Receta Meatless in Seattle.
I eat meat. In fact I eat a lot of meat. I adore juicy chewy meaty goodness. I wasn't always a hot dog and cheeseburger loving fiend though. I had a good 12 year run of being totally meat free. Vegetarian to the core. When I was young and broke I would even sit through an entire service at the Krishna temple to eat free veggie food when that was pretty much the only place you could go and say the word vegetarian without someone looking at you like you just said you had syphilis or something. I even owned a "meat is murder" t-shirt (although it was pre-owned and happened to have pepperoni pizza stains on it). I also had two years of being vegan in which my skin turned a murky, sickly yellow. After lots of soul searching and salivation over Burger King menus it turned out it just wasn't for me. Everyone draws a line when it comes to what they will and wont eat. I just decided that my line of ethicality would be raised a little higher. Do I love animals? Sure I do. Do I love eating animals. Why yes, in fact I do. Everything on this planet that can sustain us is alive. Plants feel. It's a fact. We are animals. Some animals eat other animals. I have chosen to not eat people. That's where I draw the line. Unless of course they piss me off. Shhhh... Don't tell anyone. It'll be our little secret.
So recently my little besty friend Lucy has come to stay with us here in our cave. She happens to be a vegan who also can't cook (my lil' wife K burns water as well) so I have adapted my cookery to keep her from starving to death. Some nights we eat animal free and some nights I make her special fancy vegan meals while K and I eat a roast beast or whatnot. In the words of Lucy "who needs restaurants when you have Chef Violet to cook for you." Awww shucks.
In part one of Vegan Dinner for Lucy I made:
Zucchini "Pasta" with a Spicy Vegan Field Roast Sausage Sugo.
Here's what you need:
- 2 medium zucchini, sliced into thin strips
- 1 package of spicy vegan field roast sausage (or something similar), crumbled or thinly sliced
- vegan "butter" (we use Earth Balance fake butter which has a pretty yummy taste/texture)
- 1 small onion, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tsp harissa (or sub a little tomato paste and cayenne pepper)
- kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
- 1/2 cup vegetable stock (or water)
- vegan cheese, shredded (I like the Daiya brand jack cheese for this)
fresh dill
Using a mandoline (if you don't have one, drop what ever you are doing and go get one now) I sliced the zucchini super thin longways and with the right blade attachment it shreds them as well essentially making long, thin strips (aka fake vegetable pasta). A little blanch in boiling, salty water for 4 minutes and then shocked in cold water to stop the cooking.
In a large saute pan over medium heat cook the onions and garlic in a little vegan butter until soft (about 4 minutes). Add the sausage and harissa and cook another 3 minutes. Add the veggie stock or water to thin it out. Add the zucchini and gently stir. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the sauce thickens a bit and the zucchini is cooked through but not mushy (about 2-3 more minutes).
Plate the zucchini pasta with tongs and garnish with dill and shredded "cheese". Enjoy your delicious and satisfying meatless feast you have just amazingly prepared without the use of hippy chants. I promise this dish will not trick you into wearing harem pants or accidentally attending Burning Man. You will not get the urge to buy a digeredoo. Nope. I promise. xoxo