Lightly Breaded Tofu with Mushroom Gravy

So I'm usually a fan of powerful flavors, but this delicious recipe is very subtle. I don't even know how to categorize what type of cuisine it is because it's an amalgam of a few different flavors. You can adjust the spiciness by adding more cayenne pepper to the flour mixture, but I appreciated the mildness. I think the gravy itself could go well with a few different dishes, but that's a topic for another post.

1-15 ounce package firm tofu, drained and pressed
2 cups vegetable broth (or use a veggie bouillon cube + water)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground sage
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup sliced mushrooms
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced

Slice the tofu into medium sized cubes. Soak the cubes in the vegetable broth and set aside (do this step before slicing any of the veggies to allow for more time for marinating). In a shallow pan mix together the flour, cornstarch, salt, and spices. Heat the vegetable oil in a pan on medium-high heat. Drain the tofu and save 1 cup of the broth. Toss the tofu cubes in the flour mixture until fully coated and tap off excess flour (save 1 1/2 tablespoons of this mixture). Fry the cubes in the oil until lightly brown on all sides. Drain the tofu on some paper towels and set aside. In a clean pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the leftover oil on medium heat and add the garlic and green onions. Cook for a couple minutes and add the mushrooms, 1 cup of the vegetable broth and 1 1/2 tablespoons of the flour mixture. Let this sauce come to a boil and then simmer on medium heat until thickened ( about 3-5 minutes). Pour this sauce over the tofu and serve with brown rice. Yield: 4 servings