General Tsao's Tofu and Vegetable Stirfry

From An Opera Singer in the Kitchen
Yesterday was my birthday. It was a super strange day and truthfully would not have felt like my birthday if I had not received all the birthday wishes! I turned 31 and it was less eventful than turning thirty. I did not have a problem turning 30, but turning 31? Well, I guess it was more about seeing what was lying ahead of me. And do you know what that was? Traveling to Toronto! You thought I was going to be negative right? Ha ha, no!

Ryan and I decided to take a quick getaway to Canada seeing that it is NOT far from where we live in Michigan. After all, it was gong to be Ryan's Spring Break and we had to do something! Why Toronto you might ask? Well, it is a huge city and it has many places to visit and sights to see. I am hoping I get to practice my French! Since we found out that we were heading to Toronto I found out that there was going to be a blogger meet-up! How exciting! I am VERY much looking forward meeting Angela from Oh She Glows and 17 other foodies from the area! WOW! We are meeting at Fressen, which is supposedly known for its wonderful vegan cuisine. Yay!! I already cannot wait to share the details when we return from Canada. Pray for our safe journey!

I realized that I had not shared several posts of past lunches or dinners, but truth be told, I have been having a hard time keeping focused and thinking about eating healthy for a week and a half. THAT is a LONG time! I realize that like anyone else I so SOOOO need encouragement. I read people's blogs about health and discipline but it trully is not the same when someone directly asks you, "So how ARE you doing?" My husband and I talk about it but it does not quite seem to reach me since he is not vegan and does not really like healthy foods. He HAS been encouraging and supportive with all the foods and meals I have prepared. I am thankful for that!

Anyway, here are several things I made this past week:

From An Opera Singer in the Kitchen

Leftover Falafel sliced on Ezekiel bread

and guacamole with tomato slices

From An Opera Singer in the Kitchen

Pizza on Ezekiel tortilla w/ edamame pesto, cilantro, tomatoes, and vegan mozzarella

From An Opera Singer in the Kitchen

3 different rolls: Pickled radish, asparagus/avocado/cucumber, veggie tempura rolls from AI Fusion

Other than that it seems as though my husband and I have been eating Asian food alot, so when he put in a request for Mexican food, I did not complain. Yesterday I made him fajitas and I ate a burrito in a bowl with lots of veggies!

From An Opera Singer in the Kitchen

A while back I received some samples from Simply Asia owned by Thai Kitchen so I used the sauce on a day I knew I would be pressed for time. Their sauces have NO MSG and pretty much use ingredients that you would have on your shelf, except I decided to use this as a short cut.

From An Opera Singer in the Kitchen

Instead of making it with chicken, I took tofu and pan-fried it until it had a golden crisp to it, then quickly chopped up some vegetables I could find in the fridge and added some rice noodles! It was good stuff y'all! Delicious! This is the reason why I do not tire of Asian foods, because there are so many ways and so many dishes to create.

From An Opera Singer in the Kitchen

General Tso's Tofu and Vegetable Stirfry

serves 2

1-13oz package extra-firm tofu, cut in cubes
3 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp soy sauce
2 large carrots, sliced at an angle
1 onions, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups baby bella mushrooms, chopped
2 cups packed collard greens, chopped
2 cups soaked rice noodles
1-4.2oz Simply Asia general tsao stir-fry sauce (only $1.50!)
2 Tbsp sesame seeds

In a medium skillet, heat sesame oil on medium heat. Add tofu and soy sauce and fry for 15 minutes. {It would help if the tofu was pressed, so the cooking time will be longer. Since mine was not pressed, it took 15 minutes to fry. It was browned on both sides but a little custardy or eggy consistency on the inside}

Meanwhile, chop on the vegetables. After tofu was cooked, I used remaining oil and added to a wok. Add the vegetables and stir fry them with minced garlic for 10 minutes.

Add the sauce and the noodles and cook for another 5-10 minutes. The cooked tofu is the last item added to the dish. Mix slowly so they tofu will not crumble.

Serve while hot!