I wanted to start my blog off with an impressive first meal. But I didn’t plan anything special. And then it was Monday evening…
So I made a dish I had been thinking about since starting to create meal plans for kitchenlister account users. A Portuguese sausage sandwich with onions (check), olives (check), and peppers (uh, nope). I decided to substitute green cabbage for the red peppers because:
- I have two heads of it in my fridge.
- According to the Growing Washington CSA list I just read, I will be getting more of it soon.
- Green cabbage is an obvious substitute for bell peppers, right? RIGHT?
In the back of my mind, I was feeling a little worried. I might have to start my blog with a post about my failed dinner. Something like: don’t ever mix chorizo sausage with cabbage! Maybe I could go on about how it’s completely worth taking risks with your meals if it means you don’t have to go to the store. You still made something. At least you used stuff up! My dinner would serve as an example; it’s okay if it doesn’t turn out perfectly. Or I could switch directions and talk about breakfast—fresh blackberries, bread and yogurt. But then the post might only be one sentence long. Although it was tasty and pretty. See:
The Verdict
Fortunately, as it turns out, the sandwiches were DELICIOUS. In fact, I get a lot of cabbage throughout the year—and damn few peppers—so now I’m wondering. What else can I make using cabbage instead? To be clear, I’m sure the recipe would have been good as written. And I’m certain I can no longer call them Portuguese sandwiches. The meal’s success also owes some credit to the source of the ingredients. Chorizo sausage made in-house by Rain Shadow Meats. Hot dog buns from Columbia City Bakery which sells at my neighborhood farmers market. (I’m only recently discovering the pleasures of frozen bread. If you’re also a novice, this quick read about toast is a must.)
It’s only the first post, but I’ll repeat it again and again so I might as well start now. More than cooking skills, it’s the quality of the ingredients that make the meal. Here’s the final dish, served with a fresh cantaloupe salad (also based on a recipe I recently included in a kitchenlister meal plan).
If you’re interested in trying the original (or making up your own variation), here’s the recipe.
IF YOU WANT TO TRY OUT THE MEAL PLANS FOR YOURSELF, CREATE A FREE ACCOUNT.*
*Note the current meal plan may not include the recipes described in this post, or instructions for my chorizo sausage and cabbage variation.
The sandwiches detailed in this post were one of my Week in Review meals for August 22–26, 2016.