Friends, I regret to inform you that for the second week in a row, there was no Sunday Cookout. I misjudged the timing for the little winter storm we’re going to get tonight and elected not to start the smoker when it may just as well be rained out within an hour! It’s now been three more hours, and guess what? No rain. Ah, well. What can you do?
In fact, I’ll tell you what you can do. When life gives you uncertain clipper patterns, make etouffee! We pulled a page out of Robin Robertson’s One-Pot Vegan tonight, and boy am I glad we did. So far, this cookbook is proving to be the life of the party here at Chez Recessionista, and tonight’s meal was no exception!
As with the other recipes I’ve discussed so far from this book, I’ll refrain from giving the play-by-play here. But I will say that by the time I was finished, my trusty Le Creuset was teeming with veggie goodness: zucchini, onion, bell pepper, garlic, celery, scallions, parsley, crushed tomatoes, and plenty of spices! As it simmered, the rice cooker worked away on the opposing counter, and by the time it was ready, so was the etouffee. Time to dig in!
We both absolutely adored this meal, each of us going back for heaping second helpings and wishing we had room for a third pass-by. Alas, there was no more room in the inn for either of us, so leftovers for lunch will have to do! We both loved the way the flavors mingled, the way the vegetables had softened to a crisp-tender state, the rich tomato sauce and light brothiness of the dish. Served over rice – with a dash of nutritional yeast on top, of course! – it was a wonderfully glorious meal indeed, and it felt so elegant for just another humble Sunday night. But no matter – we’ll take that sort of elegance any day of the week!
:)