Tofu Rice Loaf

1 block tofu
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup ketchup, plus more for top
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1 cup brown rice, cooked
2 carrots, grated (optional)
1 zucchini, grated (optional)
10 mushrooms, chopped very fine
1 cup whole grain breadcrumbs, rolled oats, or corn flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat your oven to 350º. Remove the tofu from its container and discard the water. Place the tofu in a bowl and mash with a fork. Add the soy sauce, ketchup, mustard, salt, pepper, oregano, red pepper flakes, and parsley. Adding the spices directly to the tofu helps the tofu absorb all the flavors. Mix all the ingredients well with the tofu. Add the onions and brown rice. It is important to use brown rice in this recipe because it makes the loaf chewy and gives this loaf the texture of a traditional meat loaf. Add the vegetables and mix well. You can use any vegetables that you want. This is a good recipe to hide veggies and get your family to eat them! Oil the loaf pan with olive oil, then press the mixture into the pan with a spatula. Cover the top with more ketchup and bake for 1 hour. Let the loaf cool for 15 minutes before trying to remove it from the pan. Garnish with ketchup and parsley. Also good sliced cold for sandwiches the next day!

Mushroom Sauce

10 mushrooms, sliced
2 cups vegetarian broth
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon olive oil

Heat a skillet and sauté the mushrooms in olive oil until the mushrooms are golden brown. When the mushrooms release their juices in to the pan, keep cooking until the mushrooms absorb their juices back in. This is very important to enhance the flavor. Remove the mushrooms from the pan and keep on the side. While the pan is still hot, add the tomato paste and continually stir to caramelize a bit but make sure you do not burn it. Pour in the vegetables broth and scrape all the bits of mushroom and tomato paste from the edges of the pan, stir well and let simmer. In a separate bowl, dissolve the corn starch in a little bit of the vegetable broth until all the lumps are gone. Slowly add the cornstarch mix to the broth in the skillet, stirring continuously. The sauce will thicken as it simmers for another minute, then add the sautéed mushrooms to the broth and mix well.