Review: Chili Lime Tofu & Pasta de los Angeles

Ridiculously large collection of vegan cookbooks? Yup, I have one. And sometimes I occasionally let some slip to the bottom of the stack and forget them. Or, I read them in bed and forget that they're stashed under my bed. The latter of which is what happened with Appetite for Reduction by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. Oops. Now I feel compelled to make a ton of recipes from that poor neglected cookbook. I do. Don't mock me. I'm very sensitive. Not really. But a little.

As you may already know, I have been a bit of a tofu-phobe. I'm coming around, though. Cut me some slack. I have food texture issues. Having a the TofuXpress tofu press has helped a lot because I can press the life out of that tofu, making it have a chewier texture when it's cooked. I decided last night that I wanted to try a tofu recipe from Appetite for Reduction, and since I love spicy food, I chose the Chili-Lime-Rubbed Tofu on pages 155-156. Ms. Moskowitz recommends her Pasta de los Angeles (pages 177-178) to accompany the tofu, so I made that, too. And both were excellent!

I have a terrible time following a recipe exactly, but I came quite close with both of these. I only made a few changes, really, so it mostly still resembles the original recipe. As for changes I would make next time, I would add more chili powder and a some cumin to the tofu since I love spicier food. For the pasta, I would add more black beans (the recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups, and I'd up it to 2 cups). Believe me, these are some of the least altered recipes I've ever made. Usually, I need to add a ton more spices and garlic.

How I altered the recipes this time:
Tofu: added a smidge of garlic powder and some black pepper.
Pasta: had no WW pasta so I used regular spaghetti, used romas instead of plum tomatoes, less spinach, 1/2 the cilantro, added some garlic powder and onion powder.

I definitely recommend the cookbook, in general, and these recipes in particular! So very delicious. Dig it. Or not. Whatever.