Tofu Cacciatore

This is based on a recipe in the South Beach Diet Cookbook, but as usual, I’ve made substantial modifications. Still, I wanted to keep the original clever name — cacciatore means “hunter-style,” but there’s no meat in this. It brings to mind the old Gary Larson cartoon, “Early vegetarians returning from the kill,” where a bunch of cavemen are carrying a giant carrot over their heads.

1 pound extra firm tofu, cut in 1/2-inch slices
2 T olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
2 green peppers, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 C white wine
2 t basil
1 t oregano
1/2 t rosemary
28-oz can diced tomatoes, drained
2 T tomato sauce
14-oz can black beans, drained

Cover a baking sheet with paper towels and lay the tofu in a single layer. Pat it down with more paper towels to dry.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

In a very large skillet or Dutch oven, saute the onions and peppers in 1 T of olive oil for about 5 minutes, until soft. Stir in the garlic, wine, oregano, basil, rosemary, tomatoes, and tomato paste. Simmer this over medium heat while you cook the tofu.

In another skillet, heat the remaining 1 T of oil. Fry the tofu slices for a few minutes on each side, until browned. Place them in a large casserole dish or baking pan, spread the can of beans over the top, and then dump the tomato-pepper sauce over that.

Bake for about an hour, uncovered.

Serves 4 to 6.