then going to head down to the Orioles game and Dad would drive me home. But Dad wasn't feeling well, so I stayed home with the dog. While the boys ate omelettes and bacon, I made myself a sandwich with pancetta, a fried egg, and a spoonful of Blais' pimento cheese on toasted rye. While the Nautilus is fine and dandy, I dare say I probably got the better end of the breakfast deal.

After taking quite the long walk with the dog in order to obtain one of those horrible "e-collar" thingies so he won't scratch his eyes out (he has terrible hay fever), I spent the afternoon reading cookbooks before heading to the kitchen to work on dinner. I wasn't sure if the boys would be up for dinner after the game, but I made enough for several people anyway - red-braised chicken thighs, smashed marinated radishes (both from Fuchsia Dunlop's latest Chinese cookbook) and some oven-roasted asparagus with sliced garlic. I fixed a "beauty plate" for photographing, then ate that as my dinner, along with the lion's share of asparagus.

We finished up our ice cream stash with more cake before hitting the sack a bit earlier than usual.

See. Boring. And long-winded, to boot.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Encantada

When the Joy America Cafe opened in the American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM) in November of 1995, it brought a new style of restaurant to Baltimore City. Chef Peter Zimmer's cuisine reflected a number of different cultural influences, from the Southwest to the Chesapeake, which at the time was quite innovative for this area. Today, twenty years later, quirky restaurants that fall somewhere between formal and casual are the norm in Baltimore, as is food with world flavors.

But the innovative spirit of Zimmer's Joy America Cafe lives on in Robbin Haas' new restaurant at AVAM, Encantada. The decor is a bit all over the place, with large areas of black and white patterning punctuated by bright colors and examples of the "outsider" art found all over the rest of the museum. It's wild and fun, and somehow it all works. But don't let the room distract you from the menu, which is focused on small plates. Before you say, "What's innovative about that? They're everywhere!" let me add that the small plates are primarily vegetarian, and some are vegan. And the dishes are so interesting and flavorful that you will not miss the meat one bit.

And if you do, there are a handful of dishes that do have meat. Because there will be people who wander into the restaurant and not expect it to be so vegetable-forward.

Menu as of July 8, 2015. Click to enlarge.

We started our meal off with cocktails, naturally. The Cheshire Cat involved Anchor Junipero gin, cucumber-lemongrass syrup, fresh mint and lime, fizzy water, and something called "Magic Velvet Blue Ice," which turned the drink pink as it melted. It was bright and cucumbery, lightly sweet, and very refreshing. I preferred it to my Melon Spruce, made with Deep Eddy’s lemon vodka, watermelon juice, pomegranate juice, rose water, and micro flowers. It was sorta melon-fruity, only vaguely sweet, and very very strong. I mean, I can swill a cocktail or three with the best of them, and I was feeling tipsy halfway through this one. Woo!

I really needed the drink to be able to tackle the menu, which is one of those that list ingredients without giving much indication of what the dish will be like. I really kinda hate that. Other descriptions are just confusing, like the one for the first dish we chose, "TURNIPS deviled, faux eggs, smoked paprika." Were we getting deviled turnips served with fake eggs? Are faux eggs some sort of weird vegan thing made with tofu? Not exactly. The turnips themselves, halved and cooked until tender, formed the "white" of the egg. The yolk was a loose puree of chick peas. They looked like deviled eggs, and they sortakinda even tasted like deviled eggs, only the textures were wrong. It's actually a very clever and cute dish; I just would have described it differently, perhaps as Turnip deviled "eggs."

Sorry. As a professional writer, I can't help myself.

The next dish we tried was potato croquettes. Some of the little potato balls had a fairly smooth mashed potato filling and others had chunkier bits of tuber, which I liked. The rich and tangy saffron aioli was a nice accompaniment, and the dish was visually appealing. So much better than the tater tots that have infested menus recently.

We also tried the heirloom tomatoes, which was recommended by our server. They were pretty good; it's not high tomato season here in Maryland yet, judging by my garden full of small green hard specimens, so this can only get better as the summer goes on. The sauce of black garlic, however, was mighty tasty, and I need to concoct something like it at home now.

We decided to order items in shifts, so they wouldn't all end up on the table at the same time. If you're into ordering more than three or four dishes, you should probably do the same. Since most of the dishes are veg, they come out pretty fast.

One of the non-vegetarian items recently added to the menu is oysters on the half shell. These were Malpeques, from Prince Edward Island. topped with a green tomato granny smith mignonette, and cilantro oil. Also a fennel flower, which added an unexpected bit of crunchy texture. Pretty good, very fresh, the hint of cilantro was interesting.

Then we had the list of ingredients that read "GREENS shaved zucchini, smoked tomato vin, crumbled tofu, heirloom tomato, avocado." I see "greens" and think collards, etc., so was a little surprised it was a nearly entree-sized cold salad. The smoked tomato vinaigrette was delicious, and the chunks of firm pressed tofu were a nice change from croutons. Pretty and tasty.

Out of everything on the menu, I was most interested in the dish pretty accurately listed as "CARROTS roasted, whipped goat cheese, harissa honey, hazelnuts." I adore roasted baby carrots with tops, and these were pretty perfect. Tender but not mushy, sweet but not cloying, with an impeccably smooth goat cheese to add a bit of tang. The best part was the chopped hazelnuts, which added so much lovely crunch. And it was gorgeous. Love the blue bowl.

At this point, we were getting pretty full, despite eating mostly veg. We were going to order the gnocchi and the brussels sprouts, but after the manager came over and talked up the duck (which had appealed to us early on in the decision-making process), we had to order that as well.

First, the sprouts. They were fried and had both crunchy (less-cooked) and crispy (more-cooked) textures, with tiny sweet red grapes and lots of toasted pine nuts, all tossed in a figgy syrup. The dish could have used a bit of salt, but was otherwise fine. One can never go wrong ordering brussels sprouts at any restaurant owned by Robbin Haas that has Melanie Molinaro in the kitchen (try them at Birroteca and Nickel Taphouse if you get a chance - both excellent).

The mushroom bolognese on the gnocchi had the salt the sprouts lacked (so I tried to eat them together). Otherwise, the sauce had a nice depth of flavor despite containing no meat. The ricotta gnocchi were firmer than my homemade ones, almost like potato gnocchi, but they were very tender and had a smooth bite. A shower of crispy breadcrumbs added a nice nutty texture.

Saving the best for last - I am so glad we ordered the duck. While not the promised medium rare (closer to medium), the duck was juicy and nicely seasoned, with crispy skin and little or no fat. I loved all of the flavors and textures on the plate, from the tangy rhubarb jam to the strips of raw fennel and nubbins of farro. I mostly wanted this dish to see how the caramelized white chocolate was worked into it. Would it be a sauce or a coating on the meat? No, it was sprinkled on the plate here and there, small beige bits that offered a bit of creamy sweetness that tied the dish together.

After nine plates (oink) we were too full to even think of dessert.

At this point, Encantada had only been open for a week. Not all of the dishes were perfect, but most were very very good. There certainly is a ton of variety on the menu, with both bold and subtle flavors, meat and non-meat dishes, and even a trompe l'oeil plate. And while (I think) the menu isn't the most helpful, your server will definitely be able to guide you into selecting dishes that will make up an interesting and balanced meal.

Encantada is the fourth restaurant in the third floor space at AVAM (if you count the Gjerde brothers' incarnation of Joy America Cafe as a separate entity from the original), and we hope it will be around for a while.



Posted on Minxeats.com.