The In-Between Girl

The best way that I've found is to wrap the tofu i...

2010-08-31T13:58:40.824-05:00

The best way that I've found is to wrap the tofu in a towel and weigh it down with a plate and a bunch of heavy bowls for at least 30 minutes, if not an hour first. The drier it is the better it seems to bake.

Then brushing it with some kind of oil (in this case sesame) before the final flavoring keeps that leathery texture to a minimum. I've baked tofu that has been marinated but it never gets a very good texture that way. It's almost like you have to press it again to get the moisture from the marinade out first.

This teriyaki tofu recipe is great because the teriyaki sauce is nice and thick and goopy and doesn't soak the tofu enough for it to get spongy and soggy. I've used a thick lemon sauce (think Chinese lemon chicken) as a baste with good results too.

You can put the tofu on a cooling rack on your baking sheet too if you're looking for a good crisp crust all around.

How do you bake your tofu? I have such a rough tim...

2010-08-31T13:17:05.200-05:00

How do you bake your tofu? I have such a rough time cooking with it at home.

Assuming this isn't a spam comment, if you go to t...

2010-08-10T07:11:34.452-05:00

Assuming this isn't a spam comment, if you go to the Real Food MN page (link above) the info will be there. I don't know if there are plans for another one next year.

The Real Food Minnesota Gathering looks interestin...

2010-08-09T17:02:49.765-05:00

The Real Food Minnesota Gathering looks interesting. When is this usually held?

I'm just testing the waters to see if I can get a ...

2010-08-09T11:09:54.954-05:00

I'm just testing the waters to see if I can get a Pell grant. If I can then I'm going to try and get a software development degree of some sort.

I have to dig out our 2009 tax forms first. I have a feeling I won't even qualify.

FAFSA? Good for you! What are you studying?

2010-08-09T11:04:49.465-05:00

FAFSA? Good for you! What are you studying?

Haha! Awesome, thanks Dez. ^_^

2010-08-04T09:19:21.123-05:00

Haha! Awesome, thanks Dez. ^_^

Congratulations, you're on Techdirt! :) http://te...

2010-08-04T08:56:10.383-05:00

Congratulations, you're on Techdirt! :)

http://techdirt.com/articles/20100802/22571410461.shtml

Hahaha! That's comedy gold, especially considerin...

2010-08-02T14:36:27.721-05:00

Hahaha! That's comedy gold, especially considering I never actually consented to anything because my account was sold out from under me.

I think I'm going to give some money to the EFF this month.

Apparently they're going to tell your mother too.....

2010-08-02T14:25:08.040-05:00

Apparently they're going to tell your mother too...

From their Service contract page... read the last sentence:

Civil Discourse

Any individual unable to maintain a civil communication or demeanor when in contact with USFamily.Net is asked to please take their business elsewhere. Any uncivil or obnoxious behaviors towards USFamily.Net employees can and most likely will result in immediate disconnection. Our support department is happy to attempt to help solve any technical or billing issues however USFamily.Net employees are not paid or trained to deal with difficult people, are not responsible for your behavior, equipment, telephone system connections, or failure to read and understand this contract, the priority system or the differences in our plan offerings including Unlimited (inexpensive shared) versus Dedicated (expensive always on) services. Employees are authorized to disconnect or ignore support calls or e-mails containing profanity or other uncivil communications or behaviors. We reserve the right to tell your mother.

Good riddance, I say. Submit this to techdirt.com or consumerist... I'm sure they'd have a field day.

Man, that feeling is awful. I know exactly what y...

2010-07-16T06:50:09.259-05:00

Man, that feeling is awful. I know exactly what you mean. You never feel like you belong. You always feel like you just missed that important thing, or you're just on the outskirts, trying to fight your way into the crowd. It stinks, and I sincerely hope it gets better.

Just one thing though, you mentioned the email thing with your husband. Have you ever thought that maybe the people responding to him just saw his email as a reminder? You know, they may have seen yours and (like I do all the time) said, "Oh, I'll have to remember to respond to that." Then, when your husband sent the email they said, "Oh Shit! Let me respond now before I forget again!" I could be wrong, but it could also just be a new way to view it. I'm just sayin'.

I didn't do this challenge but did want to comment...

2010-07-08T16:04:17.937-05:00

I didn't do this challenge but did want to comment.

