Tempeh Bacon Sandy - aka TLT

Who doesn't love a good, smoky BLT, I ask? Well, vegans. But, many do enjoy bacon substitutes... sometimes. Alright, alright, I have a confession. I used to be scared as hell of faux meats, and still kind of am. Really. Leave me alone. I had a serious aversion to meat back in the day, so my meat aversion carried over into the faux meat category; sue me. My view on fake bacon changed somewhat when I went to The Pulse Cafe in Somerville, Mass and tried their TLT. Whoa. Holy yummy. That shit was life-altering to this scaredy cat.

When I got back home, I asked around and got a suggestion for making a smoky-flavored tempeh since I can only buy plain tempeh locally. It sounded like a pain to marinate for hours, but, really, I was just being a crybaby. It was fucking easy. You cut the tempeh, mix the marinade, put it in the fridge and then put it in the oven. Easy. Don't be lazy. *whip cracking*

If you're looking for crunchy bacon, well, I can't really help you. Maybe if you cut the tempeh super duper thin, it will work, but I don't really care as I like it kinda chewy. This recipe works to make about 12-15 slices of tempeh bacon. Maybe you can make more. Who knows!

I absolutely recommend finding some nice sourdough for your sandy. I like to lightly spray each side of each slice with a bit of an olive oil cooking spray and then grilling (frying?) it in my nonstick skillet over medium heat to crisp it up. It should look like this:

The recipe makes enough for at least 2 rather large TLTs in large sourdough slices. I'm only giving you my take on the tempeh bacon, as I am hoping you are not so stupid as to not know how to assemble as sandwich on your own. I hope this is not a mistake on my part. HA.

Ingredients for Tempeh Bacon:

•  1 - 8oz package of plain tempeh
• 1/4 cup braggs liquid aminos
• 2 1/2 TB apple cider vinegar
• 1 1/2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp maple syrup
• 1/2 heaping tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 2 1/2 tsp liquid smoke
• sprinkle of salt 

Method:

1. Lay the tempeh slices in some baking dishes, close, but not touching.
2. Get a small pot and put the liquid aminos, vinegar, brown sugar, syrup, cumin, chili powder and pepper on to a boil over a medium-high heat. Be sure to stir it well first, of course. Once boiling, mix in the liquid smoke and remove from heat. 
3. Pour over the tempeh slices and marinate a moment. I flipped mine after about 15 minutes. Then cover with plastic wrap and put in your fridge. I think mine ended up marinating about 6 hours, though you can take yours out earlier, maybe. If not, don't blame me. I went all out on the marinating.
4. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
5. Careful! Be gentle when transferring the bacon slices (again, no touching!) from the marinade dishes to the parchment-lined sheet. Then sprinkle the salt over top. Just a smidge else you will get hypertension. 

6. Now put the sheet in the oven for about 10 minutes. Then, you're gonna need to get your tongs and flip the pieces over. I gave mine a quick spray with some cooking spray. I don't know why...sheesh. Lay off. Now put them back in the oven and cook about 8 more minutes, or until the pieces are all browned and stuff. 

7. Now assemble your sandy. Though I doubt it could possibly be as good as mine! I kid. Not really.

Coconut Bacon BLT!

WHOA! My most favorite meaty dish ever was the BLT (Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato), which I have not had in a billion eons.  So, recently, I tried tempeh bacon in Boston (which was quite lovely), but, I decided today to try a recipe I've seen bandied about a lot recently on the internet: Coconut Bacon.  Who would've ever thought that coconut could be a suitable bacon substitute?  I sure as hell hadn't thought it.  But, my friend on Twitter, @VeganGoodThings wrote this killer recipe for coconut bacon.  So, being the BLT lover that I am, I tried it out.  And I love it.  I like the crispiness and the slight maple flavor. 

I made 3 small changes to the original recipe:

• slightly less maple syrup
• instead of tamari, I used Braggs Liquid Aminos because that's what I had handy
• I sprinkled mine with a bit of salt before baking

It was shockingly good and made my house smell super yummy for hours afterward.  So, it is official, I'm a coconut bacon convert.  Though my favorite is still the tempeh bacon, the coconut bacon is simple and tastes lovely.  I think it would be good sprinkled in other dishes, like pastas or salads, or maybe even in some couscous dish.  Whatever you do with it, enjoy it.