Tofu Croutons

Friends, family, people of the blogesphere, I have had a breakthrough: Tofu doesn't have to suck!

If you are anything like me, you bought tofu once upon your yesteryear, with no actual idea what you were doing with it or how to cook it. You attempted some half-baked recipe only to discover it was completely DISGUSTING and vowed you'd never put your taste buds through that torture again.

Well, years later, I have been re-inspired. My sister has been harping about how much she loved the sriracha-soy tofu she had made the other day. I am not at all a spicy person, so her recipe just wasn't floating my boat, but the more she talked about tofu, the more I got thinking. Finally, after visiting my friend and her new baby the other night (welcome to the world little Everly, love you so much already!) I decided to hit the grocery store.

What is it about new life that makes me want to try new foods?

Anyway, I decided tonight to dive in there and try to find a way to make myself like tofu. I had heard about people baking it until crispy, so I decided I'd attempt a tofu crouton for my chicken Caesar salad.

Surprisingly, I LOVED them! They were the perfect blend of a crispy outside with a soft, slightly chewy inside.

Here's what I used to make them:
1 Package firm or extra firm tofu (I used the kind that's refrigerated and stored in water, not the dry, shelf stable kind)
1/2 cup yellow corn meal (more if needed)
1 tsp Garlic Salt (more if desired)

Here's how I made them:
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Pat the tofu dry and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
3. Gently roll the cubes in corn meal.
4. Place corn meal covered cubes on a greased baking sheet.
5. Sprinkle garlic salt over the cubes. Add other seasonings if desired.
6. Bake until cubes have started to slightly brown and are crunchy to the touch (Approximately 30-45 minutes).

They're best if you eat them when they're still warm. I let them cool for about 5 minutes and then dove in!

I hope you enjoy these as much as I did! They were awesome on a nice chicken Caesar salad. I'd even strongly consider making the salad without the chicken!

I know it's hard to retry a food you've previously been not so fond of, but this is almost guaranteed to change your mind about tofu!

What are your favorite tofu recipes? I'd love to experiment some more!