Happy Healthy Long Life

Happy St. Patrick's Day! How about a Seitan Reuben Sandwich?

 

Barbecued Brisket Seitan Reuben Sandwich

 

 

"The only food that I can honestly say I miss the taste of--and I won't rule out eating in the future--is a hot corned beef sandwich.  There's no substitute for that one,"  my husband likes to say.

That is:  until  November 16, 2011, when he came up with a Reuben Sandwich that's  "even better than the real thing!"   No exaggeration!

-My Husband, the Lab Rat-

 

 

Click here to get to the web version of this post, if you received it via email.

This recipe has taken me way too long to post.  Sorry!!  Really. 

HHLL readers keep asking for this recipe ever since last November--when I wrote about The Thanksgiving Corned Beef Sandwich - Family's Coming to Town - Stocking the House for Five Days of Thanksgiving Meals.

And what better time than St. Patrick's Day to try your hand at making no-oil plant-based Reubens?   Honestly, I don't think you can mess this one up--as long as you follow the directions carefully!  It just takes some time to make the seitan brisket--but it will give you four pounds--enough for plenty of sandwiches--Reubens, Philadephians & BBQ Brisket! 

Back in November tried my hand at making a barbecued brisket seitan based on a recipe that vegan Chef Chad Sarno's demoed in the film, PlanEat.

Chef Sarno's "brisket" looked delectable, but when I made it, it was clear to me that his measurements & baking times were way off.

I increased the amount of wheat gluten, modified the instructions, & increased the baking time.  The results were delicious--and I was rewarded with 4 pounds of barbecued brisket seitan, that I divided into 4 pieces, & then froze three of them.

But, you can thank the Lab Rat for coming up with the Reubens.  He's a corned beef sandwich guy from way back--and one day when I came home from work, he surprised me with Reubens for dinner.  We relished every bite.

When our kids came home for Thanksgiving they made their own Reubens & Philadephians at least two or three times. They're corned beef sandwich fans, too!

I've made this brisket recipe twice--and I'll definitely make it again.  It's easy to do--but, definitely a "pitchkey patchkey" that you want to do when you have a free morning or afternoon.

My friend Fran made a batch & served it a Ladies' Luncheon, along with some real brisket.  One of her guests kept going back for more--but, I prefer it sliced & served on a bun, or in a sandwich--topped with barbecue sauce, or grilled in a Reuben.

 

Let the Brisket-Making Begin

 

The Ingredients You'll Need on Hand

 

Barbecued Brisket Right Out of the Oven 

 

Slicing the Brisket after It's Chilled in the Fridge Overnight

 

Sliced Brisket--Ready to Make Into Sandwiches 

 

BBQ Seitan & Mashers

Trader Joe's or Alvarado Street Bakery's Sprouted Rye Bread

 

 Prepping the Sandwiches with Sauerkraut & No-Oil Thousand Island Dressing

 

Tada!  The Plant-Based No-Oil Reuben Sandwich

 

The Healthy Librarian's Riff on Chef Chad Sarno's Seitan Brisket Recipe

 

Barbecued Seitan Brisket ala Chef Chad Sarno

Click here for the recipe on one page.

Makes 4 pounds of brisket--can be sliced & frozen.

 

Ingredients

NOTE:  This is important!  You make 2 batches of the WET INGREDIENTS---one batch gets mixed with the dry ingredients--the 2nd batch is used as the braising liquid.

Ingredients--this is for just one batch of the wet ingredients--you'll need to mix this up twice (I know, it's a big pain):

• ¼ cups shoyu (low sodium tamari or soy sauce)
• 2 ½ cups low sodium vegetable stock
• 3 tablespoons date paste (or maple syrup)  I had date paste already made--you can make your own by covering pitted madjool dates in soy or almond milk overnight--pour off liquid the next day & process--add a little of liquid if it's too dry.
• 1 cups marsala wine
• ½ cups tomato paste
• 4 cloves garlic fine minced

Whisk all above ingredients well.  Then, in a separate bowl mix the dry batch:

• ½ tablespoon chipotle powder
• 2 tablespoons onion powder
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 3 1/2 to 4 cups of vital wheat gluten flour  (start with 3 1/2 cups--and add the last 1/2 cup if the mixture is still too wet to knead.  You want it to be a kneadable texture.  Not wet.  I used all 4 cups of wheat gluten)
• ¼ cups nutritional yeast

---

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

 1.  Once you have the wet and dry batches mixed separately and thoroughly, then and mix both batches together. 

2.  Knead for 3-5 minutes until it is all is mixed and elastic in texture, like a very firm dough. Add the reserved 1/2 cup of gluten if the mixture is too wet.  

3. With your hands, shape it into a loaf pressing to be no thicker than 1 to 1 1/2 inch thick.Now you¹re ready to bake it.  I used a deep 9 X 13 inch pan (like a lasagna pant).  There's a lot of braising liquid, so you need a pan that's deep enough so it doesn't  spill into the oven.

4.  For the braising liquid, make another bowl of the wet batch liquid as listed above, and pour into a very large & deep baking/roasting pan--a 9 X 13 inch with deep sides & then place the seitan loaf in the center and bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes, flip it--very carefully, baste with liquid and continue to bake for 20 more minutes. I then needed to cook for an additional 20 minutes at 375 degrees--total 60 minutes. Then I lowered the oven to 325 degrees & finished baking for about 20 more minutes, until the braising liquid had thickened into a nice glaze. 

5.  Here's what the Chef advised:  Continue this process until most of the liquid has thickened up as a glaze and the seitan is firm to the touch. Allow it to sit and firm up before use.

6.  When it had cooled, I covered it in foil--and refrigerated it overnight to firm up.   Then I cut it into 4 large pieces--to freeze what I wasn't going to use right away.  It slices beautifully when it's frozen--and is just slightly defrosted.

7.  Makes delicious "bbq brisket" sandwiches--maybe add extra bbq sauce or some of the glaze & serve on a delicious bun.  My family  LOVED it as a Reuben, grilled with a panini press, with no-fat Russian dressing, sauerkraut, & a little Daiya mozzarella cheese---or with cole slaw, Daiya, & Russian dressing.

Let me know how it turns out.  Can use it for fajitas, stir-fries--etc.

 

Healthy Librarian's Notes

Have on hand:  sauerkraut, hearty rye bread with caraway seeds, homemade Russian Dressing or deli brown mustard, & Daiya mozzarella cheese.

1.  The Reuben is best with real caraway-seeded deli rye, or TJ's or Alvarado Street Bakery's Caraway Sprouted Rye Bread.

2.  Assemble the sandwiches for grilling.  We used a little Daiya Mozzarella--and it works best to first warm up the sliced brisket for one sandwich, topped with about 2-4 tablespoons of Daiya, in the microwave before grilling the sandwich.  This way the cheese easily melts, & the brisket warms up before you grill the sandwich.  Otherwise it takes too long to get the brisket warm & the cheese melted while grilling the sandwich.

