This recipe, adapted from one I found on Oh My Veggies – but minus the oil and salt, and with an extra dose of greens and spices – has become one of my kids’ favourites. If we don’t eat the whole thing in one go, they take leftovers to school for lunch the next day… and it tastes just as good cold!
Ingredients:
1 onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium red potato (about 250 g), scrubbed and finely diced
1/2 cup water or low-sodium vegetable stock
1 bunch kale, leaves stripped off stems and finely shredded
1 small red capsicum, finely diced
500 g hard tofu, drained
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp savoury yeast flakes (also sold as nutritional yeast)
1 tbsp arrowroot or cornflour
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp smoked paprika
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Method:
Preheat oven to 200ºC.
Place a medium-sized, heavy-based frying pan over high heat, and when it reaches the ‘mercury ball stage’ (i.e. water flicked into the pan forms little balls that roll around the surface before evaporating), add the diced onion. Sauté vigorously until onion is lightly browned in spots. Add garlic and potato and continue to sauté vigorously for 2 minutes.
Deglaze the pan by adding water or low-sodium stock, being careful to pour it into the side of the pan to avoid scalding.
Stir in kale and capsicum, place the lid on and turn the heat down to medium. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly. Remove from heat.
Meanwhile, place tofu, balsamic vinegar, yeast, arrowroot/cornflour and spices in the bowl of a food processor fitted with an S-blade, or a high-powered blender. Process until smooth and creamy, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.
Fold tofu mixture into vegetable mixture until evenly distributed. Scoop into a ceramic or Pyrex pie or flan dish, smoothing the top with a spatula.
Bake until firm in the centre and lightly browned, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to sit 5-10 minutes before cutting.
