Tofu Veggie Spread Recipe

When I was growing up, there was a health food store down the street from us called Cape Cod Natural Foods. While I loved 80s junk food as much as the next kid (my dad worked for Frito Lay after all and there was a giant potato chip truck parked in our driveway for the majority of my childhood), I equally enjoyed all the hippie treats my mom would buy me at the health food store, like frozen yogurt push pops, flavored honey sticks, and Panda Licorice (I still buy this stuff, it’s so good), but my favorite thing we’d get there was Tofu Veggie Spread.

I was a very picky child so it’s surprising that I liked something like Tofu Veggie Spread at all because it most definitely didn’t qualify as a typical “Kid’s Food,” but it was one of my favorite lunches to bring to school—which definitely got me some weird looks as a third grader because I’m pretty sure the majority of people didn’t even know what tofu was back then.

My mom was friendly with the owners of Cape Cod Natural Foods and they shared the recipe with her so she could make it at home, which she did from time to time over the years. She eventually shared it with me and it sat in my recipe folder for years before I decided to give it a try myself.

I posted on Instagram the first time I made it asking if anyone wanted me to share the recipe and a surprising number of people said yes. The original recipe makes a very large batch because it was served at the store’s café, so I had to experiment with it a bit to get the proportions right.

After a little trial and error, here is my take on the Tofu Veggie Spread recipe from Cape Cod Natural Foods (which is sadly no longer in business). We always ate it as a dip with blue corn chips, but I remember the café also serving it in a sandwich on pumpernickel bread, piled high with a variety of different veggies.

Tofu Veggie Spread Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 carrots

• 2 stalks celery

• 1 green pepper

• Half bunch scallions (about 4-5 small)

• 1/4 cup parsley

• 1 block extra-firm tofu (squeezed to remove excess water)

• 3-4 tablespoons mayo

• 3 tablespoons tahini

• 1 teaspoon vinegar

• 1/2 teaspoon dried mustard

• Salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste (or about 1/4 teaspoon each)

Steps:

1. In a food processor, pulse the carrots, celery, green pepper, scallions and parsley to coarsely chop.

2. In a large bowl, crumble the block of tofu into very small pieces with your hands.

3. Add the chopped veggie mixture to the bowl along with the mayo, tahini, vinegar, and spices.

4. Mix together until evenly blended and serve chilled.

For what it’s worth, the original recipe also calls for thyme, marjoram, and basil. I simplified a bit because I didn’t feel like it needed it, but feel free to add those spices in if you’d like. Part of me wonders if it really needs the tahini too (and maybe even the mayo honestly) but I haven’t tried making it without, so I can’t say for sure. I will report back if I do!

It also calls for a little bit of “Vege-Sal” which I had never heard of, but it appears to be an old-school seasoning that people on the internet are obsessed with, so I might have to buy some and try it out. When I made my last batch I used my beloved Magic Unicorn Sea Salt though, which I think is somewhat similar to Vege-Sal.

Tofu Veggie Spread keeps in the fridge for about a week or so and I’ve found that it freezes pretty well too if you have extra—which you probably will because even though I cut this recipe down quite a bit from the original, it still makes a pretty large batch.

If you end up making it, please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions for modifications. I don’t think I’ve perfected it quite yet but it’s close and I’m open to feedback because I’m not much of a recipe developer (or a food photographer but I wanted to share a pic so you had some idea of what it looked like since it isn’t a common food).