tofu part 2.

I know some of you asked where to buy a tofu mold. Williams Sonoma sells a nice one here, complete with non GMO soy beans. Here is another source for a tofu making kit and nigari, the natural coagulant we used to make our tofu.

Below is part two of our Tofu post complete with Camilles's  recipe notes. Part one is here.

Tofu Skins

follow below recipe from previous post until you reach the part pertaining to the Tofu Skins

TOFU

1 ½ cups of high-grade soybeans

14 cups total spring or filtered water, room temperature

1 ½ teaspoons dry nigari

Tools:

Blender

Large heavy bottomed pot

Muslin

Large strainer or colander

-Soak soybeans in 5 cups water for at least 12 hours. 

-Heat 6 cups of water in a heavy bottom pot.   In a blender, puree beans and their soaking liquid in 3 batches for 2 minutes each time, you may risk burning out your blender if you puree it all in one shot.   Add the puree in batches to the hot water and mix thoroughly after each time.  Allow to come up to an almost boil on a medium-low setting.  Stir frequently to avoid soybean pulp sticking to the bottom and scorching.  Keep your eyes on the mixture making sure it doesn’t boil over.  Remove from heat, cover and leave to cool for ½ hour.

-Make sure mixture is cooled enough to handle then strain using a muslin lined strainer or colander.  Grab corners of the muslin and twist to press out all the soymilk.  The leftover parched pulp is called okara and in Japan it is often times cooked with vegetables.  Clean muslin out of all the pulp well, we will be using it again.

-Rinse pot out well and add the drained soymilk to it.  Warm gently on low till the temperature reaches 175 degrees this process will take about an hour. 

Tofu Skins

 Yuba, the skin that forms on the surface of hot soy milk is a favorite amongst the Japanese.  These  thin, egg-like sheets are delicious served simply with a dashi or soy sauce and wasabi.

-Warm soy milk gently on low till the temperature reaches 175 degrees this process will take about an hour.  You will see the skin form as the soy milk reaches desired temperature. 
-Using chopsticks gently pull out the yuba and roll it on a plate.  Once you remove the skin another one will soon form.

The tofu skins or Yuba are served room temperature. They have the consistency of a super thin omelet. It takes some time to accumulate enough yuba for a few people to eat. We added some micro greens  and herbs on top of the Yuba for a bit of crunch and hit it with some soy. You can add a  little gomasio if you would like.. The tofu skins can be made ahead of time and stacked between pieces of parchment paper.

 

Seaweed +Sesame  Gomasio

2 tablespoons toasted sesame

1 tablespoon toasted seaweed

1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

Hemp Seed Gomasio

2 tablespoons toasted hemp seeds 

1 tablespoon toasted seaweed

1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

-In a mortar add the ingredients and pound till desired coarseness.

Tofu Custards

2 cups freshly made soy milk, chilled
3/4 teaspoon dry nigari

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

-Dissolve the nigari into 1/2 cup filtered water.

-In a large measuring cup stir together the soy milk with the nigari solution and pour it into ramekins (we used 8 ramekins that held approximately 2 ounces). 

-Place the filled ramekins in baking pan and fill the pan with room temperature water, enough so that the water comes half way up the ramekins.  Cover with foil and steam in oven for 15 minutes or until the tofu is set to the consistency of a creme brulee, depending on the heat, type of nigari and the concentration in the soy milk this may take longer than the 15 minutes.  Remove from heat, cool until just warm and serve.  Can also be served at room temperature or cool and topped with sweet topping.  Will stay in the fridge for up to two days.

Mushroom Broth

4 cups filtered water
1 1/2 cup dried shitaki

soy sauce, to taste

-Boil water and pour over the mushrooms.  Allow to steep overnight.

-Strain and heat to a simmer.

-Add soy sauce to your desired preference.

We added some soba noodles and steamed pumpkin to our both along with a cube of fresh soft tofu. We garnished it with some cilantro and a bit of chili oil.

thank you April and Camille. awesome collaboration.

tofu part 1.

