Weekend Update.

Well, here we are, coming to the end of another weekend. I’m sorry to see this one go – it was Big Fun!

So, what did we do? Well, we cooked quite a bit – more than a usual weekend! But LeeLee and I felt like we needed to make up for lost home-cooked meals since we’d eaten out several times during the week (a rarity for us). And if I do say so myself, the homemade end results weren’t really much of a sacrifice in the quality department. (I’ll let LeeLee chime in down in the comments if he disagrees. I trust he can set the record straight. :))

On Saturday morning, after my run, I prepared a recipe from a book I received for Christmas – Mixed Vegetables with Peanut Sauce from The Vegetarian Slow Cooker. I flipped the Crock-Pot to low and we promptly left for the afternoon, and when we returned, dinner was nearly complete! I just had to whip up a quick peanut sauce and mix it in with the veggies … and since we were running late for a movie, I decided to forgo the rice cooker in favor of good old Uncle Ben. Sometimes time trumps savings!

The verdict? Success! Next time I will add a little something sweet to cut the peanut sauce’s tanginess a little, but other than that I was quite pleased with how this meal turned out. It was hearty, easy to make, wonderful to eat, and gave me a chance to whip up something in a cuisine style I’m not used to cooking with. I can’t wait to give it another go!

This morning, we woke up way early to hit the early service at church, and then returned home and actually spent a rare Sunday morning truly relaxing – reading the newspaper, watching the morning news shows, drinking coffee, the whole nine yards. While we relaxed, I took 10 minutes to put tonight’s dinner in the Crock-Pot – a vegetable soup teeming with odds and ends from the pantry and crisper.

We’ll get back to dinner in a second; we have to eat lunch first! And today’s took on a more brunchy theme – the menu consisted of tofu breakfast burritos and a side of grits. It was also served much earlier than a normal lunch (try 11 o’clock on for size) because we had woken up with the sun for church. So brunch fit the bill.

I think I’m finally figuring out the tofu scramble I’ve made for nearly a decade. Recently, I added a can of tomatoes and green chiles (that’s Rotel for you brand-name people; we’re sticking with Safeway brand till there’s a sale!) to the pan as I began to sauté my tofu, and I feel like the dish is better for it. Within about 15 minutes, the liquid has evaporated and you’re left with a meaty, flavorful dish that really pops. (I also add turmeric, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and minced onion at the beginning of the cooking process; I always have. The tofu absorbs it all beautifully!)

The last time I made this scramble, LeeLee and I decided to serve it in flour tortillas to create breakfast burritos. Genius! With a base layer of refried beans and a generous portion of scramble, these burritos are perfect for a lazy Sunday morning. And we wouldn’t be Southern if we didn’t serve grits, so you’ll always find them on the menu, as well. (Next time, though, I just might sauté some home fries, instead. We shall see.)

Anyway, brunch was as well-received as ever (it could have been just because LeeLee was starving!) … and I had an extra burrito left over, which I enjoyed tonight after arriving home from an evening out with friends. :)

But before I headed out to meet friends, I needed a quick dinner! The vegetable soup was ready and waiting; about 15 minutes before I was to serve it, I put some garlic bread in the oven as well to complete the meal.

I’d not tried this particular soup configuration before (“soup configuration” – there’s a phrase that doesn’t get used often enough! :)), but I was pleased with the results. I mixed together two cans of diced tomatoes, a can of green beans, a leftover turnip (the root, not the greens), some cole-slaw mix, some potatoes, half an onion, some garlic powder, salt, and pepper, and then poured a box (four cups or so) of vegetable broth over the top, and just let the Crock-Pot do the hard work for the day. Around 3, I determined the potatoes weren’t cooking fast enough on Low, so I kicked it up to High for a couple more hours. And voila! A hearty, healthy soup that produced plenty of leftovers for this week’s lunches!

A little red wine would have complemented the meal beautifully, but I was getting ready to drive, so I held off. But next time I’ll have a bottle uncorked and ready!

So, all in all, not a bad weekend of dining-in here at Chez Recessionista. Stats to return tomorrow; in the meantime, have a great week!

:)