Pick-Up Stix

Anyone remember that game? Pick-up sticks? Yep, that shows my age. I was also fond of Barrel of Monkeys and Hungry, Hungry Hippo. Anyway, this post isn't about retro games. It's about my tasty new Cornmeal-Crusted Tofu Stix:

This is another recipe for my cookbook. Though I was tempted to fry these chicken-flavored tofu strips, I opted for baking so they'd be a little healthier. I'm sure they'd fry up really nice though. I'm trying to strike a good balance between fried food and healthier alternatives in my Southern vegan cookbook. I know the value of a battered, fried slab of tofu. Trust me, I live for the moments I can nosh on deep-fried goodness. But I have to watch my girlish figure, so some of my recipes are done up healthy-style.

These stix were fun finger food, and I tried dipping them in barbecue sauce, ketchup, maple-Dijon mustard, and marinara. Marinara was my fave.

I served the stix with my Dirty (South) Rice — also going in the cookbook:

It's a fusion of traditional dirty rice and classic Mexican rice. In case you don't know, dirty rice is a Cajun specialty typically made with chicken liver or giblets. Um, yuck. Mine is obviously giblet-free (what the hell is a giblet anyway?). But it has a little Cajun spicy kick.

Here's the whole plate:

In the far right corner is my Caramelized Brussels Pecan Saute, a cookbook recipe that still needs a little tweaking. Guess I've got lots more Brussels sprouts in my future.

On another note, Radioactive Vegan won the Etre the Cow novella giveaway. She had the first comment! For some reason, random.org has been picking the low numbers lately. Congrats Radioactive Vegan.