Graduation was incredible: starting Friday afternoon, just a couple of hours after touch-down in Boston, it was three days of seeing old friends and teachers. A friend from SYA came to stay with me and my family for a week before he flew to Dubai, and another friend came for a weekend, but I miss Spain and all my friends nevertheless. I secured a job at a local ice-cream and take-away food place, and have been keeping myself busy rediscovering the Pioneer Valley. This includes a thorough gastronomic investigation.
One of my greatest pleasures in the kitchen comes from successfully blending Spanish and Western Mass cooking. Although our political science teacher cautioned us about the popular trend of mixing various religions or political views to create a dysfunctional ideology, the kitchen is one place where being inspired in various cultures actually works wonderfully. This is probably because cooking isn't trying to explain unanswerable questions or run a country, but simply to nourish and please. Today, I proudly pioneered a dish I'm positive would have blown my host mother's mind: jalapeño tofu migas.
That's right - I took the paprika-spiced, stir-fried bread, often served with sausage and fried egg or grapes, and gave it a vegetarian spin. I think, in retrospect, that this would also be good with some bell peppers and onions. However, it was wonderful as is!
Here's the recipe:Jalapeño Tofu Migas
3 or 4 slices of bread (the typical Spanish recipe uses a white baguette, but sourdough adds a lovely flavor; I used scraps from cucumber tea sandwiches)
paprika
olive oil (of course - this is Spanish inspired after all)
1 clove of garlic, well chopped
1/2 jalapeño, seeded and diced small
1/4-1/3 package tofu, cubed
1. Place the cubed tofu on a tray, douse with Braggs or another soy sauce, and bake in a 350ºF oven for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, grate the bread into large "crumbs". Sprinkle with water.
3. Heat olive oil in a saucepan and add the garlic and jalapeño. Let these cook for a couple of minutes, and then add a very generous amount of paprika. Stir and add the grated bread.
4. Let the bread stir-fry, stirring occasionally and kept covered when not stirring, for about 7 minutes. If it begins to stick to the pan, add more olive oil; if it looks too dry, add a tiny bit more water.
5. When the tofu has finished baking and the bread is starting to look golden, add the tofu. Stir and let cook for a little while longer.
6. Serve hot! This should make one generous serving or two small ones.
Delicious!
