Tofu burgers

I was recently watching Jamie Oliver on TV with his Superfoods program when he did a Tofu burger recipe. I know Tofu isn’t to everyone's taste and you can eat cook it in so many ways, you can stir fry, scramble tofu, even use it in soups & stews. A very versatile ingredient in your vegetarian cooking.

Tofu, also known as bean curd, is a food made by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into soft white blocks. It is a component in East Asian and Southeast Asian cuisines. There are many different varieties of tofu, including fresh tofu and tofu that has been processed in some way. Tofu is bought or made to be soft, firm, or extra firm. Tofu has a subtle flavor and can be used in savory and sweet dishes. It is often seasoned or marinated to suit the dish.

Tofu has a low calorie count and relatively large amounts of protein. It is high in iron, and depending on the coagulants used in manufacturing (e.g. calcium chloride, calcium sulfate, magnesium sulfate), it can have higher calcium or magnesium content.

So after watching Jamie make Tofu burgers flavoured with Marmite I thought Wow! I just have to try them for myself, and I just had to say I was not disappointed.

Jamies Marmite Tofu Burgers

Ingredients

    350 g firm silken tofu

    1 large free-range egg

    75 g wholemeal breadcrumbs

    2 heaped teaspoons Marmite

    50 g Cheddar cheese

    2 Sprigs of Rosemary

Method

Wrap the tofu in a clean tea towel, then squeeze and wring it out to remove the excess liquid (about 4 tablespoons should come out – it’s messy, but really important to do this for great burger texture later). Place the tofu in a bowl, scraping it off the tea towel. Crack in the egg, then add the breadcrumbs and Marmite. Mix and scrunch together really well with clean hands, then shape into 4 even-sized patties that’ll fit nicely in your buns once cooked. Pick the rosemary leaves and put into the hot pan in four piles, place the patties on top and cook for 3 minutes on each side, or until golden. Slice or grate some cheese, place on the patties, reduce the heat to low, then cover and leave to melt for 3 to 4 minutes.

Pop the burgers into a bun, dress with some salad. Absolutely delicious.

Tasty potato wedges

Here is something dead easy and a real treat too. Spicy potato wedges. Sometimes you need something that is simple to make, not too difficult when you get in from a hard days work. For me it is wedges, tasty and simple. I found this recipe on the Vegetarian Society website and I love it. They are great with burgers, sausages along side salads or infact anywhere you would have chips.
Why not experiment with the spices and adapt your own spicy wedges to your own taste.



Serves Four                                   Prep time 5 Mins                                Cook time 30 mins

Ingredients

• 4 large potatoes
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp fine breadcrumbs
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• Pinch of cumin
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme

Method

1. Heat oven to 220C / 425F / gas mark 7.

2. Wash potatoes and carefully slice them into wedges.

3. Place the oil into a small container and toss the potatoes in it.

4. Mix breadcrumbs, spices and herbs together and sprinkle onto the potatoes.

5. Toss the potatoes around again to ensure an even spicy coating.

6. Place potatoes on an oven tray and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

Seedy salad

After a short time away from the blog I thought it was high time to get things back on track. Spreading the joy of vegetarian food is what we are about here at Cotswold Vegetarian so as it is summertime i thought i would give you a really tasty carrot salad that is dead easy to make, I found this one a few years ago on a recipe card that we got from Abel & Cole.If you’re craving fresh, clean healthy flavours, crave no more. This salad’s got it all. Grated carrot in a sweet, punchy, lively Asian citrus dressing. It’s a winner, and works great with beetroot instead of carrots too. I am sure you will love it.

Seedy, Spicy Carrot Salad  

Prep 15 mins - Zero cooking - Serves 2

Ingredients

• 4 carrots, coarsely grated
• A thumb of fresh ginger, finely grated
• 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped or a pinch of chilli powder (more or less, to taste)
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 lemon or 2 limes, juice and zest
• A glug of olive oil
• A pinch of sea salt
• A drizzle of honey
• A large handful of sunflower and/or pumpkin seeds, toasted
• A large handful of fresh coriande

Method

1. Mix the carrots,ginger, chilli garlic & lemon or lime. drizzle in a glug of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Toss
2. Let the flavours mingle for at least 15 mins or up to overnight.
3. Taste. Add a drop of honey to soften the heat, if needed finish with toasted seeds and herbs. Gently mix and serve.