Carrots Are Orange

Between the little man’s molars coming in and transitioning to “big people” food, I continue to worry about my little man’s diet.  I mentioned I integrated a multi-vitamin but for an added punch of protein and iron, I’ve also began to sneak bits of tofu, chicken, egg, etc into his quesadillas and his grilled cheese, both suddenly “staples” in our household. Well, I decided sneaking around wasn’t really my style so I decided to make tofu a little more fun (ah-hem, a little more like its not tofu. Okay, so technically that is still sneaky but throw me a bone.) for the little man. So alas we have a hit, “tofu bites” and the little man (and not to mention the mama) loved these suckers. Mmmm…

Servings: 4 (but depends on if you are eating them too. These bites are yummy.)

Time Required: 20-25 minutes

Gear:

• Small bowl for egg
• Plate to spread flour in order to coat tofu
• Small bowl for breadcrumbs
• Measuring Cup for breadcrumbs
• Cutting knife for tofu
• Baking Sheet
• Foil
• Oven
• Spatula to remove tofu
• Cooling rack or plate for tofu

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Food:

• Firm or extra firm tofu
• 1 Egg if you are using eggs, 3 tablespoons egg whites if not
• 3/4 cup Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs (I used Italian seasoned breadcrumbs to avoid having to add additional spices but if using plain, add paprika, curry or some spice)
• Black pepper
• Flour for coating tofu
• Sweet and sour sauce (I ate the bites with a Thai sweet and sour sauce. My little man was curious in the sauce but didn’t ask for more or start dipping like crazy. you can get creative and find a dipping sauce with yogurt or a tomato base or simply serve sans dipping sauce. The Italian breadcrumbs add a lot of flavor.)

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Method:

1. Preheat oven
2. Get out a baking sheet and line with foil
3. Open your tofu, place on paper towel on a plate and weight with a can or another plate. You don’t have to do this approach but I like to do so to remove some of the water. It is best to bake with cool or cold tofu but warm works fine too.
4. Cut tofu in shape of choice. I cut our tofu into little squares/rectangles to make for easy finger food but you can make wedges, long slices or more creative bites for the older kiddos!
5. Spread flour on plate or flat surface
6. Whisk egg in bowl if not using white, or pour whites into a bowl
7. Measure breadcrumbs in another bowl and add a few grinds of black pepper
8. Coat tofu with flour
9. Dip tofu in egg
10. Coat tofu with breadcrumbs
11. Place Tofu Bites on foiled baking sheet
12. Place in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes
13. Pull from oven, serve warm (be careful of the inside!!) with a dipping sauce of your choice or serve alone
14. Store remaining in fridge

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*Goodness Factor: Protein, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Copper, Selenium, Calcium and Manganese.

Happy Eating!
Marnie

* Check out this site for information on vitamins and minerals.