Health By Al

We love getting Tom Yum Soup (also known as hot & sour soup) whenever we go to a Thai restaurant. It has such great flavor, and the vegetables soak it all up! This is a vegan version (it typically has fish sauce). We love it and know you will too.

Ingredients: Serves 4

Crispy Tofu:

• 1 block extra firm tofu
• 1 Tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 Tablespoons avocado oil 
• Sprinkle of sea salt

Soup:

• 1 cup favorite whole grain (we used Kamut, you could also do a brown rice)
• 2 limes
• 1 teaspoon avocado oil
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon ginger, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 8 oz. baby bella mushrooms, chopped
• 1 bunch baby bok choy, sliced vertically in half
• 1 serrano pepper, seeded & minced (remove if sensitive to spice)
• 2 Tablespoons yellow curry paste
• 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes 
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

Directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Drain the tofu and dry it well with paper towels. Cut it in half, creating two thin rectangles. Next, make three vertical cuts top to bottom, creating a total of eight strips. 
3. Tear the strips into bite sized pieces and place them in a bowl. Drizzle with the 1 tablespoon of the avocado oil and the tablespoon of cornstarch. Mix gently with a spoon. Place the bite sized pieces onto the parchment paper and sprinkle with sea salt. Bake 20-30 minutes, until crispy.
4. Cook your choice of whole grain as directed.
5. Juice the limes, and save the peels. Set aside both for later.
6. Now we will make the base of the soup. Heat the teaspoon of oil in a large pan on medium heat. Add the red onion and stir occasionally until it is starting to brown, typically 8-10 minutes.
7. Add the garlic and ginger and cook 1 minute more. Add the mushrooms, baby boy choy, and Serrano pepper and cook 8 minutes more.
8. Add the yellow curry paste and stir to coat the veggies. Add the can of diced tomatoes and cook 1 minute more.
9. Add the vegetable broth, coconut milk, and the lime peels (not the juice). Bring the soup to a boil and then turn it down and let it simmer for 10 minutes, uncovered.
10. Remove from heat and stir in the pure maple syrup and the lime juice. Garnish with cilantro, and add the crispy tofu. Serve over your favorite whole grain. Enjoy!