What do I do with this tofu?

It's not quite the same texture as cheesecake, but it tastes phenomenal.

I usually put some strawberries and blueberries in a saucepan and heat them up to make a 'syrup' and pour on top. So good!

bumping to go onto my timeline.
I've been giving tofu the eyeball in the grocery store but have no clue how to prepare.
now I think I might have to pick some up tomorrow.

is it worth the effort of going to an Asian grocery store for quality?

If it's convenient then yes. Fresh tofu is better, cheaper, and I think easier to work with. The catch is if you avoid GMO products it's almost impossible to find freshly made organic or GMO free tofu.
Google some tofu recipes and then experiment. It took me several tries before I got it right.
Good luck and enjoy

Turn it into cream pie, or brownies, or pudding...

bump

If you go to a specialty grocer you will find many different types / qualities, but I tend to buy the Whole Foods 365 brand, which is inexpensive and good. Their firm tofu works in just about anything. I use tofu in dozens and dozens of dishes for our family.

Unless you plan to blend the tofu, to use in things like smoothies or as a sub for cream in chowders, you will do best to press it. Very simple - just cut the block into even slices about a half an inch thick, then lay on a clean dish cloth. Place another clean dish cloth on top, followed by a cutting board. Put something heavy on the cutting board and just leave it alone for a few minutes. The longer you wait, the firmer the tofu will become. After 5 or 10 mins, just cook the tofu however you like. You can dice it or cut into strips after pressing and it will maintain its shape when cooking. Sometimes, I hear that people have no success cooking tofu in stir fry or whatever cause it falls apart, but pressing solves this issue.

The kids love plain or simply marinated tofu (not cooked - tofu does not require cooking, though there are many good ways to cook it). So, for the kiddos, while the tofu presses, I take a glass storage container with a lid, and add:
A tsp or so of something tangy (rice vinegar, lemon juice, etc.)
A dash of low sodium tamari or soy sauce
A 1/2 tsp or so of toasted sesame oil
A 1/2 tsp or so of agave or honey (not to make it sweet - just for balance)
Then I just whisk the marinade together, cube the pressed tofu, throw it in the container with the lid, give it a shake, and call it done. Whole process takes less than 10 minutes and it keeps for a few days in the fridge. I modify flavors / seasonings for myself and the hubby (Sriracha, lemon pepper, italian seasoning with olive oil instead of sesame oil - many options).

Enjoy! Tofu is great once you get used to preparing it. Inexpensive and healthy protein source - gotta love that!

We are soy, dairy and gluten free here, but I have two easy cheesecake type recipes if you are craving it. I don't have calories or anything calculated, though. Both use Daiya brand cream cheese style spread instead of dairy cream cheese. You can find it in a lot of the US health stores. Tofu would probably work, as they all have a similar texture.

Orange Ginger Cheese-less Cake
1.5 C GF graham cracker or gingersnap cookie crumbs (Pamela’s Ginger Bites are good)
4 T Coconut oil
2 8oz packages Daiya cream cheese style spread
1/2 C sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 C Coconut milk
1 T orange zest
1 tsp ginger powder or ¼ c crystallized ginger

Heat oven to 325°F. Make cookie crumbs in a food processor or pound in a Ziploc bag. Measure out 1 cup, then add coconut butter to the processor bowl. Mix to combine, then press into the bottom of a 9” spring form pan. Freeze or chill while preparing filling.
Place all remaining ingredients in the food processor and mix until smooth. Pour over crust.
Bake 55 to 60 minutes or until center is set; cool 15 minutes. Cover and refrigerate (8 hours or overnight is best.) Run a metal spatula around side of cheesecake to loosen, then remove side of pan. You can also bake this in a 13x9x2-inch rectangular pan and cut the cheesecake into squares. Top cheesecake with fruit compote or fresh fruit if desired.
Variation- Use strawberry Daiya and lemon zest, then top with strawberries.

This second one is like a cross between flan and cheesecake, with no crust. Very easy, as I originally got it from the children's Sunday recipe in the Caracas newspaper El Diario.

Flan de queso

Preheat the oven to 400*F. Caramelize a baking dish with 1-2 cups of sugar. Let the dish cool until the sugar is hard. Set the cooled dish into a larger pan and fill 1/2 way up the side with water. Blend all other ingredients until smooth. Pour the mixture into the baking dish. Bake 45 minutes, or until it seems set. Let chill completely after baking. Run a knife around the edge and invert onto a plate- the sugar will drizzle over the top.


1-2 cups sugar

1 package cream cheese or Daiya spread (1 cup)
2 slices of bread (GF or wheat both work fine)
1 can sweetened condensed milk (or 1 cup coconut milk)
1 can water (1 cup honey if using coconut milk)
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 stick of butter (or 1/4 cup coconut oil)

You can omit the caramelized sugar step and just pour it into small pyrex dishes for individual custards, too.