3.  Each sandwich has sauerkraut & is spread with with either brown deli mustard, or homemade no-oil Russian/Thousand Island Dressing.  

4.  We grilled them without oil on a non-stick grill pan (any pan will do), & used a heavy panini weight to press them down.

 

 My new version of No-Fat Crazy Creamy Chia Russian Dressing

1 cup of regular plain soy milk

2  tablespoons of real lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard or regular mustard  (option:  add a little horseradish for extra kick)

1/2 teaspoon salt

pinch of sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons of chia seed (or use ground chia is you don't have a VitaMix)

Mix all the ingredients in a high-speed blender until well-blended, about 1 1/2 minutes.

When it's done, remove from the blender & add 2 tablespoons of ketchup & 1-2 tablespoons of pickle relish to the mayo.

Make ahead & let this gel about 15 minutes.

Refrigerate leftovers.

 

 

The Healthy Librarian's Quick Bites: Scott Jurek's Sierra Club Interview, the Fix for BPA in Cans, Statins & Diabetes Risk, the Best & Worst Foods for Weight Loss, Plant-Resistant Family Members, & Why One Couple Decided to Give Plant-Based a Try

 

-Plant-Based Ultramarathoner Scott Jurek Wins Races on 5,500 calories/day-

 

 

"Becoming vegan wasn't like, 'Oh, I can't eat this, I can't eat that.'  It brought so many new ways to explore cooking."

 

-Scott Jurek, Sierra Club Magazine, July/August 2011-

 

I'm changing it up today with some "Quick Bites"!   Nothing too dense or heavy.  All topics that caught my eye & interest this week.  Take just a taste--or click on the links if you want to know more.

 

1.  Scott  Jurek, 37, is a vegan ultramarathoner who's "won the 100-mile Western States Endurance Run seven times.  And he does it all on a diet devoid of animal products."   He's a former hunter & fisherman, who used to live on double McChicken sandwiches & extra-large fries.  A short interview with Scott was featured in the July/August 2011 issue of Sierra Magazine caught my eye.  But, click here to learn a whole lot more about Scott: how he deals with restaurants, his favorite foods and footwear, what he thinks about barefoot running, his thoughts about the environment, and why he's a vegan, not a vegetarian.

What made him want to go vegan?   The short answer?  He switched over to a vegan diet gradually, between 1997-1999 as a way to "gain optimal health". 

Can he credit a vegan diet for his wins?  Here's what he told Kevin Gray in, "The Power Vegans,"  published in Men's Journal October, 2010.  

"What Jurek realized during his remarkable winning streak is that eating vegan allowed his muscles to heal faster between training sessions, a discovery that in turn allowed him to train more. 

'On race day everyone is looking for the magic bullet, but it really comes down to training harder.  If you can bounce back faster, you can train more,'  said Jurek. 

[His] results aren't backed by any significant studies, but his theory is sound.  Extreme exercise inflames muscles and builds up free radicals that lead to what's known as exercise-induced oxidative stress. 

High-fiber foods like fruits and vegetables are rich in naturally occuring antioxidant vitamins minerals, carotenoids, and flavonoids, which help limit inflammation in [the body, and in the] arteries.  Animal fat, on the other hand, is pro-inflammatory..."

For a link to an excerpt in Men's Journal , click here. Just scroll past Michael Douglas' story to get to it~

And don't miss this link to the Men's Journal Guide to Going Vegan that includes the "ground rules", what to expect, a shopping list, and Scott Jurek's recipes, click here.

 

2.  BPA & Canned Food--The Fix.    "Canned foods & drinks are a major source of the hormone disrupting chemical BPA, suggests new research.  But here's the good news.  When study participants SWITCHED FROM CANS TO A DIET OF FRESH FOOD, their BPA levels dropped by 60%."   Sierra Club Magazine, July/August 2011.  Read the whole article in Environmental Health Perspectives 2011 Mar 30. [Epub ahead of print], right here.

My Best BPA Tip:  No time to cook your beans from scratch?  No worries.  You can still enjoy the convenience of canned beans if you switch to the Eden Organic brand.  Not only are the linings of their cans BPA-free, but Eden cooks their beans with KOMBU SEAWEED.  So what's the big deal with kombu?  When it's added to grains or beans, it makes them more alkaline (a good thing), more tender, more digestibile, adds minerals, and best of all, reduces gas production.  No joke--it really works.  Try it out for yourself.

For more info on what's wrong with BPA, click here  and here.

 

3.  What convinced my healthy weight-lifting-cyclist friend to switch from an omnivore diet to a plant-based one?

When my friends, the Beas, turned the barbecue they were hosting last Friday night into a vegan burger barbecue I scratched my head!  Huh?  What's up with that?  This couple prefers the real thing--namely, ground beef.  Not anymore, I guess. Here's what happened:

• First, Mr. Bea started making Green Smoothies with his new power blender--increasing his vegetable intake.
• A "not so good family health history" was a powerful motivator. 
• Then the Bea's saw "Forks Over Knives," which had them on the edge of their seats.
• Days later, through some coincidental serendipitous perfect-timing magic,  Mr. Bea's business was asked to assess some storm damage at the Esselstyn's house.  Suddenly, he had a face-to-face opportunity to talk to, & question, the experts about the benefits of the plant-based no-oil diet.
• Ann Esselstyn gave Mr. Bea a copy of Dr. Esselstyn's book & some good advice on how to keep his energy high while weight-lifting & working-out.
• Then Mrs. Bea bought Mr. Bea a copy of Rip Esselstyn's Engine 2 Diet--and that's how our Friday night dinner turned into a vegan burger barbecue extraordinaire.

 

Amazing Vegan Burgers, Grilled Onions, Raisin & Pumpkin Seed Cole Slaw, Fruit Salad, Grilled Vegetables, &  Spicy Blue Potato, Roasted Corn Salad Topped with Guacamame

 

4. New Harvard Study: The top foods for weight loss--and weight gain.  When Harvard researchers wanted to figure out why the average person gains about one pound of weight a year, they carefully looked at the data collected from 120,000 nurses & health professionals who have been keeping track of their eating habits for 20 years.  Just so you know, this group is mostly white & well-educated.   The study was just published last Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine. 

Mozaffarian, D.,  "Changes in Diet & Lifestyle and Long-Term Weight Gain in Men & Women" N Engl J Med 2011 Jun 23;364(25):2392-404.  Click here for the NPR story.

The researchers knew that the advice "to eat less & exercise more" wasn't doing a thing to keep Americans from gaining weight, so they decided to analyze the foods that people were eating to figure out which ones packed on the pounds--and which ones kept them off.