 On a recent trip to Nepal, I was obsessed with eating fresh homemade tofu from a tiny Japanese restaurant near our hotel. The owner of the restaurant was a Japanese woman who had been living in Nepal for many years. I had never eaten anything quite like it. We ate it both fresh and lightly fried with a spicy gingery peppery dipping sauce. The owner found it funny that we came every night to eat the same thing, but some times when you are traveling and shooting, exhaustion takes over and what is simple is best. She didn’t mind me pestering her about how she made it and after a slew of questions and some broken English, and lots of smiles I vowed to add it to my repertoire. Once home, time slipped away quickly, I forgot about the tofu until a conversation one day with Chef Camille Beccera and prop stylist/ and amazing girl about town April Flores. Camille told us that after culinary school in her early twenties, a friend told her abut a cooking position in A Zen monastery in Southern California. Being from the East Coast, she jumped at the chance to go. At the monastery, where she was just one of two girls, she both studied and cooked. She made huge batches of fresh tofu every week.  Thus, this tofu making collaboration was born.

It took us a while to get around to it but when we finally did we had a great time and I saw how incredibly easy it is.

Fresh tofu is nothing like what you buy in the stores. It is light and a little sweet with a delicate flavor of the soybeans. Commercial tofu is much more dense and not at all as subtle in flavor. Fresh tofu is best eaten the same day you make it or within a day or two of making.

Once we established that we were going to make tofu we set about thinking of a few other recipes. (more to come)

Everything we made was a bi-product of the tofu making process.

Making tofu is a lot like making a simple cheese, the process is similar to making fresh ricotta.

Thank you April and Camille for an awesome day!

Below are Camille’s notes. From our day of tofu!

TOFU

1-½ cups of high-grade soybeans

14 cups total spring or filtered water, room temperature

1-½ teaspoons dry nigari

Tools:

Blender

Large heavy bottomed pot

Muslin

Large strainer or colander

-Soak soybeans in 5 cups water for at least 12 hours. 

-Heat 6 cups of water in a heavy bottom pot.   In a blender, puree beans and their soaking liquid in 3 batches for 2 minutes each time, you may risk burning out your blender if you puree it all in one shot.   Add the puree in batches to the hot water and mix thoroughly after each time.  Allow to come up to an almost boil on a medium-low setting.  Stir frequently to avoid soybean pulp sticking to the bottom and scorching.  Keep your eyes on the mixture making sure it doesn’t boil over.  Remove from heat, cover and leave to cool for ½ hour.

-Make sure mixture is cooled enough to handle then strain using a muslin lined strainer or colander.  Grab corners of the muslin and twist to press out all the soymilk.  The leftover parched pulp is called okara and in Japan it is often times cooked with vegetables.  Clean muslin out of all the pulp well, we will be using it again.

-Rinse pot out well and add the drained soymilk to it.  Warm gently on low till the temperature reaches 175 degrees this process will take about an hour.  The skin that forms as the soymilk slowly reaches desired temperature is called yuba.   Yuba is a favorite amongst the Japanese.  Using chopsticks gently pull out the yuba and roll it on a plate, it’s classically served with soy sauce and a bit of wasabi.

-Dilute nigari into 1 cup of water.  Stir the milk in a zigzag motion a few times and while the soymilk is still moving add half of the nigari solution allowing the existing motion to transport the nigari throughout, do not stir after you add nigari.   Wait 2 minutes then gently add the remaining nigari solution around the perimeter and over the top.   Cover and let sit for 15 minutes to coagulate.  You should see the whey, a clear liquid when you gently move the curd from the side of the pot.  If not make a 1/4 batch of the nigari solution, bring milk back to 175 degrees on very, very low heat and sprinkle throughout the sides and top, do not stir, remove heat.

-Once your soymilk has coagulated line a tofu box with the clean muslin.  Set box in the sink or over a bowl.  Transfer the curds and whey into the box, do so with a large ladle so as not to break up too much of the curd.  Wrap excess muslin over top, place top part of box over muslin and use a one-pound weight to press for 30 minutes.

-Remove tofu after 30 minutes from the press and muslin.  Submerge tofu block in water for at least ½ hour and for up to two days.

beans. before and after soaking.

 heating the pureed soy bean and water mixture. 

  straining the puree

 squeeze all the soy milk from the solids. 

 What is left over is called okara. you can stir fry it with vegetables.

 reheated soy milk and nigari. should start to separate and look like this before you pour it in the tofu mold

  pour the soy milk into the mold over the sink. once most of the excess liquid has drained, place a weight on the mold to press remaining liquids

finished tofu ready to eat.

use this for the following fried tofu recipe 

 FRIED TOFU

1-pound tofu

¼ cup cornstarch

¼ cup neutral oil (canola, grape seed, etc.)

Cut tofu into 1-½ inch cubes.

Warm oil in a small to medium frying pan, make sure it doesn’t get so hot it begins to smoke.

In batches dredge tofu in cornstarch and fry till very light golden on all sides.  Adjust fire so it cooks evenly throughout.

Transfer onto a paper towel.

Serve with chili oil and soy sauce. 

winter citrus coffee cake.

Winter Citrus Coffee Cake

 I have been out West on vacation this week and finally have a moment to post this cake I made during the last (and hopefully final) snowstorm of the winter in New York.

I am calling it a winter cake but you could easily substitute any other fruit for the citrus and it would be just as tasty. I am thinking strawberries in the summer. I love winter citrus. It is always a bright spot long about February when the days seem as though they might never get longer. I was inspired to make this cake while working in San Francisco this past January. In the mornings before heading to the studio we always made a stop at Tartine. One morning we decided to cheat on Tartine and try a new place called Craftsmen & Wolves just down the block from Tartine. It has a sleeker vibe than Tartine and at first I wasn't sure about all the pastries carefully and purposefully lined up behind the glass. We ordered a scotch egg and a small coffee cake with candied citrus and espresso topping.

Needless to say they were both stellar. So this is my attempt at recreating that cake. My heart is still with Tartine, their ham and cheese croissant is out of this world. I am a savory person in the morning more so than sweet. I think that is why this cake appealed to me in the first place with it’s salty espresso top and the bitter citrus inside. If you find yourself in San Francisco, you must try both places, neither will disappoint.

Candied Citrus

I used a recipe from Martha Stewart for the candied citrus peels, as I had never made them before.

This recipe seemed straightforward and simple.

You can use any citrus you want. 

I used a variety of pink grapefruit, blood orange, bergamot lemon etc.

Scrub the citrus well to remove any residue.

2 grapefruit

2 oranges

2 lemons

1-cup sugar

With a sharp paring knife, slice off ends of grapefruits, oranges, or lemons. Following curve of fruit cut away outermost peel, leaving most of the white pith on fruit. Slice peel lengthwise into 1/4-inch-wide strips.

In a medium pot of boiling water,  (enough to generously cover the peels) cook the peels until tender, about 10 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer peel to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet; spread in a single layer to dry slightly, about 15 minutes.

In a medium saucepan, bring 1-cup sugar and 1 cup water to a boil over high, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add peel and boil until it turns translucent and syrup thickens, 8 to 10 minutes. With slotted spoon, transfer peel to wire rack, separating the pieces as needed. (As always with boiling sugar, BE CAREFUL!)

While the candied citrus is cooling make the batter.

WINTER CITRUS COFFEE CAKE WITH ESPRESSO TOPPING

2 cups all purpose white flour

1/2-teaspoon kosher salt

1-teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon of baking soda

Combine the first four ingredients in a bowl and set aside

In another bowl mix the wet ingredients.

1/2 stick of softened butter 

1/2-cup crème fraise

2 eggs

1-cup sugar

The juice of half a grapefruit ( if your batter seems at all dry add the juice of the other half)

Mix on low speed until combined

Add

The 2 cups of candied citrus peel and gently mix in by hand.

 Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet until just combined.

