Tofu and Eggplant

Ingredients

• Extra Firm Tofu Original

  President's Choice

  352g

• Soy sauce

  Made from soy (tamari)

  ¼ cup or 72g

• Raw Tahini Sesame Seed Butter

  Artisana Organics

  4 Tbsp or 64g

• Eggplant

  Raw

  548g

• Crushed red pepper flakes

  1 tbsp or 1g

• Sesame seeds

  Seeds, whole, dried

  4 tbsp or 36g

• Olive oil

  Salad or cooking

  1 tbsp or 14g

• Garlic

  Raw

  2 clove or 6g

• Rice wine vinegar

  3 tbsp or 45g

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 200°F. Remove the block of tofu from it's packaging and wrap with some paper towels. Place a plate on top of it and weigh it down. I used a really large tin of vegetables in this picture, but you can use anything handy. Let the tofu sit for a while to press some of the water out. Place about ¼ cup of cilantro, 3 tablespoons rice vinegar, 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil, minced garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, and Swerve into a large mixing bowl. Whisk together. Peel and julienne the eggplant. You can julienne roughly by hand like I did, or use a mandolin with a julienne attachment for more precise "noodles." Mix the eggplant with the marinade. Add the tablespoon of olive oil to a skillet over medium-low heat. Cook the eggplant until it softens. The eggplant will soak up all of the liquids, so if you have issues with it sticking to the pan, feel free to add a little bit more sesame or olive oil. Just be sure to adjust your nutrition tracking. Turn the oven off. Stir the remaining cilantro into the eggplant then transfer the noodles to an oven safe dish. Cover with a lid, or foil, and place into the oven to keep warm. Wipe out the skillet and return to the stovetop to heat up again. Unwrap the tofu then cut into 8 slices. Spread the sesame seeds on a plate. Press both sides of each piece of tofu into the seeds. Add 2 tablespoons of sesame oil to the skillet. Fry both sides of the tofu for 5 minutes each, or until they start to crisp up. Pour the ¼ cup of soy sauce into the pan and coat the pieces of tofu. Cook until the tofu slices look browned and caramelized with the soy sauce. Remove the noodles from the oven and plate the tofu on top.