What are you afraid of?

Before I get into the "meat" (pun SO intended) of this, let me start with one of the foods that most people truly fear. Tofu. This bland gelatinous block of yuck scared the crap out of me when I saw it for the first time too. Tofu is one of those things that if eaten in moderation can really help fill the protein gap when you're trying to eat more of a vegetarian based diet. The problem is, every recipe I tried SUCKED! It tasted like a sponge. At the time that I was doing this, I was desperate. I had gotten on the whole fasting bandwagon and I was on day 5 of the super vegan vast. I was dying. I needed more protein options that didn't come in the form of a bean. In those moments of desperation I started researching ways to cook this stuff that would yield a less awful result. Here was the problem, I apparently am not the only one that can't stand the stuff, because 90% of the recipes called for frying the tofu. Now I know you want it to taste better, but frying it? Really? No thanks, I'd rather just have a piece of lean chicken.  After a few less than desirable results, I found a few gospel truths about preparing firm tofu:

Tofu gospel 1: You MUST get as much of the water that its packaged with out of the tofu. 

See the water??

I start with a pack of EXTRA FIRM tofu, drain the water cut it into four equal parts to get the most water out of the middle as possible, then put it on a cookie sheet and put a heavy plate on top. After about 10 minutes, I add another plate, 10 minutes after that, I put a heavy can or other object on top. You'll see the water pooling like crazy in the cookie sheet.

Tofu gospel 2: You MUST season/marinate for a extended amount of time

This is a marinade of 2 tbs olive oil, water, chicken bullion, salt, garlic, paprika, black pepper, and cayenne pepper

 Slice the tofu into small strips (like 7 pieces per quarter block) Then place in a marinade or season to taste. You can get creative and make ANY type of marinade you want. I do lots of different ones like orange juice, ginger, red pepper flakes, garlic, salt and pepper to make a chinese orange ginger stir fry. I also pre season with curry seasonings for when I'm making curried tofu.(yum) I let this one sit for about an hour, but usually I prep this the day before and let it sit overnight in the refrigerator.

Tofu Gospel 3: You must harden the texture

 Now this is where the deep frying and pan frying come in. Nope, Since there was 2 tbs of olive oil in that marinade, we will oven fry! Place the marinated tofu on a sheet of parchment paper (you can also add some panko bread crumbs if you're not watching carbs) and preheat your oven to 500 degrees. Yes, 500 degrees! cook until golden and crispy on the edges. You are now ready to enjoy this just like this, or with dipping sauce, or add it to a stir fry or any dish that you need to substitute meat.

Tofu is something that should be consumed in moderation. While it is a way to reduce animal fat from your diet, it shouldn't be consumed in large quantities. Soy contains natural plant estrogen. While this same plant estrogen is safe and beneficial for some things like lowering cholesterol and shrinking tumors, just like anything else, too much of anything is a bad thing. Tofu products (especially soy milk) contains phytic acid, which can inhibit the absorption of some nutrients. 


 So back to fears.
Today I felt true fear. I was seriously scared shitless today when (I still don't know how) I was convinced to start training for a half marathon with some of my friends in 12 months. I know you're thinking 12 months! That's forever away!   Let me just ask you. DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY FLIPPIN' MILES ARE IN A HALF MARATHON?!?!?! 13.1!!! Yes, THIRTEEN POINT UNO miles. I currently can kinda-sorta run one... count em'... ONE mile. I'm going to need every moment of these 12 months to get this done.
I literally started trembling after I started to grasp what I had just said yes to. My heart was and still is pounding. This is no exaggeration people, I really am scared.  I'm scared because I know it will be hard. I'm scared because I know I'll have to push so far outside my comfort zone, I'm scared of failure. But truly what I'm scared of most of all is never trying. So with that, I WILL be lacing up tomorrow and starting slow, but I'm starting.  I have a group of awesome friends and we will do this together. I hope some of you read this and decide to get on board and try something that you know in your heart needs to be done.
This one is for me.

Sonya