The Top Foods that Promote Weight Loss:

• Yogurt (This one was the biggest surprise!  Why would yogurt hold the top rung as a weight-loss food? The researchers cite "intriguing evidence suggesting that changes in colonic bacteria might influence weight gain."
• Fruit
• Nuts
  
• Whole grains
• Vegetables--includes beans & soy
  

The Top Foods that Promote Weight Gain:

• Potato chips
• Potatoes or fries  (this category lumped together French fries, mashed, baked, & boiled potatoes--and didn't account for potato "add-ins" like butter, margarine, milk, or cheese)
  
• Processed meats, like bacon, hot dogs, & deli meats
  
• Red meat
• Sweets & desserts
• Sugar-sweetened beverages

Looking at the results, it's pretty clear to me why a plant-based, no-added oil, whole grain diet with very little sugar keeps the weight off--although I didn't need a study to tell me that.  As you'll see below, all the foods on a nutrient-dense plant-based diet fall into the negative side for weight gain. 

Too bad the diet surveys used in this study didn't have the participants to track fats, like oil, mayo, or margarine--they only tracked butter consumption.  (at least as far as I could tell from the appendix)

Coincidently, guess what my latest super-fast breakfast fave just happens to be?   Unsweetened soy yogurt topped with berries, a couple of walnuts, & a tablespoon of chia seed.  What's my go-to yogurt:  Plain Wildwood HIgh Fiber Probiotic Soyogurt.  So delicious, filling, & apparently, weight-reducing!

 

 

This Week's Breakfast Fave: Wildwood Plain Yogurt Topped with Berries, Walnuts, Peaches, & Chia.  The New England Journal of Medicine Says It's the  #1 Weight Loss Food!

 

Blog reader, Tom, who does an amazing job of keeping up with all the health news, sent me his "value-added" version of the New England Journal of Medicine's food ranking graph--along with his "easy-to-understand" explanation of why all foods aren't created equal.

 

Tom's summary:

Aside from just reading the foods down this chart,  you can roughly divide the chart into upper and lower parts:

 

A.) "Fast & High Fat Foods", e.g. a Big Mac with fries = weight gain 

B.)  Whole Foods with a Low Glycemic index, i.e. foods that are slowly rather than quickly digested = weight loss.  

 

With low glycemic foods that are slowly digested,  you don't get a large spike in blood sugar that you get with high glycemic foods such as potatoes, refined grains, sweets, sugars and fruit juices. 

 

Your body has a hard time handling the sugar spike that comes with eating easily-digested high-glycemic foods.

 

This sugar spike has several unfortunate consequences: 

•  Damage to your blood vessels
•  Developing insulin resistance and eventually Type II diabetes
•  Abnormal storage of this excess blood sugar as fats in your fat cells rather than directly burning the sugar in your regular metabolism.

 

5.  The Higher the Dose of Statins, the Higher the Risk of Diabetes--The Reasons are Unclear

"Last year, Lancet published an analysis of major statin trials involving 90,000 patients that showed statin users had a 9 percent higher risk of developing diabetes than those who didn’t take statins. But questions remained about whether the effect was real or something that may have just been due to chance."   NYT  June 21, 2011

Now,  "a just-published meta-analysis of some of the more high-profile statin trials testing the effectiveness of high-dose therapy has revealed a significant increase in the risk of diabetes mellitus associated with statin use in high doses.

Compared with moderate-dose therapy across five statin trials, investigators report that treatment with high-dose statins increased the risk of diabetes by 12%, which translates to a 20 percent overall increased risk of diabetes for high-dose statin users, compared to those who don’t take the drugs, according to the study’s senior author.

Senior investigator Dr Kausik Ray (St George's University of London, UK) said that while there might be consequences from the raised blood glucose levels, researchers do not yet know what these long-term effects mean.

The net benefit of high-dose statin therapy "is definitely in favor" of using the drugs, he said.

'One thing we do know is that there does appear to be a dose effect with statin therapy, with the risk of diabetes mellitus increasing with higher doses,' Ray told Heartwire.

'Statins have multiple effects and cause a number of changes. What we're seeing is probably an off-target effect, and right now we have no obvious mechanisms.

However, lowering LDL-cholesterol levels is probably more important than the increase in blood-sugar levels.'"  Excerpted from HeartWire June 21, 2011.   Ray, KK, "Risk of incident diabetes with intensive-dose compared with moderate-dose statin therapy:  a meta-analysis,"   JAMA  2011 Jun 22;305(24):2556-64.

So, I'm wondering...

The researchers have no clear explanation for why statins raise the risk of diabetes as the doses go up.

Is it possible that statins aren't to blame for the rise in diabetes risk?

Could it be as simple as the eating & lifestyle habits of high-dose statin-takers. 

Do statins make people worry less about what they eat, or how much they exercise--knowing that the statins will easily take care of their cholesterol for them?

Do they think statins will protect them from the negative effects of weight gain, food indulgences, or lack of exercise?   Could that account for the increased risk in diabetes as statin doses rise?

A one NYT's commenter confessed:  "Perhaps the reason people who take statins are at a slightly higher diabetes risk is because the statin - which has clearly demonstrated its effectiveness in lowering cholesterol levels- may provide one with the mirage of safety when it comes to deciding whether to avoid a food of questionable nutritional value.

I take statins and I know I eat more red meat than I would if I didn't take statins. I might also cheat a bit more on the sugar-based foods as well. Perhaps I should take my head out of the sand!"

 

6.   Are you living with a Plant-Resistant-Person?  Wondering how to help them find better health and embrace your plant-based diet?   You're not the only one with this predicament.   You've got plenty of complany.  Be sure to check out this Peas & Thank You blog post with some really down-to-earth advice. 

Make My Man Eat Plants!  It includes a terrific assortment of recipes for the Plant-Resistant-Person in your life.

 

My Husband's Not Plant-Resistant, But Boy Did He Love this "Chicken Burger" Recipe

It's sure to please the pickiest plant-resistant-person  (based on an old Perdue Chicken Burger favorite of mine)

 

Makes 5 big burgers--Prep time:  15 minutes

1 pound package of MATCH "Chicken",  thawed

1 cup whole wheat Panko crumbs

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped red pepper

3 TBS. worcestershire sauce (vegan or regular)

1 TBS. dry mustard

1 TBS. Dijon or brown mustard

2 TBS. ketchup

1 1/2 tsp. Bone Suckin' sauce Seasoing & Rub (or another spicy Cajun mix)

1 tsp. curry powder

Feel free to come up with your own spice mix!

Mix all the ingredients together.  Form into patties.  Spray very lightly with a canola spray to prevent sticking to the grill.

Grill on medium for about 5 minutes on each side--until grill marks appear, and burgers are firm, & look done.   Do not overcook.

Top with grilled onions or sprouts, & pass the ketchup.   I like to use Alvarado Street Sprouted Burger Buns.  Enjoy the leftovers.

Cook's Notes:  When you're short on time, this really beats mashing beans, & chopping ingredients to make your own veggie burgers.  

