Spicy Peanut & Tofu Stir-Fry

Is it possible to die of sleep deprivation? Is it normal to fall asleep in the shower? Will the baby ever sleep? I'm sure every new parent ever has asked these questions. What does this have to do with stir fry? Not a thing. Wait, maybe I can salvage a decent segue:

If someone this tired can pull off this yummy stir fry recipe, then anyone can!

Did you see that? I still have some brain function left.

Joking aside (but really, I'm so tired), This recipe is super easy to make, really healthy, and so freakin' flavorful. Join me in making it, and feel free to use it to impress your friends.

Let's get started!

Asian Tofu Chopped Salad

I would like to start this post off by saying, "who the heck knew that a head of cabbage has so much cabbage in it?" I usually just buy a pre-made type of Asian salad with similar flavors, which requires no chopping of cabbage, but decided recently that I wanted to try to make it myself. After making a huge salad AND a cabbage based soup (not part of this post), I still have so much left over! If you have any cool cabbage recipes, send them my way, please.

Aside from my cabbage surplus problem, this salad is now one of my favorites. I'm always looking for easy and healthy recipes that can be made ahead of time for lunches during the week, and this one is perfect. Most salads get all limp and yucky while waiting for their turn, but this one has some really hearty ingredients that make it perfect for meal prep. Simply add your favorite Asian style dressing the morning of, let marinade for a couple of hours, and you're good to go for lunchtime!

Vietnamese Tofu Lettuce Cups

Recently I came across a recipe in one of my cookbooks for Vietnamese Pork and Lettuce Cups that looked incredible. As per usual, the first thing I did was think about how I could turn this scrumptious looking dish into something vegetarian friendly. The usual ideas popped into my head, i.e. using mushrooms or eggplant in place of the meat, but I’ve been wanting to try tofu for a while now and decided that this would be the perfect opportunity.

Although I’ve had tofu plenty of times, I’ve never actually cooked with it myself. To be honest, I was a little unsure about how it would turn out and, specifically, whether or not it would mimic the crumbly texture of ground pork, but a quick internet search regarding how to cook tofu gave me the extra boost I needed to give it a shot.

The end result was surprisingly good, and although the texture of the cooked tofu did not quite match what I saw in the original recipe, it was nevertheless tasty. Fresh bell peppers, carrots, and peanuts added a punch of color, gave the dish the crunch it needed, and also served to keep everything together in the lettuce cups. The peanuts and bell peppers were not in the original recipe, but paired well with the ginger and garlic and gave the dish a little oomph! I will definitely be trying this one again soon.