By Caroline Booth, Graduate Nutrition Student

Last night’s Test Kitchen was a wonder. Karen Jacobs generously held her open ours in spite of BU’s closure for an amazing night of bones and food. Dr. Jonathan Bethard, a BU professor in the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology gave us an enthralling talk about his career and current endeavors in the world of biological anthropology (he’s doing research near Dracula’s home in Romania). We didn’t even start cooking until half way through the night because we were too busy asking questions and examining real human bones from a Romanian medieval church’s excavation site!

Dr. Bethard explained how a skeleton’s teeth reveal many secrets about that person’s diet and where he or she grew up. Even more telling are the tartar pieces that can be found between the teeth and, in his skeleton’s case, remained intact from sometime between the 14^th and 16^th centuries—talk about needing a check up with the dentist. However, in today’s world of forensic anthropology it becomes much more difficult to identify where a person lived because people consume foods from all over the world. For instance, our honey ginger tofu and vegetable stir-fry was comprised of ingredients that came from all over, not just the Boston area.

When we got around to making this dish, it was ready in a breeze. The colors of the carrots and broccoli were so vibrant and inviting, along with the honey ginger sauce that smelled incredibly appetizing. All of us were overjoyed to warm up with such a comforting meal in the midst of a blizzard outside (that we soon had to combat on our journeys home). At the end of the night we had no leftovers to spare, but had many stories to tell. If you’re looking for a hearty pick-me-up in this cold, snowy winter I would suggest giving this recipe a chance. Share it with good company, and you’ll feel instantly satisfied.

Sargent Choice
Honey Ginger Tofu and Veggie Stir Fry

Recipe modified from Pinch of Yum

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients for the Stir Fry:
1 cup uncooked brown rice
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or canola oil
14 ounces extra firm tofu
2 cups chopped broccoli florets
2 cups shredded carrots
3 green onions, minced

Ingredients for the Stir Fry Sauce:
3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons chopped peeled fresh ginger
2 tablespoons honey
⅓ cup low sodium soy sauce
¼ cup water
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
3 tablespoons vegetable oil or canola oil

Directions
Rice:  Cook the rice according to package directions.

Sauce: Puree all of the sauce ingredients together in a food processor until smooth. Set aside. Tofu:  Cut the tofu into ½-inch slices and press with a paper towel to remove excess moisture.  Wait a few moments and press again. Cut the tofu slices into small cubes, approximately ½-inch.  Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.  When the oil is shiny, add the tofu and about ¼ cup of the stir fry sauce (CAREFUL – the oil and sauce will spatter a bit). Pan-fry the tofu until golden brown.  Remove the tofu from the pan and drain on paper towel lined plate.

Veggies:  Return the pan to the heat and add the broccoli florets with ¼ cup stir fry sauce.  When the broccoli is bright green and almost tender crisp, add the carrots and cook for an addition minute or two. Return the tofu to the pan.  Arrange the veggies and tofu over the cooked rice, and cover with more sauce to taste. Sprinkle with the green onions.

Nutrition Facts
(⅓ cup rice with 1 cup tofu and veggies in sauce)

By Caroline Patrick, Graduate Nutrition Student

At the Sargent Choice Test Kitchen we’re all about pampering our food.  During our last Test Kitchen, goers were massaging the well-deserving kale, and this week we were fanning brown rice like royalty.  I could nearly hear the granules singing, “I’m so fancy.” What exactly were we doing fawning over our beloved rice, you wonder? Well, we were prepping it for its fabulous, sticky role in sushi! Warm rice doesn’t stick to its partners very well (we all need some personal space when we get a little heated). But once the white rice vinegar is mixed in, I dare you to try and pick out one granule—you’ll come back with your fingers covered in a sticky mess.

