Tree Hugging Family - Living Green

Tofu Recipes for Kids

by Jennifer on February 23rd, 2008

Tofu is jam packed with good nutrients kids need, is inexpensive, and is an earth-friendly food. Plus, kids love to play with tofu, and help to make dishes with it - more fun than mashed potatoes.

Later this week I know that Peggy has some cool meatless posts planned, so I figured I’d work that in to our kid day.

So, how come tofu is so green? The main point is that it’s not meat. Meat, unlike tofu, is extremely bad for the environment.

• EarthWorks Press has noted that just one meat eater uses as much land to produce food as 20 vegetarians.
• It can take more than 15 times the amount of energy to produce pork (per pound) than it does to produce grains, veggies, and fruits (per pound).
• The Rainforest Action Network relates that producing one small hamburger is like chopping off about 55 square feet of a tropical rainforest.

There are more reasons to eat less meat - or no meat at all. But for this post, we’ll concentrate on tofu eating for the littles (and adults).

The Enchanted Broccoli Forest has one of the better kid tofu recipes - Tofu-Nut Balls. It’s a good intro for kids who haven’t been raised on tofu.

You gather:

1. 1/2 cup brown rice - uncooked
2. 1 cup water
3. dash of soy sauce (I’ve made it without soy sauce though, it was fine).
4. 1/2 pound firm organic tofu - mashed up
5. 1/2 cup ground almonds
6. 1/2 cup fine whole wheat bread crumbs

To make:

1. Mix rice and water in saucepan, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, cook until mushy. Way mushier than normal rice should be.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. Put soy sauce, 3/4 of the cooked rice, and 1/2 of the tofu in a blender and blend into a thick paste.
4. Mix the paste in a large bowl with every single ingredient you have left.
5. Form little balls with your hands (about 36) and bake for 30 minutes.

Cedar likes his with organic ketchup. The book suggests on top of pasta or veggies or as party appetizers.

Peanut, broccoli, tofu for babies.

When Cedar was little I made most of his baby food, and this one dish he loved. I’d steam broccoli until super soft, and cut that into small baby bites. Then, I’d mix a little organic peanut butter in a sauce pan with some apple juice or breast milk - until sauce-like. You toss the broccoli into a bowl with some heated medium-firm tofu squares (baby bites!). Then you drizzle the sauce over it.

For more kid-tofu fun try:

The In A Vegetarian Kitchen website - they have a great kid tofu section with items like…

• “Chicken”-Style Tofu Fajitas
• Baked Tofu Nuggets
• Macaroni and Cheese with a Secret Silken Tofu Sauce
• Creamy Corn Chowder
• Miniature Chocolate Pudding Pies

Creamy tofu pumpkin pie

Fruity tofu smoothie

A great video of the making of tofu that kids will like. You can’t let them watch the making of a hamburger for fun, now can you?

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POSTED IN: Cooking, Baking, & Treats, Health & Wellness, Organic Food & Drink, Vegetarian Life, Youth Activity