Lisa's Cafe

2 blocks tofu
1 large sweet onion
BBQ sauce or marinade of choice (or use recipe below)
1 loaf hearty artisan bread, like ciabatta or focaccia
4 sprigs fresh basil, stems removed
Olive oil

Rinse tofu and cut in half horizontally, making two pieces of the same width and length, but half the height. Repeat with other block. Lay all four pieces on a plate and weigh down with a heavy object (ex: a clean cutting board topped with a couple cans from the pantry). Allow to sit for 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on how firm you want your tofu. Drain excess water.

In the meantime, assemble the marinade in a 9″ baking dish. For this recipe, I like:

3/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 green onions, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, grated
1 T. tuong ot
Zest and juice of 1 lime (or 2 T. rice wine vinegar)
Freshly ground pepper

Lay tofu in a single layer in the baking dish, cover and marinate overnight, flipping once.

Caramelize the onions. Preheat a saute pan to medium high. Halve and slice the onion. Coat the pan with about a teaspoon of olive oil. Add onion slices and stir to coat. Stir occasionally for 10 minutes, then add a pinch of salt. Lower heat and cook for an additional 20 minutes, stirring no more than every few minutes.

Preheat a grill pan to high. Brush lightly with oil. Remove tofu squares, but reserve marinade, and add to pan. Grill for 3 minutes, flip. Grill for another 3 minutes.

Assemble the sandwich with bread (hollowed out some), tofu, one teaspoon of leftover marinade, caramelized onions and 5-6 basil leaves. Brush grill pan with another coat of oil. Add the entire sandwich and weigh down with another heavy, clean pan. Grill for ~2 minutes per side.

Serve! If you desire, you can also add more marinade, lettuce or sprouts, or tomato slices right before eating.