Something vegan - tofu scramble

I thought it was about time to post something vegan as I'm really enjoying cooking all the new recipes I have gathered since changing my diet. However, I thought I'd best begin with something that lots of vegan blog and cookbook writers seem to consider to be a vegan staple - tofu scramble. The basic idea is to make something resembling scrambled egg but without any chicken ever having been involved.
The tofu I used for this was the firm variety (as opposed to silken tofu which resembles milk jelly) and I drained it (it comes in little sealed packages of liquid). I don't think you need to bother pressing the tofu for scramble as I like the scramble to be moist. When cooking tofu for other dishes I would press it to remove some more moisture and give it a better texture. You do this by draining it and then wrapping it in a very clean tea towel and sticking something heavy on top of it for an hour or so.

Now tofu is pretty bland tasting so even a recipe for a breakfast scramble calls for the use of some spices. But fear not spicey-phobes, this doesn't make the scramble spicey but just gives it a lovely savoury flavour. If you want a bit more pep then simply add a bit more of the spices and a nice pinch of cayenne or a fresh chilli.

Another ingredient which non-vegans may not be familiar with is nutritional yeast. These can be found in most health food shops and some supermarkets. Its not the same as the yeast you bake bread with or brewing yeast but is a good way of adding a savoury and faintly nutty/cheesey flavour.

This recipe is pretty flexible and you can add plenty of different vegetables (peppers, courgettes, baby spinach leaves, etc).

Serves 2

olive oil
1 small onion (chopped into small pieces)
1 fat clove garlic (diced)
75g mushrooms (thinly sliced)
225g tofu (drained)
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1 small carrot grated (optional)

Spice blend
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp paprika
big pinch tumeric
1/2 tsp salt

Fry the onion in olive oil until softened. Add the the mushrooms and garlic and saute for about 5 minutes.

Add the spice blend and stir well. Add a little water to deglaze the pan if needed.

Crumble in the tofu and mix well. Don't mash it into tiny pieces but make sure it looks nicely crumbled and chunky (like scrambled egg).

Let it fry for about 10-15 minutes stirring occassionaly and adding splashes of water to stop from sticking too much and to keep the tofu from going too dry.

Add the lemon juice and yeast and mix well adding more water if necessary. Grate the carrot in if wanted (its mostly for colour).

Serve and enjoy (well I thought it was delicious!)