Green Eating

I'm not cooking for Thanksgiving this year. My sister has taken on that responsibility. But I still need to prep. My stomach, that is. I definitely stretched it out last week and over the weekend. Yeesh. I could probably fit a good 25-pound turkey in there.

In an effort to get into bikini bathing suit better shape (I'm going to Hawaii in two weeks, woo hoo!), I've decided to change the eating workout. Six days on, one day off. This Thursday will be my day off this week. So the last few days, I've been reducing the carb intake, avoiding pre-packaged foods, and adding more fruits and vegetables. Green is good.

Today, my green intake was bok choy. I had just seen a recipe in Sunset magazine the other day and I had a few bunches sitting in the fridge. So the bok choy and tofu noodle dish was born. Now, I didn't have udon noodles so I replaced it with some whole-wheat spaghetti. A marriage of Asian and Italian, isn't it great how we can all get along?

I also had a box of this coconut milk that I had bought last month. It's not like the canned stuff, as it is much thinner. I decided to use it instead of the vegetable broth.

Baby bok choy and tofu noodle dish

Adapted from Sunset magazine

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• 8 oz. long pasta of your choice (spaghetti, udon, ramen)
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 cup vegetable broth (or try the unsweetened coconut milk beverage from Trader Joe's)
• 1 pkg. (14 oz.) firm tofu
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 1 tablespoon each minced fresh ginger and garlic
• 4 baby bok choy (about 1 lb.), leaves separated
• Salt for seasoning
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• 1. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and divide among 4 bowls. 
• 2. Cut tofu lengthwise into 3 pieces. Cut crosswise into 1/2-in. sticks and blot dry. Heat 1 tbsp. vegetable oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Brown tofu (don't stir), 4 minutes; brown on other side. Set on noodles and season with a pinch of kosher salt.
• 3. Add remaining 1 tbsp. vegetable oil to same pan over medium-high heat. Cook ginger and garlic until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add bok choy and cook until wilted, 5 minutes. Add soy sauce, sesame oil, and broth/coconut milk and cook until boiling, about 1 minute. Spoon mixture over noodles and tofu. Season with a pinch of salt and dig in!
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