 

A Husband-Pleasing Hearty "Chicken" Burger with Oven-Roasted Potatoes

 

Check out the July/August 2011 issue of Natural Health for recipes for the "The Best Veggie Burgers in the the U.S".  Make 'em at home.  pg. 80

 

Meet My Favorite Fauxs - MATCH Grilled Burgers, Italian Meatballs & Field Roast Gourmet Sausages - Plus, Garlicky Roasted Broccoli, Chickpeas, Potatoes with Chorizo

 

Fettucine & Meatballs in a Minute

 

 

1.  If the idea of using a "faux" meat product even once-in-awhile is appalling to you, just skip this post.

2.  If you can't eat soy, gluten, natural flavorings, or a little added oil, stop right now.

 

If you received this post via email, click here to get to the web version & links.

But, if you're like me, and sometimes on a busy night you'd love to have spaghetti & meatballs in a flash--without much effort--& you don't want to take an hour to make your own "beanballs"--keep on reading.

Or if once in awhile a little bit of Field Roast Mexican style chipotle chorizo, or Italian sausage would add just the right kick to your pizza, chili, roasted 40 clove broccoli, potato, &  chickpea creation, split pea soup, or scrambled tofu--you've come to the right place!

Summer's almost here.  Time to start firing up that grill!   Do you ever just once-in-a-while think about grilling a hand-made burger that's seasoned just the way you want it to be?   And I'm not talking Boca Burgers!  What about a change from the standard grilled portobello or black bean burger?

I'm talking about a burger that looks, grills & tastes pretty darn close to an old-fashioned grilled burger without the fat?  Well, I've got the solution.

And what about those meat-loving-vegan-resistant spouses, kids, or dinner guests?  My favorite fauxs, Match & Field Roast, just might move them further along on the plant-strong continuum.   

Think of these fauxs as friends or Vegan Training Wheels!

Introducing my once-in-awhile favorite fauxs.

The old stand-by:  Field Roast Sausage

The new kid-on-the-block:  Match Gourmet Vegan Meat Alternative

For me, these are every-once-in-awhile treats--on days when I'm feeling lazy--have no leftovers in the fridge--no time to cook--or when just a little bit of crumbled Italian, Chipotle, or Apple Sage "sausage" will turn a good recipe into an extraordinary one!

 

Meet the Meatless Match

 

I discovered Match, in The Pritikin Edge, written by Dr. Robert A. Vogel & Paul Tager Lehr.   The Pritikin Program has been around for fifty years, founded by Nathan Pritikin.  It was the first comprehensive lifestyle program to successfully treat obesity, heart disease, and diabetes with a low fat whole foods diet along with exercise. 

Its medical director is Dr. Robert Vogel--the University of Maryland researcher who pioneered the use of the brachial artery tourniquet test (FMD) to measure the effects of specific foods on arterial endothelial function.   Turns out, a McDonald's meal flunked the test.  Olive oil got a big F.  Vegetables, fruits, vinegar, high omega-3 fish & canola oil all passed.  Click here for the high-fat meal study and here for Vogel's  Mediterranean foods study.

Although the Pritikin program does allow 15-20% of daily calories (compared to Esselstyn's 9-12%) to come from the naturally occuring fat found in foods--it doesn't use oil or fat for cooking, except for an occasional spritz of a cooking spray to prevent sticking.  But, Pritikin is not exclusively plant-based.

Enter Match!  My curiosity was piqued when I read that the Pritikin Program special orders Match's Italian "Sausage" for its "meatless" meatballs, and they highly recommend it.  I was curious about this meatless product and checked out their website.  Turns out you really have to be resourceful if you want to buy Match.  It's made in St. Louis, so it's widely availabe all over Missouri  (and St. Louis-ians love Match), but it can be only be found in about 10 other states.  Click here for those locations.

For all the rest of us, if you want to try Match, you'll need to order it online, at one of three locations that carry it.  Or try & convince your local market to carry it!   Click here for the online locations.

 

What Exactly is Match?

 

The Marketing Pitch (definitely aimed at meat-lovers wanting a healthier alternative--might be a big turn-off to those already plant-strong):

"MATCH® premium meat alternative looks like meat. It tastes like meat. It prepares like meat. Because it is meat – from a healthier source. 

 MATCH® is a gourmet-quality vegan match for animal meat. So it provides the taste, texture and nutrition meat lovers want, without the saturated fats, cholesterol, hormones or antibiotics of animal meat.

It not only cuts out saturated fats, cholesterol and hormones; it also cuts down on prep time.  So the meals you love are not only better for you; they’re also quicker. Cook with it, taste it, love it....MATCH® will exceed your expectations."  (Me: It exceeded mine!)

OK, forget the marketing hype, what exactly is this stuff?

It's plain old no-fat textured vegetable soy protein, wheat gluten, a little canola oil (a deal-breaker for some of you), and natural flavorings.  It's not fat-free.  It's not salt free.  I look at it like a once-in-awhile indulgence.

And if you have family members or dinner guests who aren't quite ready to make the plant-based leap--this just may do the trick!  This stuff is nothing like Boca Burgers or Veggie Crumbles.  The texture is just right and it's easy to cook!  I hear their "crab cakes" are fantastic.

 

You use it & season it just like would ground beef, chicken, or crab--because it comes in one pound bulk packages.  Just thaw it overnight & use it anyway you like--in burgers, chilis, tacos, meatloaves, casseroles or on the grill.  For guidelines for cooking with Match, click here.   For videos on cooking with Match, click here. 

Match chicken is great on the grill and used in fajitas or on top of salads.  My daughter-in-law's friends in the Loo (St. Louis) are big fans!

Don't want to cook an entire pound?  Just refreeze it--or it stays fresh in the fridge for 5 days, and it can be frozen for a year.  It's not meat!

There's a 27 page Chef's guide that provides cooking suggestions, recipes, applications, and answers to all your questions.  You'll find that here, under Match's Chef's Guide.   Be sure to check this out if Match sounds interesting to you.

My story:  I had heard rave reviews about this product, and since we were going to be driving to Match's hometown, St. Louis, at the end of May, I decided to mail-order Match's ground beef, Italian sausage, & chicken three weeks ago so I could taste-test them.  I was really curious about this stuff!

I figured, if we liked how it tasted, we could stock up on some Match while in St. Louis. 

The verdict: Next week I'm going to bring home some "ground beef" and "Italian sausage".   Local friends:  If you want to try a package, let me know before next Wednesday!

 

The Grilled Burgers

 

Match exceeded my expectations!  I made four burgers and threw them on the grill, and topped them with grilled onions & ketchup.  I let my husband take the first bite.  "This is really good!  Texture & taste are just right.  It tastes like a grilled burger."   It was so filling, I could only finish half of mine.

When you feel the need for a summer time grilled burger fix--Match will do the trick!

