Tofu Cherry Yogurt

It's clearly cherry season as I have several bags and have been trying to get creative with what I can do with them all. Previous recipes from this blog featuring cherries include:
Cherry and Rice Walnut Salad
Infused Spirits - Vodka
Cottage Cheese Cheesecakes - Lemon & Cherry

As the weather has been hot, I've really enjoyed eating the cherry and rice walnut salad. It also tastes great with Royal Black Quinoa instead of rice - extra nutty and crunchy! This year, in addition to baking cherries with quinoa, and making muffins, I blended them with soft tofu to make a delicious yogurt.

After eating Greek yogurt, I found on several occasions that I tend to break out in spots around my chin. Therefore, I have been trying non-dairy alternatives such as uncultured unsweetened coconut milk, as well as almond yogurt. This recipe below uses soft tofu and fresh cherries for a sweet and creamy yogurt version that still has protein - just like regular yogurt! It's also gluten free, low fat and low sodium - just tofu and fruit blended together. Although cherries are sweet, traditional yogurts with fruit are usually very high in sugar content, anywhere between 12-20g. A serving of tofu yogurt only has 6g.

I like to stir some of the yogurt into cereal (oats, grape nuts, shredded wheat), or add a few spoonfuls to a smoothie.

Tofu Cherry Yogurt
Makes 8 (70g per serving)

Ingredients:
- 225g / 8oz cherries
- 170g / 6oz tofu, soft
- 60g / 2oz pineapple chunks

Method:

• Pit and chop the cherries.
• Purée all ingredients together in a food processor until smooth.
• Pour into an airtight container and refrigerate. 
• Stir before serving. ENJOY!

Nutritional Information:

Konaberry Kelp Noodles with Pineapple Vinaigrette

This is a great dish for summer and a nice alternative to kale or spinach based salads. I often eat it for lunch or as an on-the-go snack as it can be eaten straight out of the container. For lunch I add a little chicken or chopped vegetables.

Before making this recipe I'd never heard of Konaberry Kelp Noodles. From the back of the noodle packet (from the Sea Tangle Noodle Company), I read that Konaberry is the fruit that surrounds and protects the coffee bean, grown in Kona, Hawaii. What's amazing to discover is that it's a powerful antioxidant and rich in many vitamins and minerals. Konaberry has 60 times more antioxidants than pomegranates and 100 times more than blueberries.

The noodles are very low in calories - only 12 calories for a 112g / 4oz serving. There's not much nutritional substance to them but when combined with the pineapple vinaigrette, there's fats (from the olive oil), sodium from the soy sauce and carbohydrates (mostly simple carbs) from the pineapple.

I'd previously eaten shirataki noodles - made from the root of the konnayku plant which is also low in calories.
Similar to tofu, both kinds of noodles absorb the flavours of any sauce or spices, making them very versatile and a perfect addition to a dish or a lighter alternative to pasta and rice.

Konaberry Kelp Noodles with Pineapple Vinaigrette
Makes 3

Ingredients:
- 335g / 12oz konaberry kelp noodles, rinsed and drained
- 225g / 8oz pineapple chunks
- 45ml /3tbsp olive oil
- 45ml /3tbsp soy sauce, light
- 40g / 1.4oz onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, chopped

Method:

• Blend all the ingredients (except noodles) in a food processor.
• In a bowl, pour the vinaigrette over the noodles and mix to combine.
• Let sit for 10-20 minutes for softer noodles, if desired.
• Serve plain or add chicken and/or chopped vegetables. ENJOY!

Nutritional Information:

Sweet and Sour Tofu Stir Fry

This is my first recipe published on my blog that features tofu. I love this protein-packed food so I'm sure there will be many more to come.

Tofu is a food made by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into soft white blocks. I prefer the firm/hard variety of tofu but I have eaten the soft/silken kind before, which is undrained and unpressed. Wikipedia has endless amounts of information about tofu.

I was keen to learn more about the nutritional value of tofu. I knew it was low in calories and a great source of protein. A 110g / 4oz serving of tofu gives you 10g protein. That's the same amount of protein in a glass (240ml / 8floz) of dairy milk. An egg has 6g protein whilst a serving of beef (110g / 4oz) contains 26g protein. Obviously vegetarians aren't going to opt for the beef option for their source of protein!

A serving of tofu contains 5g fat, a similar amount to eggs. However, a serving of beef contains 15g fat! Tofu is also a cholesterol-free food whilst eggs usually have approx. 200mg cholesterol.

This dish  is like a rainbow: red tomatoes, orange carrots, yellow pineapple, green peppers/celery etc. Whilst there's quite a bit of sugar (natural, of course) in this dish - from the pineapple chunks - the tofu is low in calories. I prefer to eat this stir fry with blended cauliflower instead of rice or quinoa to keep a moderate carbohydrate intake.

Sweet and Sour Tofu Stir Fry
Makes 5
Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Ingredients:
- 15ml / 1tbsp olive oil
- 185g / 6.5oz onion, chopped
- 120g / 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 190g / 7oz carrot, cut into halfmoons
- 160g / 6oz green pepper, cut into cubes
- 110g / 4oz mushrooms, chopped
- 10g / 2tbsp ginger, chopped
- 300g / 11oz firm tofu, cut into cubes
- 411g / 14.5oz / 1 can diced tomatoes (no added salt)
- 20g / 1tbsp honey
- 560g / 20oz pineapple chunks (in pineapple juice), reserve juice
- 10g / 1tbsp flour
- 15g spring onions (garnish)

Method:
In a pan or work, heat the oil and cook the onion, celery, carrot, pepper, mushrooms and ginger for about 5 minutes. Keep veg crunchy.
In another frying pan, sprayed with cooking oil, saute the tofu cubes for 10 minutes, until golden brown.
Add tomatoes, honey and pineapple chunks to the wok and heat until bubbling.
Add golden tofu cubes to the wok.
Mix the pineapple juice with the flour and add to the wok.

Once the sauce has thickened, serve on a bed of cooked brown rice or blended cauliflower.
Garnish with chopped spring onions. ENJOY!

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Nutritional Information: