Somehow, over the past month or so, I've become a vegetarian. It sort of snuck up on me. Perhaps it started after reading food lit à la Michael Pollan and "Fast Food Nation," which put a huge damper on my taste for meat, especially beef. Normally I buy frozen chicken en masse from Ralph's, defrost a breast or two for the evening's dinner and the next day's chicken salad or wrap. I also regularly incorporated ground beef and turkey in my pasta sauce, or as called for in various Weight Watchers dishes. Now that I've discovered the endless possibilities of beans, tofu (cheap! so very cheap at Trader Joe's!), and quinoa (my latest love affair...helping me recover from the lentil disaster), slick chunks of flesh don't really do it for me anymore. When I eat out, I'll order meat, usually seafood - and I never pass up an opportunity for a fresh and tasty In 'n Out burger. But cooking at home, as I so often do these days, is almost all veg.
Which brings me to what's currently cookin': Glazed Tofu Meatloaf. OK so it cheats a bit - maybe a lot - with the ground turkey, but I don't think poor tofu could properly "loaf" alone (I am willing to be proven wrong on this one...bring on the tofuloaf recipes!). But you've got a whole package of tofu in there, and half a bell pepper. Plus, I've got some Easy Brown Sugar-Glazed Carrots simmering on the side - a delightful new (veggie!) side-dish find. Considering I'm not officially a vegetarian, and that this turkey is my first grocery store meat purchase in over a month, I think I'll be OK.
The wonderful thing about both of these recipes is the minimal amount of dirty dishes they produce. The meatloaf can be accomplished with a bowl, a whisk, a saucepan and a baking dish; the carrots, just a saucepan and a spoon. As much as I love cooking, I absolutely hate doing dishes, so a small stack of dishes at the end of the night is a reason to celebrate, indeed. Perhaps a small glass of wine will do the trick...
ahh it looks so tasty!
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