BLT - vegan style

V is for Variety and B is for Bacon

Welcome to the Vegan Month of Food (VeganMoFo)  I intend to post 20 times during the month of September – all about vegan food. Check out the gals who organize the project here, and search out other fantastic vegan bloggers. I decided on the theme of “V is for Variety” because, honestly, once I quit the chicken breast – my food choices exploded! Join me!

Is it just me, or has the American public gone crazy-bonkers over bacon? You see it everywhere nowadays: ice cream, chocolate, puddings, cakes, sprinkled on top of just about everything. Maple cured, sugar glazed, deep fried, peppered.  I've seen it wrapped around turkeys, chickens and pork roasts. I've seen it on pizzas, in soups, and of course on top of triple-decker beef burgers dripping with cheese and mayo.  All of a sudden it seems very 'manly' to eat as much bacon as you possibly can, and woe to those of us who do not choose to partake! Wimps! Turncoats! Sissies! Un-American! What's happening here?

I suppose there was a time in our history when bacon was a viable choice for a low cost protein on the plate; maybe during the depression years, served with cabbage or on white bread. Back in the days when women saved the bacon grease to reuse it. But I am telling you, those days are gone. Let them go! Look to your future. Put down the bacon. 

My mom used to make us toasted open face bacon and American cheese sandwiches and I remember that I loved them, but I did not eat a pound of bacon in a sitting! Rather, a slice or two - just enough to satisfy that craving that we humans have for fat, sugar and salt. True, bacon can satisfy that! But so can other foods, and with much less damage to our bodies. 

I could not believe my taste buds when I took my first bite of this sandwich. Fat - check! Sugar - check! Salt - check! I made these BLTs twice last week - it's that good. The second time I served it wrapped in a warm flour tortilla.....HEAVEN! :) drool ...I am telling you this tastes like bacon, but seriously, better somehow. 

So what is tempeh? It's actually soy beans and sometimes other grains (like brown rice or barley) that have been fermented and pressed into a square. You slice it and dice it and you're ready to roll. It's an ancient food and it's eaten all over the world, (except, apparently, by Americans who are eating pounds of bacon). You can saute it, marinate it, grill it. It has a super nutty and chewy taste. LOVE!  

As I set this sandwich down in front of my husband, we exchanged these few words: 

I said, “Vegan rave about this.”
He said, “When vegans rave, we must listen.”

Then we each ate two sandwiches. 'Nuff said.

Oh...here's the recipe! Zillions upon zillions of thanks to the awesome Colleen Patrick-Goudreau!