BLT what is that anyway? I've got the solution...

Let me just give a few words about the fried strips of our friends

Babe, Wilber, and Henwen that some of us like to fry up in a pan

of fat and slap between two slices of wonder bread.

Swine bacon is a cured type of flesh meat and smoked before

it is sold. When the preservatives are added to these delightful

little hunks of pig it is done so with nitrates as both anti-bacterial

agents and for colour to preserve the bloody candy cane look.

Yup you're looking at flesh and fat. These nitrates when heated

become Nitrosamines and carcinogenic.

You can also find these same preservatives in hot dogs, deli meats,

sausages, and so on. The nitrate-based preservatives are not just

carcinogenic but have been linked to pancreatic cancer and lung

problems like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

COPD includes issues like chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

The highly reactive Nitrosamines are knockin around damaging

the tissue. And these are just the preservatives, not to even

mention the high levels of saturated fat and sodium that is found in bacon.

Get your attention?

Maybe I should squeal a new tune, a tastier tune?

How about the Tofu-Lettuce-Tomato-Tune?

After going vegan I noted that one of the first ingredients on

Morning Star Breakfast Strips was 'egg-whites'. Well, crap.

Tempeh it is than I thought. Except they don't sell much in that

line where I am. We've got the mainstream options of Boca (Kraft Foods),

Morning Star (Kellogg), and Yeves (dunno who they're owned by yet).

So it was down to making my own. The store was out of tempeh,

so I grabbed a block of tofu and threw it in the freezer. I thawed it

out and used the following marinade...

Also, grilled oil-free to stave off the fat I also used a wee bit of

Nayonaise and a lot of lettuce and tomato on my homemade

wheat bread. Hope you enjoy it as much as the piggies.

Veggie Bacon Marinade

1/4 cup of Shoyu/Soy Sauce

1/4 cup of water

3 Tablespoons of sweetener- dark brown sugar or maple syrup is best

2 teaspoons of liquid smoke

press your tofu or steam your tempeh before marinading at least

five hours. I did it overnight and it was way better. I liked the tofu

because of how thin you can slice it down. It made great crumbly

bits for salads and a side of back tofu for the breakfast plate.