Salisbury.Fake dinner, food

Impossible Review

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Okay.  We’re going to get rather close here on the food blog because this food product changed my life.  I know that’s dramatic.  I’m sorry.  But hear me out.

If you are a new vegetarian struggling to stay away from the foods you know you want to avoid, if you’re a lifelong vegetarian/vegan and you want to indulge in some filthy junk food, this stuff is for you.

I used to be a fan of the Beyond Burger company.  Then they changed their recipe and added something to it that made it have a very strange lumpy texture.  I am disappointed because I liked the original formula/recipe/whatever it was.

If you want to know a little bit about me, there is a very specific craving I get every now and then.  I used to have double quarter pounders with cheese, plain, from McDangles and I loved them.  I was never a big meat eater, and since it’s been about 4 1/2 years since I’ve eaten beef on purpose (Taco Bell sometimes trolls me), I don’t exactly think I want to go back to it.

The Impossible Burger has been at Burger King for a while now and I’ve been so excited for it to come to stores.  Now that it has, I’m the happiest camper.

For dinner tonight, I made myself a double quarter pounder with cheese (Daiya American slices), and made my mom a regular quarter pounder.  My mom isn’t vegetarian, and regularly eats beef.  She said this was better than she ever expected it to be.

The cavewoman in me is mighty pleased.  10/10 I highly recommend this.

A caveat: as a treat.  Because this is essentially 12 dollars a pound where I live and that, my friends, is hella gross.  But I did buy four packs of it, three of which went into my freezer for later.

Last thing: I hope you’re all doing well.  The world is very uncertain nowadays, but we can keep working toward peace and understanding within each other.

Salisbury.Fake dinner, food

Stuffed Peppers with Bulgar

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Small update: I bought a house.  I’m still learning the limitations of my kitchen and the space I have at the moment, but I’ll be up and running better soon.  This recipe is pretty flexible.  You can use just about anything in it you’d like to.  I went for a rather basic approach this time around.  Bulgar wheat for the grain, black beans and TVP for the protein, and corn to round it out with a bit of sweetness to offset the heat of the chipotle powder.  This whole thing comes together within half an hour and is perfect for meatless Mondays if you’re trying to reduce your consumption of meat.

Ingredients:

6 bell peppers, cut in half, or you can leave them whole and just cut the tops off.
3/4 cup TVP
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can sweet corn, drained and rinsed
3/4 cup bulgar, cooked (I made mine like pasta, and just drained through a fine mesh sieve)
1 tsp garlic and onion powder
1 tsp chipotle powder
1 tsp Better than Bullion paste (no chicken veg base) Or you can use vegetable stock, or just water.
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 cup water
Salt to taste

Optional bread crumb toppin: 1 heaping cup of panko bread crumbs, 2 tbsp butter (I used Country Crock’s vegan butter).  Toast breadcrumbs in a skillet till golden brown, set aside.  I shredded in some Violife parmesan cheese as well.

Method:

Cook the bulgar and set aside.  In a large skillet, dissolve bullion paste in 1/2 a cup of water and add the TVP.  Allow this to cook over medium heat until the water is absorbed into the TVP, adding more water as needed to keep it from sticking.  Add in the remaining ingredients except the peppers and topping (if using) and mix well.  Cook for about five minutes until everything is fragrant and heated through.

In a shallow baking dish, spread peppers out so they are laying cut side up.  Fill each pepper half (or if you’re using the whole pepper, fill it entirely), leaving a little room at the top for the breadcrumb topping, if using.  Sprinkle with topping and bake at 375* F for 20 minutes, or until breadcrumbs are a deep golden color and the peppers are just starting to soften.

This recipe freezes well, and leftover filling can be used for multiple dinners as well.