 

Burger, Grilled Onions, Spicy Roasted Yukon Golds, & Isa's Cool Slaw

 

Grilled Match Burger

On the Grill - Ready in Minutes

 

The Italian Sausage Meatballs

 

Making Italian meatballs couldn't have been easier.  I thawed the package overnight.   Rolled about 15 "meatballs", and baked them on parchment paper in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes, turning them after 15 minutes.  They already come nicely seasoned with red pepper flakes, Italian herbs, and real fennel seed--but I like more kick in my sausage--next time I'll just mix in some extra.  

Just drop them into a pot of no-fat jarred spaghetti sauce, and you have spaghetti & meatballs ready in minutes.  I took the leftovers to work, stuffed in a bun & topped with spaghetti sauce.  OMG!  So good.

Now I can once again make my favorite Italian Wedding Soup Rapido!   When I tried adding Isa's Veganomicon homemade "beanballs" (made with beans & wheat gluten) to my soup they just fell apart--Match "meatballs"  will not!

 

 

Field Roast for Small Batch Craft-Made Grain Meat Sausages

 

 

 

I've been using Field Roast for years to kick up some of my recipes a notch: like pizza, lentil soup, lasagna, rice salad with grilled peppers, onions & sausage--and more. 

The Deal-Breaker For Some of You:  Field Roast contains some expeller-pressed safflower oil.  My low-fat solution: I just use 1 sausage for an entire recipe that serves 4-6.  And just a little of these well-seasoned-just-right-texture gems makes a big difference.

Field Roast Sausages  click here for the company's web site

Long ago, Field Roast founder Chef David Lee was looking for a meat substitute to use in a teriyaki wrap. He experimented with a concentrated wheat protein food called seitan (wheat gluten), whose origins date back to seventh-century China and borrowed from European cuisine, mixing the seitan with wine, mustard, garlic, herbs, vegetables, and legumes. The result formed the base for what would become an entire line of Field Roast meatless meats—now available nationwide—ranging from a variety of amazingly authentic-tasting sausages to various roasts (also available as deli slices) to veggie burgers.

Field Roast has become one of the main players in meeting America's growing hunger for healthy, humane, and delicious vegetarian foods—even many nonvegetarians agree that Chef Lee's delicious meatless sausages have the "real" thing beat by a mile!

Italian sausage with eggplant, fennel, fresh garlic & red pepper: vital wheat gluten (seitan), filtered water, expeller pressed safflower oil, red wine, eggplant, onions, naturally flavored yeast extract, garlic, barley malt, dried red bell pepper, fennel seed, granulated garlic, spices, and sea salt.

Mexican Chipotle sausage-very hot & spicy with smoked chipotle and chili de arbol peppers:  use as chorizo in vegan or vegetarian omelettes or frittatas, or to spice up veggie chili or black bean soup--vital wheat gluten (seitan), filtered water, expeller pressed safflower oil, onions, garlic, apple cider vinegar, naturally flavored yeast extract, chipotle peppers, onion powder, granulated garlic, brown sugar, spices, sea salt, barley malt, black pepper, chili de arbol peppers, cumin seed, paprika oleoresin and oregano.  Check this out.

Smoked Apple Sage sausage with Yukon gold potatoes, apples and rubbed sage: filtered water, vital wheat gluten (seitan), expeller pressed safflower oil, non-sulphered dried apples, yukon gold potatoes, naturally flavored yeast extract, onion powder, barley malt, garlic, natural hickory smoke flavor with torula yeast, sea salt, spices and rubbed sage.

 

My past posts about Field Roast:

Thanks To My New Vegan Artisan Favorite - Field Roast Italian Sausages - Rice Salad With Grilled Italian Sausage, Peppers, And Onions Is Back On My Menu

Company's Coming for Dinner! How about Triple Rice Salad with Dried Fruits, Nuts and Grilled Vegan Apple Sage Sausage (Field Roast, of course)

Knock Your Socks Off Whole Grain Pizza Made with Greens and Sami's Bakery Millet & Flax Crust

30-Minute Italian Wedding Soup Rapido with Mini-Vegetarian-Meatballs--Delicious!

Where to Buy?  Find them at  Whole Foods, health food stores, and now even my grocery store carries them!  Word must be getting out!

 

Garlicky Roasted Broccoli, Yukon Golds, Chickpeas & Field Roast Chorizo

 

 

This recipe couldn't be easier, tastier, healthier, or satisfying.

Three weeks ago my husband made Appetite for Reduction's Forty-Clove Chickpeas & Broccoli.  We thought it looked more like a side-dish than a meal, so we decided to crumble up a link of Field Roast Mexican Chipotle Sausage into it.  Ordinary suddenly turned into Wow!   But, both of us decided this dish needed more heft--and roasted potatoes would do the trick.  Next time.

One more thing!  Last year I was inspired to remake Mark Bittman's NYT recipe for Pan-Fried Chickpeas with Chorizo & Spinach using no oil & vegan Field Roast Chorizo!  Fabulous!  You might want to try this one, too!

 

Bittman's Pan-Fried Chickpeas & Chorizo

 

My NYT comment to Mark about my "remake": 

"This looks delicious!! I’ve recently tried 2 other recipes that call for browned chickpeas & they take garbanzos to a whole new level.

Thanks for the towel drying technique–didn’t know about that.

Mark, you won’t approve of this–-but, if anyone wants to try a vegetarian version of your recipe, check out Field Roast Sausages–they are AMAZING.

They’re not icky fakey meat, but artisan-made in small batches & there even is a a very spicy Chorizo flavor–alas, it’s called Mexican Chipotle–not your favored Spanish version–but it’s made to sub for chorizo."

 

Garlicky Roasted Broccoli, Yukon Golds, Chickpeas & Field Roast Chorizo

 

For the recipe on one page, click here

Serves 6

Prep time:  15 minutes

Total time:  1 hour

 

Ingredients:

1 pound broccoli, cut into large spears, stems chopped in 1/2-inch pieces

15 cloves of garlic, peeled & smashed, but kept whole.

2 (15-ounce) cans of chickpeas, drained & rinsed

About 1 1/4  pounds of Yukon Gold potatoes (4 cups), cut into small chunks

1/2 tsp. salt, optional

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tsp. lemon zest (a must!)

1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1-2 Field Roast Mexican Chipotle sausages, thawed in the microwave if frozen (casing removed), & crumbled.  No need to pan "fry".

1 cup vegetable broth

 

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

1.  Pre-roast the potatoes for about 20 minutes (seasoned with your choice of roasting spices & an optional light spritz with canola cooking spray) while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.  Flip the potatoes half-way through.  Remove from oven and set aside to add back into the whole dish during the last 15 minutes of baking.

2.  Place the broccoli, garlic, and chickpeas into a large shallow roasting pan.  I used the bottom of my broiler pan.  Spray the beans & broccoli with a little expeller pressed canola cooking spray (or not).  Sprinkle with the salt, black pepper, lemon zest, and oregano.   Toss to coat evenly.   Pop it in the oven.

