Allergy-free Grilled Shrimp, Tofu and Mango Salad

We had a few days of hot weather a few weeks ago and in my excitement over the heat I adapted a recipe I found in a recent Martha Stewart Living to suit my allergy-wracked body and the contents of my pantry. It called for grilling extra firm tofu and that appealed to me as I had never tried it before. It also called for ginger, which I am seriously sensitive to. I left that out. It also called for mint and pineapple, which I didn't have. I  found substitutes. It was still very tasty and very refreshing on a rare hot Seattle day. I served it over cooked quinoa as the recipe suggested.

Grilled Shrimp, Tofu and Mango Salad

1 pkg. extra firm tofu, quartered lengthwise

1 pound medium shrimp, deveined

1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar

2 T honey

2 T Sweet Thai Chili Sauce

1 clove garlic

1 T cilantro, minced

juice of 1/2 lime

1 large mango, peeled and cubed

2 tsps. olive oil

1/4 coarse salt

freshly ground pepper

3 medium carrots, julienned

1/2 English cucumber, quartered lengthwise and chopped 1/4" thick

1 medium jicama, peeled and julienned

(dressing)

1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar

2 T sugar

1 tsp. coarse salt

1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper

If you use the extra firm tofu, there is no need to drain it. If you have any moisture in yours, place it between paper towels and weight it with a plate or something to drain out the excess.

Then slice it as directed. Place shrimp in a bowl. Whisk together the garlic, vinegar, honey, chili sauce and cilantro and pour over the shrimp. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.

Preheat grill or grill pan to medium. Brush tofu with oil and grill until brown, 2-3 minutes per side.  Cut into cubes. Combine shrimp with mango, tofu, carrots, cucumber and jicama in a bowl.

Make the dressing by whisking ingredients in a bowl. Pour over salad and toss well.

Feeds 4

(Weight watcher note: you can lower the points value of this dish by using sugar substitute. The original recipe in Martha Stewart Living (6 points per serving) had pineapple instead of the mango and chili paste instead of chili sauce, but the sauce I used is only 30 cal. per T and no fat. so I think the points are the same.)

Some advance prep (I made the marinade in the morning and put it in the fridge until an hour before dinner) makes this a quick dinner even during the week. Try it the next time the temperature reaches 90 degrees.

Karen