Perusing one of my many cookbooks a month or so ago when I was obsessing about opening a vegetarian restaurant, I came across a repeated reference to "sweating" vegetables.
The book is "Vegetarian Cooking Without" and was published in London. The "without" refers to gluten, sugar, yeast, dairy products, meat, fish or saturated fat.
I had never heard of "sweating vegetables." So what do we do?
"Google it."
The search was less fruitful than usual, but I finally found enough to kind of understand the process. I used sweating to make a vegetable curry one night (later on that recipe).
So, when my friend Darrin asked, "Have you ever had steamed vegetables with goat cheese?" I dreamed of how tasty that would be all night, and couldn’t stop thinking about it throughout my afternoon run.
It occurred to me that the sweating method of cooking vegetables would lend itself perfectly to the goat cheese combination.
The thing about sweating is, though it takes longer than steaming, I feel like the veggies maintain their nutritional value and hold together better. It’s just a feeling, no reliable research has been conducted that I know of.
Okay, here’s how to do it:
In a big pot (I use non-stick), add a little oil and some garlic. Sauté some of the garlic on medium heat for just a minute or two, add the densest of your vegetables, cook at medium for a few minutes, and then cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium low.
The right temperature will vary depending upon your stove. Unhappily mine is electric, but this method may actually work better on an electric stove.
As you cut up the remaining vegetables, add them again in order of greatest density, along with a little more garlic. (Garlic is one of my basic food groups; you can minimize or skip it altogether if not one of yours.)
I found out on my first round with this dish that carrots should go ahead of summer squash.
You can use any combination of root or other vegetables that appeals to you or that is lingering in the refrigerator awaiting its fate – table or compost?
The following is a list of the vegetables I used and the order in which I put them in the pot (or should have)

– carrots
– summer squash
– yellow beet
– red potatoes
– cauliflower
– zucchini

It took about 30-40 minutes for the vegetables to cook to the desired consistency. You can leave them, only checking a couple of times during the sweating as long as you have the temperature low enough, and the top on the pot.
When the fork tines easily pierce each family, add whatever amount of goat cheese appeals to you—I used about one-third of a 10.5-ounce package—and stir it as it melts. I also threw in a small handful of pistachios, which added some crunch and extra protein.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Easy, really yummy and nutritiously decadent.
Of course, the recipe would not be found in the "without" book.
Oh well. Serve with a simple green salad.