The weekend cook: Thomasina Miers’ recipes for tofu and mushroom stir-fry and macarons

I love being limited in the food I use, not least because it makes deciding what to eat that much easier. That’s one reason I was more than happy to support the recent Meat-Free Week, quite apart from the obvious health and ethical arguments. That campaign got me to think again about tofu, which I came to late in life. This bean curd-based block makes a surprisingly good natural “sponge” for other flavours, and it’s pretty healthy, too. For this week’s first recipe, I’ve tossed tofu in mushrooms, celery and aromatics, for an easy, tasty stir-fry. Today’s second recipe, meanwhile, is a welcome byproduct of a recent ice-cream-making splurge at home. The problem with ice-cream is it leaves you with egg whites, which I find irritating, because, try as I might, I am yet to learn to love meringue. Luckily, I’ve got a cracking and thoroughly authentic macaron recipe all the way from the Basque country.

Stir-fried shitake mushrooms with tofu and sherry

This is a homage to my grandmother, who made the most aromatic and tasty chop suey with chicken or pork. This version is veggie, using mushrooms and tofu instead, and it’s amazingly satisfying. Serves four.
450g tofu (if possible, use those cartons of fresh tofu stored in water)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large yellow onion, peeled
400g shitake mushrooms (or a range of mushrooms)
3 cloves garlic, peeled
2.5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled
1 large head celery
1 tbsp brown miso
½ tsp sugar
100ml hot water or stock
80ml manzanilla sherry
Brown rice or noodles, to serve
Sunflower or peanut oil
½ tsp chilli flakes
2-3 tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 large handful coriander leaves, roughly chopped
As with all stir-fries, you need your ingredients prepped and ready to go before you start cooking. Drain the tofu, cut into 2cm cubes and put in a bowl. Cover the tofu with boiling water and season with half a teaspoon of salt. Leave to soak for 15 minutes, then tip into a sieve. Meanwhile, slice the onion and mushrooms, finely chop the garlic and finely grate the ginger; put each in a separate bowl. Cut off and discard the stem of the celery head, clean the stalks and cut into 1cm rounds. Put the miso and sugar in a bowl or jug, add the hot water or stock, and leave to dissolve. Add the sherry to the miso. At this stage, boil some brown rice or noodles, whichever you prefer.
Once the noodles or rice are nearly done, you’re ready to stir-fry – it takes but minutes. Heat two tablespoons of oil in a wok and add the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper, and fry on a high heat for about 10 minutes, tossing regularly, until they have released all their liquid and it is starting to evaporate. Add the garlic, ginger and chilli, and stir-fry until the mushrooms have darkened and are golden in parts.
Transfer the mushroom mixture to a bowl, and add another two tablespoons of oil to the wok. Add the onions and fry, stirring, for five minutes, then add the celery and stir-fry for five minutes more. Return the mushrooms to the wok, together with the stock and sherry mix, bring up to simmering point and leave to bubble for a few minutes. Stir in the tofu and sesame oil, and heat through the tofu in the sauce for a few minutes – don’t stir too much, otherwise the tofu will break up. Scatter over the coriander, and serve with rice or noodles, and soy sauce and/or chilli sauce on the side.

Orange blossom macarons

Thomasina Miers’ orange blossom macaroons: ‘Deliciously crunchy and gooey.’ Photograph: Johanna Parkin for the Guardian. Food styling: Maud Eden

My take on some deliciously crunchy and gooey macarons I came across a few years ago in St Jean de Luz, a lovely village near Biarritz – I became quite nutty about them (sorry), not to mention obsessed with working out how to recreate them at home. Makes about 20.
A little oil, for greasing
100g egg whites (ie, the white from 2 large, or 3 small, eggs)
250g unrefined icing sugar
200g ground almonds
1½ tbsp orange blossom water
Zest of ½ orange
Salt
Heat the oven to 200C/390F/gas 6. Line two large baking trays with greaseproof paper and oil them lightly (if you have nonstick silicon sheets, use these instead – they are amazing: nothing sticks to them). In a large bowl, stir together half the egg whites and all the icing sugar, almonds, orange blossom water, orange zest and a pinch of salt – you should end up with a thick paste.
In a separate, spotlessly clean bowl, whisk the remaining egg whites to stiff peaks, then fold into the paste bit by bit, taking care not to knock out too much air. Dollop heaped teaspoons of the mix at least 2cm apart on the lined tray, and bake for 15-17 minutes, until golden and solid to the touch. Gently pull each macaron away from the paper while still hot, so they don’t stick, then leave to cool on the tray.

And for the rest of the week…

Any leftover pork from a Sunday roast makes a great addition to the stir-fry, as does some sliced pork belly or pancetta. I always over-buy mushrooms, so I can fry the extra in hot butter, garlic and parsley for about 15 minutes, until golden. They’re such a useful standby to have in the fridge for last-minute suppers: add cream for deluxe mushrooms on toast; or whizz with butter for a quick pâté. The macarons are very moreish, so if you worry that you’re eating too many, break up any left, stir through some freshly made vanilla ice-cream and keep in the freezer for a rainy day. It’s great with homemade chocolate sauce (as is just about everything).