Inside My Lunchbox Part 1

Oh hello there. Good to see you again. You look good.
Me? Oh I have been enjoying a nice old fashioned sinus cold. Reaaal snotty. Oh yeah. That doesn't mean I don't need to eat lunch.
This post is dedicated to a new reader out there - you know who you are.

Veggie Spring Rolls
Vietnamese rice paper wrappers
Veggies cut into 3-4 cm pieces (bell pepper, cucumber, carrots)
Lettuce
Peanut Sauce (recipe below)
Optional:
Tofu
Avocado
noodles

I recommend making this lunch the night before.
The rice paper wrappers are surprisingly easy to work with. You can get these at any asian market, and most supermarkets. You buy them dried and a single package should last you for a long time.
To make the spring rolls boil a pot of water and pour some into a shallow dish or large plate with high sides. Dip an individual rice paper wrapper in the hot water for a few seconds. It will go from being stiff to completely soft and sticky.
Now place this wet wrapper on a plate or cutting board. Add any combination of chopped veggies, tofu, lettuce, noodles, etc - I find a nice piece of basil or mint is delicious.

Love the colors

The thing to remember is to try not to stuff it too full. This is not a burrito. If you are using tofu or noodles stack this next and top it all with a leaf of lettuce. Smear the side of the wrapper with peanut sauce and fold it all up. You can use any technique you like for wrapping them - the rice paper is super sticky and will pretty much keep any spring roll together. Put in a tupperware and place in refrigerator overnight.
Bring to work and impress all of your awesome coworkers with your delicious and healthy lunch.

Peanut Sauce
1/3 cup peanut butter
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
Generous squeeze of sriracha or other hot pepper sauce
1/4 teaspoon miso

In a small saucepan heat all ingredients over medium heat. Stir with a whisk until smooth.

Eho-Maki

Happy (almost) spring! To celebrate the end of winter, the Longoria family celebrated Setsubun, a Japanese holiday that marks the beginning of spring in Japan. There are many parts of Setsubun that sound fun to participate in, especially throwing beans at a family member dressed in masks (to scare away the demon Oni). But since it is just Daniel, Moses, Atticus and I, we decided that we would skip the bean throwing this year and make a traditional Eho-Maki.
Eho-Maki means "the lucky direction roll", which explains more about how to eat the sushi rather than what it is...so let us start with the recipe.

My friend Yoko uses the following ingredients when making her family's Eho-Maki:
Nori Sheets
Sushi rice
Avocado
Lettuce
Crab legs (I just used carrots)
Cucumber
Egg (I made fried tofu spears)
Daikon Radishes (I found these at our Asian grocery store, but they are GIANT and super expensive...I liked the taste, sort of pickled, but I knew Daniel would not like it)I have never made my own sushi rice before, but it was easy and tasted just like a restaurant version.
To make 4 medium-sized sushi roll portions of rice:
1 1/3 cups short grained white rice
2 cups water
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Wash the rice until the water runs clear. Combine rice and water and bring to a boil. After the rice has reached a boil, turn the temperature to low and cover. Cook for 20 minutes. Cool rice for 10-15 minutes. While rice is cooking combine the remaining ingredients into a small bowl and microwave for 30 seconds until sugar is dissolved. Pour mixture over the cooled rice. Stir until the liquid is well incorporated into the rice.

The next step, anyone can do...spoon the rice over the nori sheet, add your favorite additions and attempt to roll them up. Yoko did this much better than I. Mine looked reminiscent of a burrito.


Here is the fun part: every year Japan has a lucky direction (something to do with the zodiac sign), this year is south-east. After you have given up trying to make your sushi roll pretty, and decide just to eat it, you hold the roll toward the lucky direction and make a wish while you eat the ENTIRE roll of sushi without talking.

We found this to be impossible, so post wish-making, we decided to cut it up. My only suggestions would be to know which brands of nori are the best (ours was too fishy for me) and make sure you have wasabi and ginger on hand!
Nom nom, take that Oni!

You Will Like This Tofu

Is there any other food as polarizing as tofu? Cilantro perhaps (spoiler: cilantro is the worst thing about everything) but I can't think of many others. Let me say this right off the bat: tofu can be completely disgusting. I don't know anyone who like a wiggly giggly block of flavorless mush. But it can also be really flavorful and have an interesting texture if prepared correctly.

I used to go through a big routine to sauté tofu on the stovetop, first pressing, then marinating, then dredging in spices and cornstarch, blah, blah, blah. Way too much work. The following is my new and improved tofu method. Much easier and I find myself having this a couple of times a week. I urge even those adverse to the big block of bean curd to give it a try. It might seem like it takes a while, but most of it is inactive time so you can do other things while you wait.

Baked Tofu
(Makes enough for 2 medium servings)

First gather your ingredients!

0.5 block of extra firm tofu

1 T olive oil

1 T soy sauce

1 T veggie worcheshire sauce (or non veggie if you want)

Paprika

Garlic powder

Black pepper

Singapore seasoning

Since your tofu has been sitting in a water bath for awhile you need to press all of that excess liquid out of it. I skipped this step for years as it seemed annoying and pointless - but this is the key to great tofu! I cut my block in half and save one half for later. I then cut the half I am using into 3 pieces and lay them out on paper towels.

Put more paper towels on top and then add a cutting board or other flat surface and some weight to press out the water. My setup looks like this:

Now go do something else for a half hour or so. Check back and change the towels if necessary. While you wait you can prepare the marinade. Take all of your ingredients from above and combine with a whisk. Obviously the spices are subjective and you can add as much or as little as you want. Also feel free to put in whatever combo your heart desires. This is just my favorite combo. Make sure you have the oil and soy sauce included.

Is your tofu done pressing? Good! Cut it up into bite size pieces and toss with the marinade. Let them hang out for 15 minutes or so. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Nom nom nom

To cook the tofu I recommend lining your baking sheet with tin foil. The marinade can make a mess and I'm not too keen on scrubbing my dishes for hours so I go for easy cleanup. Place your marinaded tofu bites on the baking sheet and bake them for 25-30 minutes. You should turn them over half way through to make sure they bake evenly.

I am roasting this batch alongside some brussels sprouts!

Keep a close eye on them because they can burn quickly. I tend to like mine a cooked a bit on the longer side. Tonight I had mine with brussels sprouts over whole wheat cous cous with a side of roasted carrots.

To tofu skeptics: I know the reputation of tofu, but believe me, this doesn't taste like the tofu you are used to. It is very flavorful because you pressed the tofu allowing it to soak up the marinade like a sponge. Just as important, baking it has given it a chewy interesting texture that makes you completely forget its past life as a big boring glob. You won't be disappointed.