I agree with you about the exercise. Hard to come up with an excuse not to carve out 30 minutes for a walk isn't it?

I struggle with feeding my family better but really, it's my fault because with just a little bit of planning, it would go a long way!

Okay, wow, that was really nice of you! :) Thanks ...

2010-07-07T09:57:08.937-05:00

Okay, wow, that was really nice of you! :) Thanks for the props!

Thanks so much for the shout out! :)

2010-07-06T22:49:06.473-05:00

Thanks so much for the shout out! :)

Thanks for the blog love :)

2010-07-06T20:51:58.802-05:00

Thanks for the blog love :)

BUTTER all way. Dropped the margin about 3 years ...

2010-07-06T14:58:18.494-05:00

BUTTER all way. Dropped the margin about 3 years ago. I am all about moderation not extremes.

Thanks, Julie! We're in this together! I'm going...

2010-06-29T07:32:52.557-05:00

Thanks, Julie! We're in this together! I'm going to be around a huge number of my husband's extended family, so I'll be thinking of you too. :D

congrats on no alcohol for six days! I don't drin...

2010-06-29T07:26:53.784-05:00

congrats on no alcohol for six days!

I don't drink often at home..it's the social situations that really get me.

This weekend is going to be tough for me. I will join you.

If you are abstaining from alcohol over 4th of July weekend, know that there is another blogger out in cyberspace doing the same and I'll be thinking of you! :)

Thanks, Mary! My knee has been my enemy this year...

2010-06-29T07:03:04.137-05:00

Thanks, Mary!

My knee has been my enemy this year so skating has been difficult. I think I might join the Debu-Taunts this year. :)

Social situations are always interesting when not ...

2010-06-28T20:41:41.190-05:00

Social situations are always interesting when not drinking! Good luck, I am sure you will feel great, it's a nice reset!
I can't Believe lilly is SO big!! Did you skate this year? Next?

Leave it to the food scientist to correct me. :) ...

2010-06-22T10:26:26.526-05:00

Leave it to the food scientist to correct me. :) I'm not quite to the point where I keep a shelf-life spreadsheet, but don't give me any ideas. :P

I've always called herbs and spices just simply "spices" and tend to only separate them in my head. Whoops, I guess not everyone is a mind reader. Heh. This will be corrected shortly.

Ok, I lived in MN for four years and never saw any...

2010-06-18T21:14:59.968-05:00

Ok, I lived in MN for four years and never saw anything that spectacular! All I got was a lot of snow and cold!!!! Not fair!

I love how organized you are! Sad to hear that yo...

2010-06-18T08:23:51.540-05:00

I love how organized you are! Sad to hear that you don't like grocery stores though. As you can imagine, they're a way of life for me and my family. When I was a kid, our idea of a fun weekend outing was a trip to the Apple Valley Cub Foods!
Anyway, thanks for motivating me to get more organized with my meal planning. =)

You may already know this, but there's a big diffe...

2010-06-18T08:18:35.387-05:00

You may already know this, but there's a big difference in shelf-life between dried herbs and dried spices. Spices can last for quite a while. Dried herbs are something I often avoid because I find that they add very little flavor (aside from an herby appearance) and the 6 month rule, which is spot-on, is just too hard to afford and remember. While it sounds like you might keep a detailed shelf-life spreadsheet (ha!), I have a hard time remembering what I bought at the store yesterday, much less a few months ago.
Alton Brown has some great articles on herbs and spices in one of his books. Then again, I'm a food scientist, so maybe this is just going too deep for the non-nerdy.
Regardless... Great article!

Keep at it, old friend! You've ALWAYS had such ta...

2010-06-18T07:51:02.769-05:00

Keep at it, old friend! You've ALWAYS had such talent with your words. So many people go through the day to day without an ounce of true enthusiasm for anything. And yet we're a society that so yearns for true passion (in the Americanized sense of the word), that we'll watch garbage like The Jersey Shore just to see some random people take some heart in their daily lives (however sad and misguided that heart may be).
If this blog is something that you enjoy and have "passion" for, then I encourage you to keep at it. Many have found their voice via the written word throughout history, and I'm guessing very few of them made waves in as few as 5 weeks.
Stick with this if it makes you happy, but if not, I know you will find another way to make your voice heard!