Recipe - Coconut Curried Tofu and Spinach

With my husband being a vegetarian (and I a meat-eater), I have to be creative with my meatless entrees. But I have to be honest with you, I am running out of ideas.  But in this month's Fitness magazine, they have a great vegetarian slow cooker recipe that was not only easy to prepare, but delicious and healthy.  I will say that my version resulted in a lot of "gravy" and resembled a soup more than a curry but it tasted delicious nonetheless.  I also think that the next time I make this, I will brown up the tofu first to give it some more crunch and texture.  I prefer my tofu with some crunch to it versus the soft texture of the tofu in this recipe.  But this dish was very delicious and flavorful.  I will definitely make this again and perhaps for my parents.  I hope that you give this recipe a try and feel free to substitute any veggies and adjust the heat to your desire.  Enjoy....

Coconut Curried Tofu and Spinach

Yield: 4 servings
Hands-on Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours 25 minutes

Ingredients
Nonstick cooking spray
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
1/4 cup natural peanut butter
1 tsp red curry paste
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 Tbsp minced ginger
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 14-oz package firm tofu, cut into 1-inch cubes
6 oz. shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1 cup light coconut milk
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
6 cups baby spinach
3/4 cup instant brown rice or quinoa
4 lime wedges (optional)

Directions
1.  Coat the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray.  Combine cornstarch and broth in cooker until cornstarch is dissolved; stir in peanut butter, curry paste, brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic.  Add bell peppers, tofu, and mushrooms and toss gently. Cook on low 4 hours.
2.  Stir in coconut milk, lime juice, and spinach. Turn slow cooker to high; cook 15 minutes more.
3.  Cook rice or quinoa according to package directions; omitting any fat or salt.  Serve curry over rice/quinoa.  Garnish with lime wedges if desired.

Nutrition facts per serving:
347 calories, 18 gm protein, 16 gm fat (5.1 gm saturated), 7 gm fiber, 558 mg sodium

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