3.  Bake for 15 minutes, and then flip everything.  Bake for 15 more minutes.  Now, remove the pan from the oven & add 1 cup of vegetable broth, and add back in the pre-roasted potatoes, and 1 crumbled link of Field Roast Mexican Chipotle sausage.  Use a spatula to scrape up any crisp bits of flavor from the bottom of the pan.  Return to the oven for another 15 minutes   (45 minutes total roasting time), or until the garlic cloves are nice and tender and the brocoli is browned in some places.

 

Nutrition Info based on 1/6 of a serving:

Nutrition Facts Healthy Librarian Garlicky Chickpea, Broccoli & "Chorizo"
Serving Size: 1 serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories	264
Total Fat	2.7g
Saturated Fat	0.2g
Trans Fat	0g
Cholesterol	0mg
Sodium	459mg
Carbohydrate	48.3g
Dietary Fiber	10.5g
Sugars	1.4g
Protein	15.8g
Vitamin A 57% Vitamin C 165% Calcium    11% Iron 18%

 

Have you ever used Field Roast or MATCH?

Does it totally go "against your grain" to occasionally use the fauxs?

I'd love to know!

I know faux meats are usually dismissed as "processed junk food"--and that's "mostly" my point of view--but when I mentioned MATCH & Field Roast to my plant-based friends, they were all ears. 

Another plus:  They might be a good substitute for their non-plant-based spouses & kids.

Honestly, sometimes a good faux can have a time & a place.  They can be wonderful time-savers, and flavor boosters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Company's Coming for Dinner! How about Triple Rice Salad with Dried Fruits, Nuts and Grilled Vegan Apple Sage Sausage (Field Roast, of course)

 

Triple Rice Salad with Dried Fruits, Nuts & Grilled Apple Sage Vegan Sausage

I promise, this is my last post about Field Roast Vegan Sausages!  Read my review + recipe here.  I had the Apple Sage variety in the freezer & was wondering what the heck to do with them.  Then it dawned on me, "They'd go great with Jeanne Lemlin's fruit & nut rice salad!"

This salad is amazing on its own--it's got "Big Taste".  It's one of my favorites to take to potlucks or to make for company---even my "super picky" niece Anna gave it a big thumbs up when she had it at my NYC son's apartment.

Add the smoked apple sage "grain meat" sausages, made with Yukon Gold potatoes, apples & rubbed sage into the mix and you have yourself "One Amazing Main Course"--fit for company.   Just wait until you read the crazy mishmash of tasty ingredients that go into this dish.

Fair warning:  This isn't a last minute quickie, but if you prep all the ingredients while the rice cooks it will take about 1 hour from start to finish. 

Possible Short-Cut: I haven't tried this--but I'm thinking you could sub 3 cups each (6 total) of Trader Joe's (or Rice Expressions) Frozen Brown Rice & Jasmine (or Basmati) Rice--forget about the wild rice-- & skip the 50 minutes of rice cooking time!

Triple Rice Salad with Dried Fruits, Nuts & Grilled Apple Sage Sausage--adapted from Jeanne Lemlin's Simple Vegetarian Pleasures.     Serves 6
For recipe on one page click here.

3 cups of water
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. olive oil
1/2 cup wild rice, rinsed
1/2 cup long-grain brown rice, rinsed
1/2 cup jasmine or basmati white rice, rinsed
1 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup currants
1/2 cup dried (I used Mariani's Ultimate) apricots (snip apricots with scissors into sixths)

The Dressing

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (I short-cutted with Santa Cruz' Organic Real Lemon Juice
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
1 shallot, minced (recipe calls for 2)
Generous seasoning of freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup of Mori-Nu's firm Silken light tofu (comes in a box)

Add ins at the end

2/3 cup whole pecans
3 scallions, very thinly sliced (I left out the whites)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup freshly chopped fresh mint
1/4 cup freshly chopped basil
3 grilled Field Roast Apple Sage sausages, sliced into 1/2 inch chunks.  Grills best if you lightly spray or rub with a thin coat of olive oil.

1.  In a medium-size saucepan over high heat combine the water, salt, olive oil, wild rice, and brown rice.  Cover the pan and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook 30 minutes.

2.  Remove the cover and sprinkle in the jasmine or basmati rice, being careful not to disturb the rice below.  Cover the pan and cook about 20 minutes, or until all the water has been absorbed and the rice is just about to start sticking to the pot.

3.  Meanwhile combine the dried cranberries, currants, and apricots in a large serving bowl.  When the rice is cooked, carefully spoon it onto the dried fruit and toss just enough to incorporate it without making it gummy, a few strokes.  Let the mixture cool completely--the heat from the rice will plump up the dried fruit.

4.  Meanwhile, start grilling the sausages--watch carefully--they brown up quickly! 

5.  Make the dressing.  Combine the lemon juice with 1/4 cup of the tofu & mix until smooth in a blender.  Combine the lemon emulsion with the garlic, shallots, salt, pepper, and olive oil in a small bowl & whisk together.

5.  Gently stir the pecans, scallions, parsley, mint, basil, and sausage slices into the rice mixture.  Pour on the dressing and toss.  Chill and let marinte a few hours before serving.  We ate this right away--couldn't wait for the marinating--and it was just fine!  Serve at room temperature.

Serves 6

NOTES: This is company fare.  Definitely not low-fat or low-salt.  Not Esselstyn-approved. But soooo good.  And Field Roast products are made with vital wheat gluten (seitan)--so those with gluten allergies--STAY AWAY!

**An interested reader who is sensitive to MSG (it can be a migraine trigger) wondered about Field Roast's use of "naturally flavored yeast extract" --was it a masquerade for MSG.  She wrote to the company & got this reply in short order:

Hello!

Thanks for getting in touch with us regarding your concerns about Yeast Extracts and MSG. 

At Field Roast, we use yeast extracts because they provide an excellent savory foundation to our foods.  They are certainly high in glutamates; a naturally occurring amino acid found in many natural foods including mushrooms, tomatoes and parmesan cheese.  This makes our food even more delicious.
Our intention is to make a delicious food that nourishes, not hurts people.  If glutamates (and other forms of glutamates) cause you migraines, I think the right move for you would be to not eat our foods.

Thank you so much for reaching out to us- have a wonderful day!

Kindest Regards,Cindi

--
Cindi Hellums
The Field Roast Grain Meat Company
1440 South Jackson Street
Seattle, WA  98144
1-800-311-9497
206-762-5961
www.fieldroast.com

Thanks To My New Vegan Artisan Favorite - Field Roast Italian Sausages - Rice Salad With Grilled Italian Sausage, Peppers, And Onions Is Back On My Menu

 

 

Brown Rice Salad With Field Roast Italian Sausage, Peppers, & Onions

Thank you thank you Molly Jade for tipping me off to The Original Field Roast Grain Meat Vegetarian Sausages!!!  My quick & easy vegan recipe repertoire has just mushroomed!  If you're looking for zero fat or gluten-free--sorry, look elsewhere--but there's just 1g sat fat & 0 trans fat and the oil they use is expeller pressed.  Sorry, my low-fat fans!

