Gnarly to "Bacon" :-)
You do not have to be vegan or vegetarian to enjoy these "bacon" flavored vegetable strips. They work in sandwiches, pasta dishes, with eggs (of course), or cut up and added to salads.
Back in 2015 I read about making "bacon" out of vegetables - okay, I thought, I'm in. I am an omnivore, I like meat-based, vegetable-based and grain-based meals/dishes. And I love bacon. One of the continuing conundrums for vegans and vegetarians is many of them miss bacon.
Oh sure you can get the vegan/vegetarian replacement meats (by the way I was super impressed with the Impossible Burger at Burger King - my guy said he did not think he could tell the difference - it was that good - but pricey). But like many "imitation" foods there are a lot of ingredients that go into making it taste 'similar' to the food it is attempting to imitate. I remember looking at the ingredients for a vegan cheese some years ago and it had something like 20+ ingredients, most with chemical names - nope!
So back to making vegetables taste like bacon. The ingredient which makes the flavoring really come close to bacon flavor is liquid smoke. Do NOT make the mistake of getting "smoke flavoring" - they add a lot of extra things to make it taste smoky. Wrights Liquid Hickory Smoke is just smoke captured in steam and reduced down. A little goes a long way.
I have made eggplant bacon and used it in sandwiches and more. This time I had some sweet potatoes I harvested in December from the garden. I am so bad at getting them out in late October to mid November, so by the time I get around to harvesting them many - but not all - look like that gnarly looking critter in the top shot.
So I set my mandolin on thick (less than a quarter inch - thickness will impact total cooking time), sliced it all then cut the round slices into 3 pieces each, winding up with "bacon" size slices.
I had enough for two batches from my toaster oven - I like to use it instead of the big oven when I am doing small baking/roasting as it is usually just the right amount for the two of us.
Vegetable "Bacon" Marinade
2 tablespoons Soy Sauce - you substitute Worcestershire Sauce for all or some of the Soy
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons real maple syrup (I have not tried it but you could probably use honey)
2 tablespoons olive oil (you could probably use avocado oil)
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika (do not use the hot)
1/16 teaspoon of Wrights Liquid Smoke*
*If you have those cute pinch/dash measuring spoons, a pinch is 1/16 of a teaspoon. BTW 2 tablespoons is 1/8 of a cup.
Mix all together and store in a jar. When you need to use it transfer to a ziplock bag.
Sweet Potato "Bacon"
Pre-heat oven to 325.
Line a pan with aluminum foil - you could use parchment paper, my toaster oven does not recommend paper - probably because of how close the elements are to the pans.
One sweet potato peeled (if you have unblemished sweets keep the peel on) and cut into strips - the thickness of the strips will determine how long to bake and also how crispy you want the end result.
Drain the marinade off (save and store). Lay out the strips on the pan close but not touching. Roast for 40-50 minutes turning the strips and rotating the pan half way through. (They shrink.)
I baked the first batch for 40 minutes (pictured) and the second batch for 50 minutes and got a much crispier result - BUT you need to monitor so they do not burn because of the syrup.
Remove and let cool. Use and enjoy.
I made one of my 45 second microwave eggs with this "bacon" and toast yesterday. Today I am planning on an apple, "bacon" and cheese sandwich melt.
Any sturdy vegetable would work with this. My carrots are going to be coming in more so I many try them as "bacon" too. I know I will also use my eggplants when the begin producing. Yum!
My next recipe came up because I wanted to use an abundance of sweet peppers from my garden and I have limequats too.
I am liking these one pan meals - particularly when I am not feeling well (I am battling my 2nd cold) and I can do the cutting quickly.
Amounts are totally up to you, but I will list what I used.
One-Pan Pepper, Onion, Artichoke Hearts, Limequat, Chicken Meal
Preheat oven to 425.
Prepare a pan with aluminum foil
12 small "lipstick" type peppers seeded and cut into pieces
6 limequarts, quartered and seeded (equal to abut 1 and a half lemons)
1/2 jar of Marinaded Artichoke Hearts only, plus a couple of tablespoons of the liquid
about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of chunked red onion.
1 large boneless/skinless chicken breast cut up into 2 inch chunks
In a bowl, toss all of the vegetables with a couple of tablespoons of the artichoke marinade until well coated. Spread a bit of the liquid on the foil and put all the veggies on the pan spreading out to a single layer.
Toss the chicken chunks in the bowl, add more marinade liquid to coat. Tuck the chicken pieces in among the veggies and add a bit of crushed salt (I usually you pink Himalayan Salt.
Roast 40-50 minutes, tossing the veggies and chicken once half way through and rotate the pan. The cooked pan shows some charring - I could have cooked a bit less, but I really wanted the veggies caramelized.
This was so good. What you see in the finished pan is what I had left after I served our dinner. I will use that today or tomorrow tossing with pasta and some Parmesan Cheese and chopped Parsley (I have a robust parsley plant that I am enjoying using right now).
I hope you enjoy these recipes and consider making them for yourself.
If you try the "Bacon" marinade on other type of veggies send me a comment or email and I will add the ideas to one of my next posts.
Have a best day,
Keep those in terrible circumstances in your kind thoughts, and be patient,
-- Catherine, The Herb Lady
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