Use a 9 inch round cake pan or 9 inch a cast iron skillet

Grease the pan or skillet

Place 1/2 batter the batter in the pan or skillet

Spoon some of the topping over the batter

Add rest of batter

Spoon remaining topping over the batter

Topping

1/2 stick butter

1-cup flour

1/2-cup dark brown sugar

2 teaspoons of espresso fine grind

1/4-teaspoon fleur de sel

Combine all ingredients for the topping in a bowl and mix by hand with your fingers until the topping has the texture of cornmeal. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes; or until done.

 

The beautiful ceramics used in this story are from West Coast artist Jessica Niello. I picked them up in San Francisco at The Perish Trust.

out west. part one.

Greetings from Sunny California. Lula and I are having a girls week out West. We started our trip at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs and day tripped to the desert and Joshua Tree from there. Today we head to the Integratron for a crystal sound bath (trippy)  then on to 29 Palms and later to Hope Springs. It is a mini break from what seems like a long winter in the North. 

Here are a few photos from along the way. More deatails of places to eat and visit in part two.

Have a lovely day.

xx

 Yucca Valley Joshua Tree National Park

 Lula photographing at Keys View Joshua Tree National Park. View of entire Coachella Valley, Palm Springs, San Andreas Fault all the way to The Salton Sea.

 Lula Joshua Tree National Park.

Desert Veg.

hungry ghost 2012 gift guide

click on any image to get link.

I have put together a list of a few of a few things that have caught my eye over the last few months! If you are anything like me you may have left your shopping to the last minute. The storm somehow threw the whole calendar off. Speaking of the storm, this is the time of the year to think of those in need. Many of our closest neighbors were and are still affected by the hurricane. Please remember them when you sit down to make your lists. Below is a link to an organization called Smallwater, dedicated to rebuilding the Rockaway’s and offering disaster relief. Take a moment to donate to your less fortunate New York neighbors or go on line here to find a list of other organizations providing continuing disaster relief.

xx

smallwater.org

1.

 The Wild Unknown Tarot Deck / $40.00

2.

Le Labo Cedre Candle / $70.00

3.

Blackcreek Mercantile Cutting Boards 

Ranging in price from $100 to $225

4.

Juniper Ridge Wildcrafted Inscence / $12.00

5.

Vermont Qwick Lite Fire Starters /  $ 12.00 

6.

 Gather Journal / $19.99

7.

Upstate Silk Noil Kimono /  $216.00

8.

 Blackcreek Mercantile Hand Carved Utensils/ Call for pricing.

9.

 Michael Hemmer Knives Oregon/ $70.00

 10.

 Small Forest Axe. Gransfors Bruks. / $ 119.00

 11.

 Juniper Ridge Smudge Stick/ $7.99

12. 

 Nobel Handcrafted Maple Syrup/ $24.00

 13.

Mast Brothers Chocolate Bars/ $ 10.00

14. 

 

Gather Journal Shop Amethyst Crystal/ $ 35.00

15.
 

Goat Milk Organic Super Cute Kids Clothing/ Prices vary look on line at Goat Milk or available at Warm in NYC.

16.

Industry City Distillery Vodka. / $19.99 

17. 

 Santa Fe Stoneworks Lockback Knife / $55.00

18. 

 Faviken Cookbook/ 49.95

19.

 Fool Magazine/ SEK 99.00

 20.

 Bluebird Pickling Crock Brooklyn Kitchen/ $31.95

21. 

 

Wild Gourmet Food CSA From Vermont Wild Gourmet Food/ TBD depending on plan

 22.

Saltie Cookbook / $25.00

23.

Stitch and Hammer Denim Stripe and Leather Apron / $92.00

 24.

Herriot and Grace Beeswax Salve/ $18.00

25. 

Bellocq tea Atelier Hindu Holiday/ 70.00 

26.

 

 Eric Bonnin Ceramics Dinner Plate/ $60.00 available at / www.ericbonninceramics.com or Warm NYC

27. 
An Everlasting Meal: Cookong With Economy And Grace /$15.00

 

For those who really want to indulge; Mauviel Copper Pots and Pans. / $ 140.00 to 740.00

Lastly, here is a list of great alternative food/gastro magazines from Saveur to feed your soul!