Never in a million years would I have found these "real food" delectable gourmet sausages--they're hidden away in the freezer case at Whole Foods.  How is anyone supposed to know they exist?  Just ask at customer service.

• Real food-quality ingredients
• Artisan-made in small batches in Seattle, Washington since 1997.
• 4 to a package--peel casing before cooking
• About $1/a sausage
• I had a non-vegetarian friend taste-test this for me and she gave it a big thumbs up!

The Field Roast Grain Meat Story

Best New Faux-Meat Product

Field Roast Sausages  click here for the company's web site

Long ago, Field Roast founder Chef David Lee was looking for a meat substitute to use in a teriyaki wrap. He experimented with a concentrated wheat protein food called seitan (wheat gluten), whose origins date back to seventh-century China and borrowed from European cuisine, mixing the seitan with wine, mustard, garlic, herbs, vegetables, and legumes. The result formed the base for what would become an entire line of Field Roast meatless meats—now available nationwide—ranging from a variety of amazingly authentic-tasting sausages to various roasts (also available as deli slices) to veggie burgers. Field Roast has become one of the main players in meeting America's growing hunger for healthy, humane, and delicious vegetarian foods—even many nonvegetarians agree that Chef Lee's delicious meatless sausages have the "real" thing beat by a mile!

Italian sausage with eggplant, fennel, fresh garlic & red pepper: vital wheat gluten (seitan), filtered water, expeller pressed safflower oil, red wine, eggplant, onions, naturally flavored yeast extract, garlic, barley malt, dried red bell pepper, fennel seed, granulated garlic, spices, and sea salt.

Mexican Chipotle sausage-very hot & spicy with smoked chipotle and chili de arbol peppers:  use as chorizo in vegan or vegetarian omelettes or frittatas, or to spice up veggie chili or black bean soup--vital wheat gluten (seitan), filtered water, expeller pressed safflower oil, onions, garlic, apple cider vinegar, naturally flavored yeast extract, chipotle peppers, onion powder, granulated garlic, brown sugar, spices, sea salt, barley malt, black pepper, chili de arbol peppers, cumin seed, paprika oleoresin and oregano.  Check this out.

Smoked Apple Sage sausage with Yukon gold potatoes, apples and rubbed sage: filtered water, vital wheat gluten (seitan), expeller pressed safflower oil, non-sulphered dried apples, yukon gold potatoes, naturally flavored yeast extract, onion powder, barley malt, garlic, natural hickory smoke flavor with torula yeast, sea salt, spices and rubbed sage.

My Family's Favorite Summer Dinner on the Grill--Sausage Pepper Onion Rice Salad

After a fantastic 4 day NYC visit with my 5 week old grandson, #1 son,  #1-daughter-in-law, and #2 son from DC--I was already planning our Sunday dinner as my husband & I drove home on Sunday.

We weren't going to get home until 8:00 pm, but I had all the ingredients in the fridge for this rice salad and I knew I could whip it up within 30 minutes.  Really.  I've been making this dish for years & I know all the short cuts. I figured my sausage-pepper salad was history now that I've "mostly" sworn off meat.  But it's back with a vengeance now that I've discovered Field Roast!  Woo-Hoo!

Brown Rice Salad With Field Roast Italian Sausage, Peppers, & Onions
(for recipe on 1 page click here)

4-4.5 cups of cooked brown rice  ( In a hurry, I use 2 packages of Trader Joe's frozen microwavable brown rice)

4 Field Roast Italian Sausages, grilled - casings removed  (I did a light cooking oil spray before grilling--these grill beautifully)  Cut into 1/2 inch slices after grilling

2 Grilled Peppers (1 red, 1 green)  chop into 1/2 inch dice after grilling

4-6 grilled sweet onion slices, chop into 1/2 inch dice after grilling

1/3 cup Mori-Nu low-fat silken tofu (this was originally 1/2 cup of olive oil)  If you don't want to add the tofu--the recipe still works out well.  

NOTE:  Non-tofu option.  Soak 1/2 cup of raw cashews in 1/2 cup of water for 1 hour while preparing the recipe.  In a high-power blender (like a VitaMix--blend the cashews, water, lemon, juice, & salt just as you would the tofu.

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (speed it up with Real Lemon frozen lemon juice, thawed, or Santa Cruz Organic 100% Lemon Juice, not from concentrate)

3 TBS. fresh minced parsley  (I often omit because I don't have it)

1/4 cup (or more) fresh shredded basil leaves

1 tsp. kosher salt

Fresh ground pepper to taste

Garnishes:  sliced radishes, oil-cured olives, fresh basil leaves  (I never bother)

1. Microwave the frozen rice--or cook the real thing--making enough for 4 to 4.5 cups.
2. Transfer rice to a large bowl and mix in cut up sausage, peppers, onions, basil, and parsley.
3.  Mix the tofu (or see above: 1/2 cup of raw cashews soaked in 1/2 cup of water), lemon juice, & salt in a blender or a Vita-Mix.  Add the fresh pepper after it's mixed.
4.  Mix dressing into rice/pepper/sausage mixture and adjust seasonings.
5.  Serve at room temperature or chilled. 
6.  Hope you have left-overs.  It makes a wonderful lunch.
7.  Serves 4-6

Good News for Vegetarian Grillers

 

HCAs, a family of mutagenic and cancer-causing compounds, are produced during the grilling of many animal products, including chicken, beef, pork, and fish. In January of 2005, the federal government officially added HCAs to its list of known carcinogens.

Plant-Based Foods Yield Negligible HCAs
Since creatine, one of the ingredients for the formation of HCAs, is mostly found in muscle tissue, it is not surprising that grilled veggie burgers and other vegetarian foods contain either no HCAs or negligible levels.

Choosing plant-based foods instead of meat also lowers cancer risk in other ways. Not only are vegetables low in fat and high in fiber, they also contain many cancer-fighting substances.

Safe alternatives, which produce undetectable levels of HCAs when grilled:

•Soy-based veggie burgers

• Veggie brochettes

• Portobello mushroom "steaks"

• Pineapple

• Veggie kabobs -- marinated cherry tomatoes, onion and peppers on skewers

Source: The Cancer Project

 

No More Vegan or Vegetarian Barbecue Blues - I've Finally Found the Perfect Barbecue Chicken & Smoky Hamburger Fix!

OK, I admit it!  Now that summer is here--I miss my barbecued chicken and hamburgers.  They're easy, fast, and just plain taste great.  No, I'm not missing the meat--I'm just missing real outdoor barbecue flavor.  And I'm not ashamed to admit it!

