VegMoms

Monday’s Speedy Vegan: Spring is on its way, so that means maple trees will soon be producing more of my favorite sweetener in the world.

True, real maple syrup is extremely expensive, so we don’t always have it on hand. But it’s incredibly versatile and, like many Native American cultures, I happen to believe that because it’s so natural and so delicious there must be some health benefits to eating it, as opposed to the more refined sugars (and definitely better for you than fake, lab-made sugars).

So in honor of all maple trees, now that it’s soon to be spring, I need to make lots more vegan pancakes (already a weekly Saturday event in our kitchen), french toast, waffles and any other recipe that I can pour some maple syrup into or on top of — the following recipe does both!

Here’s my favorite recipe for Tofu French Toast by Jeanne-Marie Martin from the 1993 classic vegan cookbook Vegan Delights, one of the very first vegan cookbooks in our home and still one of our favorites:

(dipping mixture ingredients)

7-8 oz (250 g) regular tofu, crumbled

3/4 c soy milk, nut milk, coconut milk or water (we use soy milk)

1-2 TB natural light oil (like sunflower oil)

3-4 tsp. liquid sweetener (think: maple syrup here!)

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

several dashes of sea salt

bread (we like using a multigrain bread that’s flat so the tofu sticks best)

(topping suggestions below)

maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener)

stewed fruit or jam

chopped nuts and/or seeds

shredded unsweetened coconut

1. Blend all dipping mixture ingredients together in a blender or food processor.

2. Heat a well-oiled frying pan on med-high heat.

3. Dip the bread in the tofu mixture and place several slices in the hot pan.

4. Cook a few minutes on each side until lightly browned.

5. Make sure to re-oil the pan before cooking each batch.

6. Serve with toppings and coconut, if desired.

(Photo: iStockphoto.com)