Rolling the sushi was a lot of fun. We had a Japanese native show us exactly how it’s done. Here are a couple of her tips: take the nori (that’s the sheet of seaweed) and place the shiny side down so that you will be putting the contents on the rough side. The lines ingrained on the surface of the nori should be perpendicular to your body to facilitate the rolling.  This sea vegetable is a great source of iron, which is the most common nutrient deficiency seen around the world according to the World Health Organization (WHO).  So stop igNORIng it and get some on your plate!

Cutting the rolls and seeing the cross-sectioned pieces felt like such an accomplishment. We included a spectrum of bright colors from avocados, cucumbers, carrots, cooked sweet potatoes, and even pickled daikon radishes, which provided some yellow and were fantastic as a component in this sushi. Dip the pieces in low-sodium soy sauce, a touch of wasabi, and yum! A delicious circle of fun filled with oodles of good-for-you nutrients.

Sargent Choice Vegetarian Brown Rice Sushi
Yield 2 servings, 6 rolls each

Ingredients
2/3 cup dry short-grain brown rice
1 cup water
1 teaspoon water
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
1 teaspoon wasabi powder
2 (8 ¼ by 7 ¼ - inch) sheets roasted nori (dried layer)
½ Kirby cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/16-inch-thick matchsticks
½ medium carrot, cut into 1/16-inch-thick matchsticks
½ small California avocado, peeled and cut into thin slices
¾ ounces radish sprouts, roots trimmed
6 ounces firm tofu, cut into several long pieces

Directions

1. Prepare brown rice as directed with 1 teaspoon soy sauce.
2. While rice is standing, stir together vinegar and remaining teaspoon soy sauce.
3. Transfer rice to a wide, nonmetal bowl and sprinkle with vinegar mixture. Toss gently with a large spoon to combine. Cool rice, tossing occasionally, for about 15 minutes.
4. Stir together wasabi and teaspoon of water to form a stiff paste. Let stand for at least 15 minutes to allow flavors to develop.
5. Arrange 1 sheet of nori shiny side down on a sushi mat lengthwise. With damp fingers, gently press half the rice onto the nori with a 1 ¾–inch border on the farthest edge.
6. Starting 1-inch from the side nearest you, arrange half the cucumber matchsticks, carrot matchsticks, avocado slices, and tofu pieces in an even strip horizontally across the rice (You may need to cut pieces to fit). Repeat with half the radish sprouts, letting some sprout tops to extend beyond the edge.
7. Roll the bottom edge of mat toward the top edge while holding the filling in place and pressing firmly. Continue rolling to the top and press firmly to seal roll. Let stand for 5 minutes with the seam down and cut crosswise into 6 pieces with a wet knife.
8. Repeat steps 5-7 with the second sheet of nori.

By Caroline Patrick, Graduate Nutrition Student

October exams stressing you out? No need! I’ve got the remedy. Put on Jack Johnson’s “Banana Pancakes” and take his advice: pretend it’s the weekend and start flipping pancakes. Sargent Choice has got you covered with worry-free banana pancakes that take a hearty twist on the classic. Instead of cutting slices of banana into the batter, the batter is made up of mashed bananas. Once you combine that with whole-wheat flour—BOOM—it’s cake in a pan.

We ate our pancakes with defrosted berries (strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries, to be precise). When our Test Kitchen leader Karen Jacobs whipped out unsweetened cinnamon applesauce to go on top, I went to the flipside (a.k.a. pancake heaven).  If you’re feeling really wild, you might throw in a few chocolate chips for a decadent bite. Peanut butter or almond butter would also be fabulous toppers and make for a satisfying treat.

Fire up the skillet at your next pancake breakfast (or whenever) and throw this recipe on.  You’ll see that you don’t actually need that all-purpose flour because brown is the new white! These are just as delicious, and they’ll actually fill you up, help you keep a steady blood sugar, and keep you full until your next meal. Brain food has never been so smart. So get your short stack stat and then you can ace those tests.  Order’s up!

