Kale & Cauliflower Salad with Grilled Balsamic Tofu

I actually don’t have a real source for this recipe, it’s more of an Emily original, but the tofu marinade was inspired by this balsamic cauliflower recipe. I will warn you that the prep time for the tofu is about an hour, but you can also start those steps much earlier in the day if that works for your schedule. As is the usual, feeds 2 in my house as a main.

Tofu (Prep)

Half a block of extra firm tofu (firm is also fine)
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon marjoram
Salt & pepper

Press tofu for at least 30 minutes. I press my tofu by placing it between two reusable paper towels on a plate and then stacking 2 plates on top of it. If I’m going for just 30 minutes, I leave it out while it’s pressing. If I’m starting this step much earlier (my preferred approach) then I will leave it to press in the fridge and potentially remove the second plate if it’s really going to be a while.
When your tofu is almost done pressing, make the marinade by whisking together the olive oil, vinegar, marjoram, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
Cut your tofu into 6 1/2 inch-ish slabs.
Pour the marinade into a baking dish or something similar, and lay down your tofu slabs, giving it a good swirl to try and cover the tops.
Marinate on one side for at least 15 minutes, then flip the slabs to marinate the other side for another 15 minutes at least. I think I really ended up marinating mine for 30 minutes on each side just because of how I fit these steps into my schedule. Don’t worry about extra marinade because it will be your dressing.

Cauliflower

1 head of cauliflower
Olive oil
Salt & pepper

Preheat the oven to 425F.
Cut your cauliflower florets into bite-sized pieces.
Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.
Spread onto a (preferably lined) baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes. If you are ambitious you can toss the cauliflower halfway through but I am generally too lazy to do that.
Let it cool on the pan for a few minutes.

Kale, Almonds & Asiago

Half a bunch of kale
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup of sliced almonds
2 oz of asiago (or parmesan, but the parmesan at my store was too expensive so I bought asiago instead)

Rip the kale off its big stem into bite-sized pieces. Or if you’re feeling fancy, you can try to slice it into thin ribbon-like pieces. This is what I did because I was bored and felt like I had the time to kill while the cauliflower was roasting, but it’s not necessary.
Sprinkle a little bit of salt into the kale and squeeze/scrunch it with your hands. Ideally you would like to see the volume reduce and the kale become a nice dark green color but I’ve certainly seen some kale that just refused to undergo either of those transformations. Try a bite and if it seems less tough, you’ve done your job.
Toast the almonds over the stove on medium heat, for about 5-ish minutes or until they smell toasty and have darkened a little.
Grate your cheese, if it’s not grated already.