Hearty Baked Spinach and Tofu Casserole

I swear, this isn’t turning into a vegetarian blog!

Nothing wrong with vegetarian recipes (I often talk about ‘Meatless Monday’ being one of my favorite meals to plan each week), but you would think by the way things have looked around here lately, that I have converted.

(This is totally evident by the one and only recipe containing meat, I have posted in two full months of blogging.)

But that really isn’t so. Just the way the blogging schedule has played out (with special themed weeks) and well with the fact I have been annoyingly obsessed with the seasonal fruits and veggies as of late like always, I just can’t help all the ‘veggie’ packed recipes!

So when it comes to our “Meatless Monday” meals our usual suspects include things like eggplant parmesan, soup, salad, chili, pasta dishes, and even veggie burgers.

All chock full of veggies and usually beans for protein and that is it, our extent of vegetarian meals.

But recently I decided I needed to branch out, and broaden our vegetarian meal repertoire.

Thus incorporating things like tofu.

In the past, when I tried tofu in a few dishes, I was, well, not impressed to move forward and take the next step in our ‘food relationship.’ Then in the past year or so I decided to give tofu a second chance. After some research, and recipe testing, I concluded my favorite way to enjoy tofu is pureed to help ‘thicken’ a sauce or add a ‘creamy’ element, without diary (a.k.a tons of calories). Plus tofu is like loaded with protein, which can sometimes be ‘left out’ of vegetarian meals.

This spinach and tofu bake is a great recipe to try if you are new to tofu, as the tofu is blended to create a creamy texture without the addition of milk or cream. This casserole was surprisingly tasty and hearty to boot. Loaded with good for you things like spinach, brown rice, and oh yeah tofu; this casserole could simply be cast as a side dish, or could be the star of the show on “Meatless Monday.”

The choice is yours!

Hearty Baked Spinach and Tofu Casserole

Printable Version

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 35 minutes Serves: 6

1 (8.0 ounce package) tofu, drained

¼ cup veg broth

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced Italian tomatoes (don’t drain)
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
2 cups cooked brown rice

1 (10.0 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

1/3 cup shredded parmesan cheese

½ teaspoon each salt and black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place tofu and vegetable broth in blender; blend until completely smooth.

Heat oil in a medium sized sauté pan over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until soft about 2-3 minutes. Add in garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add tomatoes and oregano. Increase heat to high and boil for 2 minutes. Stir in tofu mixture, rice, spinach, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.

Pour casserole mixture into a casserole dish. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve topped with remaining cheese.

Adapted from Food on the Table