Tofu Cacciatore

One of the first recipes we've tried from "The South Beach Diet Cookbook"(Agatston 2004) was something I would not have thought to make.  I'm glad someone thought of it because it was excellent.  The Tofu Cacciatore was tender, flavorful, and filling.  I can't say how easy it was to cook as I was under the weather so I let the boyfriend have at it.  I'll say to make certain to check the dish during the baking process about 40 minutes in.  The recipe calls for an hour but ours looked as though it was drying out if left in too much longer.

The recipe also calls for light tofu.  I can't find this usually (or ever) in 'normal' grocery stores, but a good health food store such as Mother's or Whole Foods will be more likely to carry the low-fat variety.  We also substituted fresh basil for the dried since we had it on hand.  I'm also very heavy-handed on the fresh basil.  We also left out the rosemary sprig since we weren't to concerned about the presentation when it was just the two of us.

1 LB firm light tofu

1/2 medium onion, sliced

1/2 red bell pepper, sliced

1/2 green bell pepper, sliced

2 T white wine

1 large garlic clove

1 Tsp dried basil

1 Tsp dried Oregano

Pinch of allspice

1 can (28 oz) stewed tomatoes, drained

2 Tsp tomato paste

Sprig rosemary, for garnish

Cover a 17" X 11" baking sheet with paper towels.  Place the tofu in a single layer on the towels.  Cover the tofu with paper towels.  Cover the tofu with paper towels and pat down on the tofu until dry.  Remove and discard all of the paper towels and place the tofu back on the baking sheet.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat a large skillet coated with olive oil cooking spray over medium heat.  Add the onion and bell peppers and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.  Add the wine, garlic, basil, oregano, and allspice and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.  Add the tomatoes and tomato paste.  Bring to a boil and allow to simmer for 15 minutes.

Heat another large skillet coated with olive oil cooking spray over medium heat.  Add the tofu and saute for 3 minutes, or until lightly browned on both sides.  Place the browned tofu slices in a 13" X 9" baking dish and cover with the tomato sauce.

Bake for 1 hour, or until cooked through.  Garnish with the rosemary.