Finally!
After several weeks of enduring a snow-covered backyard, we’ve hit our springtime stride. The snow and ice are gone, the sun is shining brightly, and the smoker was only too ready to be put to good use this afternoon for the first time in a good long while. I knew we had to make a splash, so I pulled out all the stops, beginning with vegetarian bacon-wrapped Brussels sprouts!
You know, for years – decades, in fact – I had no taste for Brussels sprouts. Well, actually, that’s not quite true. I had a horrible taste for Brussels sprouts. Baked, sautéed, grilled, boiled, it didn’t matter; I couldn’t stand the things. But then one day I tried something new. I tried mixing them in with some vegetarian bacon, figuring that perhaps the old motto of “everything goes better with bacon” would translate to both 1) vegetarian bacon and 2) Brussels sprouts. And, would you believe, it worked! Now, I can eat the sprouts sans bacon in nearly any form and simply adore them. I just needed the veggie bacon, in clearly the culinary equivalent of the Yalta conference, to properly introduce us.
Anyway, onto tonight’s meal. As the smoker warmed up for half an hour or so this afternoon, I carefully wrapped each sprout in a strip of veggie bacon and arranged them on a serving plate. Then I placed them on the hot grill grate – the one closest to the coals – and let them go for 90 minutes or so, or until the bacon was crispy and the sprouts were tender.
About 15 minutes into their cooking time, I placed four vegan fish filets on the top grate and sprinkled each one with a dusting of chipotle powder (one of my favorites!). They cooked for about 75 minutes and were nicely golden brown when they were ready for serving.
When we had about 10 minutes before I was ready to take up the food off the smoker, I prepared a box of couscous – which doesn’t take but a minute! The couscous continued to steam until I brought in the fish and sprouts. I love it when all the menu items are ready at once!
LeeLee and I are both big fans of vegan fish, to say nothing of our mutual adoration for bacon-wrapped sprouts and couscous, so we made short work of this meal tonight. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve got some sprouts (and one lone filet) left over for tomorrow’s lunch, but we mowed down a hearty helping apiece and then some. There’s just something wonderful about a meal cooked al fresco; it’s what Sunday afternoons are made for!
:)