Somehow grilled veggies and vegetable kabobs don't quite fill the bill in the summer-time!

Last week I finally found the fix for my vegetarian BBQ Blues!  First I experimented with barbecued chicken sandwiches made in a flash.  And then I discovered Smoky Portobello Sliders, better-than-real-burgers-with-grilled-onions, in the July/August issue of Vegetarian Times.  Not as quick--but worth it.

The Healthy Librarian's Five-Minute Barbecued Chicken Sandwich

1 package of Trader Joe's Chicken-Less Strips.  Find them in TJ's refrigerated case.  Substitute a package of frozen Morning Star Farms Meal-Starters "Chicken", if you aren't near a Trader Joe's.  I no longer have the box they came in, so I can't fess up to exactly what's in them--but as far as "fake food" goes, they are mostly "real" ingredients, and the taste & texture would fool most chicken-lovers. I'm not a big fan of fake meat substitutes--but for summer BBQ--I'm changing my tune.

1/2 cup more of less of your favorite pre-made barbecue sauce.  My new favorite is Trader Joe's Bold & Smoky Kansas City Style Barbecue Sauce.

4 whole wheat mini-buns.  Once more, my new favorite is to use Trader Joe's whole wheat dinner rolls, instead of the buns.  Less bun, less calories!

1. Oil or spray a grill topper & heat it up on your grill.  For easy veggie grilling just go out & get a grill topper.

"With a vegetable grill topper, the size of the vegetables doesn't become a limiting factor and you don't have to worry about slices falling through the grate," recommends master vegetarian griller, Andrea Chesman.

Recommended topper:  The Danesco Stainless Steel Topper ($19.99; target.com)

2. Quickly grill the chicken strips until slightly browned. Don't let them dry out.  Then brush with sauce.  Continue grilling for a few minutes until the sauce caramelizes & the strips are nicely glazed. You could do the "saucing" in a fry pan, if you wanted, but it does need the initial grilling for the right smoky taste.

3. Toast whole wheat buns on the grill. 

4. Add some extra sauce, coleslaw, avocado slices, or whatever you like on barbecue chicken sandwiches.

One package of TJs Chicken-Less Strips serves 3.   (nutritional info on the strips:  9 strips, 1.5 g fat; 0 sat fat; 0 cholesterol; 330 mg sodium; 3 g carbohydrate; 1 g fiber; 1 g sugar; 20 g protein) 

For the future: I plan to experiment with Trader Joe's Beef-less strips on the grill for both barbecue beef, ribs, & teriyaki flank steak substitutes--especially as salad-toppers.  Chicken & beef for grilled fajitas, too.

Vegetarian Times Smoky Baby Portobello Sliders

 

This one takes a little more time and I've made them as mini-sliders with baby portobellos, and as full burgers with regular portobellos.  The sliders take a little more fussing, but they're fun to eat--definitely company fare.  No exaggeration--these burgers are fantastic--sweet & spicy & smoky & juicy & darn right sophisticated!  It's hard to believe, but they're even better as leftovers--which I would never say about a hamburger.

Note:  the grilled onions can be made up to 2 days ahead, and once you've made the Classic BBQ Rub, it's ready to go for the next time you make burgers.

8 nice sized baby portobello mushrooms, stems removed.  Or 4 regular-sized portobellos, stems removed  Note: I could only find smallish baby ports, & needed to grill more, using 2 per slider.  Or just take the easy route & use 4 regular-sized portobello mushrooms, stems removed.  Full-sized portobellos=Full-sized buns.

3 Tbs. olive oil, divided.

2 Tbs. Classic BBQ Rub (see below for the recipe)

1 large Vidalia, Spanish or other sweet onion thinly sliced.

1 tsp. herbes de Provence

1/2 cup prepared barbecue sauce (I like Trader Joe's Bold & Smoky Kansas City Style Barbecue Sauce)

2 oz. (3/4 cup) shredded smoked Gouda (Trader Joe's has a low-fat version--or substitute Vegan casein-free Follow Your Heart cheddar or Monterey jack cheese)

8 Trader Joe's whole wheat dinner rolls (or mini-challah rolls) if making sliders, or 4 regular whole wheat buns if using full-sized portobellos.

1.  Mix 1 Tbs. olive oil with 2 Tbs. Classic BBQ Rub & rub it on the portobellos. Set aside.

2.  Heat remaining 2 Tbs. oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onions and herbes de Provence, and cook 30 minutes, or until golden, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat, and season with salt and pepper, if desired.

3.  Heat grill or grill topper over medium-high heat.  Rub grill topper with oil, or spray well.  Place mushroom stem side down on grill.  Brush mushroom tops with barbecue sauce, and grill 3 or 4 minutes until soft & charred around the edges.  (Larger mushrooms may take longer) Flip, and grill 3 minutes more.  Divide cheese among the mushrooms, placing in center of each stem side.  Grill 1 minute more, or until cheese is melted.

4.  Meanwhile, warm buns on the grill.

5.  Spread barbecue sauce on bottom buns, then top each with 1 mushroom, sauteed onions, and top bun.

6.  Wrap leftovers in foil, refrigerate & enjoy the next day.

Serves 4.  2 sliders per serving with baby portobellos, 1 regular sandwich per serving with full-sized mushrooms.

Vegetarian Times Classic BBQ Rub

"This basic spice blend can be added to marinades or sprinkled directly on grilled vegetables.  The recipe makes enough for a number of Smoky Portobello Sliders.  Store in an airtight container to use throughout the summer."  VT

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup smoked (or sweet) paprika--or go 1/2 & 1/2

3 Tbs. ground black pepper

3 Tbs. kosher or coarse sea salt

2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp celery seed

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients in small airtight container.  Mix well to blend.  Store in the refrigerator.

My Big Barbecue Brat Disappointment

 

Kathy over at the The Lunch Box Bunch blog  raved about Tofurky's Vegan Beer Brats.  "They are higher in calories,  but very tasty and a nice plump size. Uses real microbrewed Full Sail Ale in the flavoring. Grill approved. 260 calories, 13 g fat, 27 g protein."  The microbrewed beer is what suckered me in.

I couldn't resist Kathy's delicious photos.  Too bad the brats were such a disappointment. This was supposed to be a real treat for my husband on Father's Day.  We both really really wanted to like them. Didn't happen.

Flat bland taste, an unappealing fake mealy texture, with a bit of a nutmeg in the flavor--not the kind of taste I was hoping for in a brat.  Looks good, tastes--not-so-good.  Actually, I did enjoy the left-over brats cut up on a salad the next day for lunch.  Go figure.

Anybody else care to share their vegetarian barbecue winners?  I'd love to increase my BBQ repertoire.

I want to try these "new to me" Field Roast Vegan Sausages made in Seattle--Mexican Chipotle, Italian & Apple Sage.  Has anyone else tried them?