Quinoa Salad With Baked Marinaded Tofu

Ingredients

• 1 lb firm tofu
• 1 cup quinoa (uncooked)
• 1 pinch cayenne
• 1 pinch salt
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 8 lettuce leaves (red or green)
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds (I used black and white)
• 1/4 cup roasted almonds (blanched, skin removed is best)
• 3 celery ribs (diced)
• 1/2 bell pepper (red or whatever colour you prefer)
• 1 bunch cilantro (fresh and chopped)

For the Marinade

• 1/4 cup tamari or reduced sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1 garlic clove (small and minced)
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 pinch cayenne

Directions

1. 1

   Press the tofu as I mentioned in the recipe description.

2. 2

   In the meantime, roast the almonds and set aside as these are part of the garnish along with the sesame seeds.

3. 3

   Make the marinade. When the tofu is finished being pressed, cut it in 8 equal pieces and lay the pieces into an 8 x 8" dish. Pour the marinade over moving the dish around so all the tops of the tofu slices are covered with the marinade.

4. 4

   Let it sit for about 1 hour.

5. 5

   Preheat your oven to 400'F.

6. 6

   When that's finished bake the tofu in the marinade for 45 minutes. The marinade should all absorb into the tofu. It should look brown in colour.

7. 7

   While the tofu is cooking, rinse the quinoa off well. I generally put it into a tall plastic cup and using my hand emersion blender wiz it around until the soapy outer layer is removed from the quinoa. You have to do this otherwise the quinoa will be bitter.

8. 8

   Rince the quinoa good in a fine sieve. Put 2 cups filtered water and a little cayenne and a pinch of salt into a large sauce pot and bring to a boil. Add the one cup cleaned quinoa and put the lid on, then bring back to a boil then turn down to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit for another 15 minutes without removing the lid. This will steam the quinoa nicely.

9. 9

   Transfer the quinoa to a large dish or platter and let it cool. Crumble in 4 slices of the baked tofu. Add the celery, diced bell pepper, cilantro, almonds and balsamic vinegar. Season with salt to taste and mix well.

10. 10

    Line the serving dish with letuce and spoon the quinoa salad onto the lettuce and garnish with the sesame seeds and red pepper strips. Serve the rest of the tofu on the side.