of all the things i make us for dinner, this sandwich is the most popular with john.
me: john, what do you want for dinner?
john: ummm, i don’t care.
me: anything sound good?
john: BALTs?
BALTS= bacon, avocado, lettuce and tomato. our bacon is a bit different, but still delicious! i simply use this recipe from vegan mom, and we have dinner ready in less than 10 minutes!
ingredients + bike shadow
the reason this recipe is so yummy, has to be the addition of liquid smoke. it takes it to another level, and boy is it a good one!
i always double the recipe, using a whole package of tempeh rather than a half. leftovers are definitely my friend! i usually only use half the amount of canola oil as well, if any at all. i don’t find it adds much to the recipe, plus i spray my pan with some canola oil before i start grilling it up.
bacon/lettuce/tomato/avocado sandwiches
find bacon recipe **here**, on vegan mom’s blog.
method:
1. start by opening your tempeh package and cutting your block in half, width wise. you should have two pieces here.
trader joe's yet again!
2. next, slice each half into 2 pieces, length wise. the entire block is now cut into quarters.
3. finally, slice what is now each quarter of the block into thin strips, length wise.
i always end up with eight pieces altogether, you may be able to slice your strips thinner, or maybe like them thicker. no biggie. i should have taken photos of this process!
4. warm up a grill pan (what i use), skillet, or cast iron pan to medium.
5. while your pan heats up, mix up the liquid ingredients from the recipe above.
6. spray your pan of choice with a bit of non stick spray, then lay your tempeh strips in the pan and pour about 3/4 of liquid on top.
7. allow the tempeh to absorb the liquid, flipping occasionally. as the liquid is absorbed, add the remaining liquid and continue to cook.
8. when the bacon is almost ready, toast your bread. we like to spread both some veganise and some mashed avoacado on our sandwiches. layer on lettuce and tomato and finally throw on your cooked tempeh.
9. slice and serve!
get in my belly!
we ate ours last night with some less than stellar kale chips. i left them in the oven only a minute too long and they were a tad burnt. still nutritious though!
cooking for john 
Hi! I found my way here from your comment on Peasandthankyou, and will be visiting more often! This sandwich sounds awesome. Also, I currently live in Chicago but am originally from Michigan. Great Lakes represent! 🙂
hi jill! thanks so much for commenting! we have quite a few friends that live in chicago from michigan, it is the place to be! I’m glad the sandwich looks yummy to you, give it a try! great lakes for life! 😉
Hey! Me too to all that! I’ve been meaning to make pretty much those same changes to the original recipe. When you double it, it definitely needs less oil, and for me anyway, a bit of flipping and moving around. The small batch just cooks so perfectly in my little cast iron skillet. The bigger batch cooks less evenly. (But this also might be the fault of my old stove. Do you have this issue?) But there’s really no point in making a smaller batch, you will want more. I’m so glad that you guys have been enjoying this!
hi trina, thanks so much for stopping by my lil blog and leaving a comment!! i am so excited you did! we live in an apartment and our stove is on a slight angle so everything cooks unevenly, haha. i constantly turn the pan while it cooks. i have been making your tempeh bacon for almost 2 years, thanks so much for such a great recipe!
one more thing, do all of my photos look awful on your computer? i have a mac and everything looks fine but i am on a dell right now and they are all stretched verticaly. ick!