Vacation Scrounging
Wow. Five days in the North Cascades, staying in floating cabins at Ross Lake Resort, fishing, swimming, playing games. Yancey has been going since he was a kid, and every year my wonderful father-in-law Wayne pays for all of us to go up and be together. First Sunday in August, every year. In October, Wyatt starts asking, "How many days until Ross Lake?" Finally home, the kids are both sacked out, sunburned, and sugared up.
There are so many things I could say about our idyllic 5 days--Wyatt catching the biggest fish of the week, the two huge splinters in his foot, Loretta loving the speedboat, Wyatt jumping off a cliff (!!) into the water with his Uncle Charlie. But I have to tell you a Leftoverist story. This is a food blog, after all. Or at least, I'm always coming back to that.
We dread leftovers at Ross Lake because every single thing we eat has to be packed in--first in the car, then on a ferry, then on a flatbread truck, then on a speedboat across the lake, and finally into our cabins. Every year, Yancey and Wayne talk about the good old days when they would hike everything in and just eat Top Ramen. Now that girlfriends and wives are part of the picture, those days are over. So they bitch like crazy about all the totes full of food and no one wants to pack out the fruit and vegetables that were so carefully trucked in.
Kelly and Charlie made chicken gyros one night, and there were lots of leftover chopped veggies--tomatoes, peppers, onions. I opened the fridge the next day and saw ratatouille written all over it. Loretta helped me throw everything in an old dented roasting pan--anything to keep her occupied for a few minutes so she didn't go careening off the dock. The smell filled up the cabin for the next two hours, and I joyfully packed out the leftovers. STARVING tonight after being on the road for four hours and getting the kids to bed, I cooked a late dinner in true Sarah fashion. A quick quesadilla? No. I had been dreaming about ratatouille over polenta. With chevre (also packed out). So that's what I made. Scrounging even on vacation. I'm back.
Summer Ratatouille
Okay. I wasn't totally making do. You know me. I had brought my spice holster--olive oil, kosher salt, red pepper flakes, pepper grinder. And I threw a bunch of fresh basil from my garden into my cooler at the last minute just in case. You never know. And Kelly had a jar of Kalamata olives that came in handy. There wasn't any fresh garlic left, but I've included it here.
4 large red, yellow, or orange bell peppers, cut into large diced pieces
1 head garlic, peeled and separated into cloves
1 large sweet onion, roughly chopped
2 lbs. tomatoes, roughly chopped or left whole if small
4 small or 2 medium green or golden zucchini
1/2 c. pitted Kalamata olives
lots of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
red pepper flakes to taste
1/2 c. best quality olive oil
1 large bunch fresh basil, roughly chopped
Combine everything in your biggest roasting pan. Roast at 300 in the oven for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until mixture is about half the volume, the liquid is evaporated, and veggies are all sticky and blackened in spots. Serve alone, atop polenta, tossed with pasta, or pressed between bread in a panini maker.
August 6, 2009
Reader Comments (14)
First comment on the first after-vacation post! Woo Hoo! Welcome back.
ok sarah, how big was wyatt's fish? and how did you end up eating it? It's sad when you catch so much fresh rainbow trout that everybody's giving it away cause the are tired of fixing it. what a problem, i couldn't get enough of it. It was the best tasting food we had while we were there. Maybe next year you should plan all your meals around that rainbow trout, and save the men the whining about how much food we packed in. what a glorious vacation, still talking about it!!Way to go Wyatt, I knew you would finally get your fish, but I didn't know that it would end up being the trophy of the week.......and you did what? jumped off a cliff? OMG wish I could've seen you
PS we have eaten 2 day,with the leftovers, and have 2 more left to go. corn chowder with sausage and grilled peppers, all thrown into a pot and oh so tasty!
You're right--we should just take stuff to eat with fish. For years, though, the fishing was horrible and we couldn't catch any keepers. Wyatt's big fish we ate yesterday morning was so delicious. Wish you could have stayed to help us eat it. xoxoxo
Nice to have you back. I'm glad you all had a nice trip and are continuing family traditions.
Beautiful! That looks like a perfect family vacation to me.
I'm going to hold onto this ratatouille recipe because by the end of summer, when my garden is going nuts, we make ratatouille night after night. It'll be good to have a new version.
Sarah, the ratatouille sounds amazing...! I've never made it before, but you can bet I will this summer! Yummy! (And my father-in-law will be here next month... perfect time to start scrounging and put some of your fabulous recipes to use!!! :)
PERFECT idea for this ginormous zucchini I have. It is truly huge: over 2' long and 5" across at the widest point. Woah. I'll be surfing your site for other zucchini-related ideas, since there's another one waiting for me at work. I bet this freezes well once made, no?
Hey sister,
Sara, Eva (Sara's stepmom), and I went to see Julie & Julia tonight!!! Couldn't help coming back to Eva's and checking your website to see if you did the group outing. It was so funny and endearing. Thought of you and this food blog so many times while watching. What's your favorite Julia Child recipe?
Can't wait to see you, Yance, and the kids.
I had an awesome grilled eggplant, asparagus sandwich at the deYoung museum cafe. I think this would make a delicious belated birthday dinner and blog post (hint, hint).
On the way home we talked about all the things Sara has made from your blog and what a success that apple cake was with her mom and Tina + their friends. She said "I should have told Sarah" to which I replied "a comment is never to late for Sarah."
Gave the rest of your business cards out to Eva tonight for distribution. I need a new supply. Left one at store in Berkeley. A little renegade marketing never hurt anyone.
Can't wait to hear that you got 65 voice messages from book/magazines editors and publishers.
Keep commenting Folks! And if you've never commented before - it's never too late to start. Let's get Sarah up in the 30s.
xo, Em
Missed your posts, but glad you took a break. Any more lake pics/stories?
OK...so this Ratatouille might just revolutionize my summers from now on. I'm not exaggerating. I had zucchini and basil galore in the garden and I will soon have way too many tomatoes (if there is such a thing). Anyway, the dish is in my oven as I type with the smell permeating the house. It will be a late dinner, but one much anticipated. I'm sure, at times Sarah, that it can feel like the recipes you are posting are obvious...things you have thrown together a thousand times...but even the idea of letting these vegetables and garlic roast throughout the evening is something I haven't done before. Keep them coming...and thank you for all of your hard work.
I just love all your comments and enthusiasm, Jackie. This blog still doesn't feel like work to me. And when it does, I'll keep going :) Give my love to your family. I hope the ratatouille turns out perfectly.
Can't wait to welcome you home with whatever meal you request :) xoxo
Hi Sarah,,
I am making Autumn Ratatouille..eggplant, the end of the tomatos, sweet potatoes, jalapenos, garlic, onions, peppers, olives and parsley..over soft polenta with homemade chevre..thanks for all the glorious recipes!
ellen
Hi Ellen! Homemade chevre? Yum! Ratatouille with sweet potatoes sounds delicious, too...