Every weekend, I say a little goodbye to my bright red grill for the season, absolutely certain that the following Sunday I’ll be firing up the smoker for the first time this fall. And every weekend, the weather is so beautiful that LeeLee and I feel we simply must grill out just one more time!
This weekend was no exception. With highs pushing 90 degrees, we knew we had to take advantage of the warm weather while we could, knowing that come January, we’ll be pining for the temperate days of yore.
So, with that, I began marinating my tofu with buffalo sauce in the middle of the afternoon and put a whole butternut squash in the oven to bake an hour and a half before dinnertime. (Incidentally, I don’t know why I’ve never roasted butternut squash whole before – it’s so much easier than trying to wrestle with the raw version before putting it in the oven! After 90 minutes at 425 degrees, the squash was amazingly soft, and cutting it open and scooping out the seeds was a breeze.)
Jut before I fired up the grill, I wrapped some Brussels sprouts with Morningstar Farms veggie bacon and placed them in a grill pan. Once the coals were nice and hot, I put the pan on for what would end up being about half an hour; the tofu joined in for the final 20 minutes.
The days are getting shorter, so LeeLee and I brought out some candles – tea candles set in half-pint jars – to illuminate our meal. Nothing beats a Sunday night candlelight dinner! Add a couple of Pabst Blue Ribbon beers (why not?), and this cookout was worthy of any summertime Sunday.
The food itself was great; we eschewed hoagie rolls and enjoyed our Buffalo tofu in its more natural state, using a blend of Vegenaise and leftover Buffalo sauce for a dip. The squash fell apart with every forkful; topped with a pat of butter and cinnamon, it was almost a dessert rather than a side item. And the bacon-wrapped sprouts? Well, they were not long for this world. They’re always a hit, and so easy to make!
Maybe next weekend we’ll bust out the smoker for the first time this season. Maybe not! Either way, I’m looking forward to cooking out already.
:)