Sargent Choice Banana Pancakes
Recipe from 100 Days of Real Food

Yield: 10 pancakes

Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
2 eggs lightly beaten
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1¾ cup 1% milk
2 ripe bananas mashed

Maple syrup for serving

Directions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
2. Make a well (hole) in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the honey, eggs, milk, and 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Whisk together thoroughly, but do not over mix.
3. Gently fold the mashed bananas into the batter with a spatula.
4. Heat a griddle or sauté pan over medium-high heat. Spray with non-stick spray until it is well coated. Using a ½ cup measuring cup, ladle batter on to griddle.
5. When the pancakes have begun brown on the bottom, flip them over to cook the other side.
6. Serve warm with maple syrup and a side of fruit. Other serving suggestions: Peanut butter, applesauce, plain non-fat or low-fat yogurt and fruit.

Leftover pancakes can be frozen.

By Caroline Patrick, Graduate Nutrition Student

Tofu taco Tuesdays, anyone? I know it’s the month of ghosts and ghouls, but don’t let the tofu scare you away. These things were deliciously taco-licious. At Wednesday night’s Test Kitchen we had our first rendezvous of the season with tofu, and we were lucky enough to have a short presentation about what it is and how it’s made.

Here’s what I learned:
The process of producing tofu starts by adding heat and water to soybeans. Then the liquid is separated from the solids and voila soymilk! From here, tofu is made much in the same way that cheese is made from milk. The extracted soymilk is coagulated, creating the firm texture. Typically tofu is packaged in water to preserve its form and freshness. It’s important to both drain and press the tofu to extract as much of this liquid as possible, as removing excess water allows the tofu to absorb more flavors, and to brown faster.

As this dish was cooking on the stove, the smells emanating were incredible—garlic, onions, cumin and more. We could not wait to assemble our tacos! But first, a Test Kitchen-goer and Mexico native advised us to take the time to warm the tortillas in a skillet, and boy was she right. The warm tortillas made the perfect base as we piled on the tofu, tomatoes, onions, lettuce, and cheese. We also added some tang to this recipe by topping off our tacos with fat-free plain Greek yogurt. If you have some on hand, we definitely recommend you add a dollop of it in there!

You will be amazed at how flavorful and satisfying this dish is. I even had it for dinner the next night—they’re genuinely that good. Try this recipe out on your next taco night and discover the power of tofu.

Sargent Choice Tofu Tacos
Makes 10 servings

INGREDIENTS

1 (16 ounce) package of tofu, crumbled
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, minced
½ cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons chili powder
¼ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon salt
½ lime, juiced
½ cup crushed tomatoes
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
10 6-inch whole wheat tortillas
2 cups shredded lettuce
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 cup shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese
¼ cup salsa

DIRECTIONS

1. Over medium heat stir fry tofu, oil, garlic, in a large skillet for about 5 minutes.
2. Add the chili powder, paprika, cayenne, cumin, salt, lime juice, and crushed tomatoes to the skillet and stir. Cook for 3 minutes.
3. Stir in cilantro. Cook for another 30 seconds. Spoon mixture into serving bowl
4. Spoon the tofu mixture into taco shells.
5. Top the mixture with lettuce, tomatoes, cheddar cheese, and salsa.

NUTRITION FACTS: Serving 1 Taco

Last night we celebrated another successful Sargent Choice Night here at BU.  Here are some of the highlights.

Our student ambassadors Kylie and Jesse with dietitian Lauren Ferraro enjoying  their night

Jim the Baker at West Campus showing off his Whole Grain Vanilla Cupcakes

Speaking of those cupcakes - delicious!

Mixed Berry Parfaits

And as promised here are two of the favorite recipes last night, both desserts....are we surprised? Not really!

Sargent Choice Chocolate Zucchini Square

Sargent Choice Apple Crisp

A special thanks to BU Dining Services and Exec Chef Patrick Miller for helping us to put on a fabulous event!