Sunday, January 9, 2011

BLT and OMG Oven Baked Onion Rings


I positively love, love, love this BLT.  Did I say I love it?  Because I really love it. This is probably one of my favorite sandwiches I have encountered since I gave up meat.  Easy and delicious, what could be better? In my opinion, Fakin' Bacon is one of the best gifts to vegetarian/vegan food lovers and to put it all together into a BLT is like heaven between two slices of bread.  I once had an "Advanced BLT" from the a vegan friendly cafe which solidified this as a winner in my book.  The addition of avocado, onion, basil, and tomato basil vinaigrette really complimented the base flavors of the sandwich.  I would have definitely added the extra "oomph" to this sandwich this time had I not found that my avocados turned...and by the time I was making it I really didn't feel like going to the grocery store.  I mentioned it before, the early night fall can really make me a lazy bones sometimes. But, there is always next time to add all the extra goodies..because I will positively be making this again sooner than later. 

And now, on to the onion rings.  Dave was on his way home and grabbed himself some take out for lunch and was pleasantly surprised to find a teensy weensy little onion ring in his order of fries..which got me thinking (who am I kidding, I'm always thinking about food).  Once I got Appetite for Reduction in the mail I began reading it from cover to cover.  I 'post-it' all of the recipes I want to try first and the OMG Oven Baked Onion Rings had already made their way on that list the second I saw them.  I knew I wanted them to accompany my sandwich, and what a perfect side they were!  And, an added bonus is that they won't be the complete demise of your New Year's resolution (that is if you haven't already given up on it yet like most have)!  I would eat french/sweet potato fries and onion rings with my meals all the time if I could, but I hate the way they make you feel weighed down and heavy afterward when you get them from most food establishments. So, why not indulge without feeling it afterwards?  Yes please! Yum, yum, yum and more yum.


Vegan BLT:

Ingredients:
  • 2 slices sandwich bread (your choice)
  • Vegan mayonnaise (I use Veganaise) 
  • Romaine lettuce
  • Tomato, sliced
  • Vegan bacon (I prefer/recommend Tempeh Fakin' Bacon) (3 slices cut in half, but it's entirely up to you)
 Additional add-ons
  • Avocado
  • Onion, sliced
  • Basil
  • Tomato-basil vinaigrette
All of the ingredient amounts are basically to your taste preference.  For instance, I've never been much of a mayo person, so I only use a little, but it's entirely up to you!  That's the beauty of this..it's so simple and easy to adjust to your particular liking.

Directions:
  • Spread mayo to each (or just one) side of the sandwich bread (toast the bread first if you'd like)
  • Spray a pan with non-stick cooking spray and cook up the "bacon" on medium heat for a few minutes on each side.
  • Layer the tomato slices, lettuce, bacon, and any other additional ingredients onto the bread.
Voila! 

OMG Baked Onion Rings

Ingredients:

  • 2 vidalia onions (about a pound), or other sweet onion like Walla Walla
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons corn starch
  • 1 cup cold almond milk
  • 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • Cooking spray
Direstions:
 
Slice onions into 3/4 inch thick rings. Separate the rings and place in a bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel or something, to keep the onioniness out of your eyes.

Preheat oven to 450 F. Line a rimmed 12×18 baking sheet with parchment paper, spray with cooking spray and set aside.

Now you’ll need two bowls for batter and breading. If you’ve got large, wide cereal bowls that’ll do the trick. In one bowl, dump in the flour and cornstarch. Add about half of the almond milk and stir vigorously with a fork to dissolve. Add the rest of the almond milk and the apple cider vinegar, and stir to incorporate. Set aside.

In the other bowl, mix together the bread crumbs and salt. Drizzle in the oil and use your fingertips to mix it up well.
Assemble the onion rings:

Get a conveyor belt going. From left to right, have the onions, the flour mixture, the breadcrumbs mixture and lastly the baking sheet. Dip each onion slice into the the flour, letting the excess drip off. Transfer to the breadcrumbs bowl and use the other hand to sprinkle a handful of breadcrumbs over the onion, to coat completely. This may take a bit of practice. Carefully transfer each onion to a single layer on the baking sheet.

Make sure you use one hand for the wet batter and the other for the dry batter, or you’ll end up with club hand.

Spray rings lightly with cooking spray and bake for 8 minutes. Flip, and bake another 6 minutes. Rings should be varying shades of brown and crisp. Taste one to check for doneness. Serve as soon as possible. With ketchup if you must.

Servings per recipe-4
Calories-220
Cal from fat-45
Total fat-5g
Sat fat-1g
Trans fat-0g
Total Carb-38g
Fiber-3g
Sugars-5g
Pro-7g
Chol- 0mg
Na-520mg
VitA-0%
VitC-10%
Ca-6%
Fe-10%

Adapted from: Appetite for Reduction

No comments:

Post a Comment