Tasty, easy Vegan BLT recipe!

If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you’ll have seen that I’ve posted a few polls and ask boxes about the type of recipes you’d like to see for fall! I’ve really appreciated all the feedback I’ve gotten. Fall is my favorite season of the whole year, and I CAN’T WAIT to post a ton of cozy, autumn-y recipes!!! I’m always looking for feedback from you guys about what you’re looking for on the blog, so be sure to follow along on Instagram for more polls! (But as always, feel free to email or comment any suggestions or requests you might have too!)

However, as excited as I am for fall, I wanted to make the most of the delicious summer produce that we still have. This Vegan BLT was inspired by some fresh tomatoes I found at the farmer’s market – ripe, ruby red, and bursting with flavor. I would highly recommend buying the best tomatoes that you can find for this recipe – since there aren’t a lot of ingredients, you want to maximize the flavor at every opportunity!

This Vegan BLT also uses my favorite coconut bacon recipe, that I originally posted back in 2015. I’m not going to lie, it doesn’t taste exactly like bacon. But it’s smoky, a little spicy, a little sweet, and totally addicting! It could not be more delicious in this sandwich. I really hope you guys will love it!

Something I want to do today is reintroduce some more personal writing into this blog. When I first started blogging in 2015, I shared a little piece of my life with you all every week. But then around 2017 or so, I came across a Reddit post where someone had shared my buddha bowl recipe. In the post, a bunch of people complained about how food bloggers “write too much” in their posts, and how they wished they would “get to the damn recipe already”. After reading that, I was kind of hurt and bewildered. Maybe people don’t actually care to hear about my life, I thought. So I effectively ended my online sharing.

However, I’m kind of in the middle of some personal growth right now. Something I’ve spent WAY too much time doing is caring about what other people think. And I’m not going to sit here and tell you that you shouldn’t care at all about what others think – you have to do it a little bit to get through life – but previously I was at the point where others’ opinions dictated my actions. I’ve had enough of that.

The first few years out of college were really rough for me. I’ve been through some things that I would never wish on my worst enemy. But I’m glad that I went through these challenges, because I’ve come out on the other side surviving, thriving, and confident in myself and who I am. I simply do not have time for things that do not serve me anymore. And that includes caring about what other people think. Why should I heed the criticism of people I don’t even know on Reddit? I love sharing my life with you. I care so much about this blog, and I love giving you a little piece of my heart every week. So yes, that means I’ll be writing about the things that I care about, in addition to sharing a recipe. Words for the heart and food for the soul.

Thank you for listening. I appreciate you so much.

Love,

Sarah

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The Vegan BLT

You won’t believe this Vegan BLT is made with whole food, plant-based ingredients! With coconut bacon made without liquid smoke.

Servings 4

Ingredients

Vegan Coconut Bacon

• 2 Cups Coconut Flakes not shredded
• 2 Tbs Olive Oil
• 2 1/2 Tbs Tamari or soy sauce
• 1 1/2 Tbs Sriracha
• 2 Tsp Maple Syrup
• 1 Tsp Smoked Paprika

The Rest of the Sandwich

• Whole Wheat or Whole Grain Bread
• Sliced Tomatoes
• Spinach, Kale, or Lettuce
• Vegan Mayo
• Black Pepper

Instructions

Vegan Coconut Bacon

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  
• In a bowl, combine coconut flakes, olive oil, tamari, sriracha, maple syrup, and smoked paprika, and stir well. For a richer flavor, let coconut flakes marinate for a few minutes.
  
• Place coconut flakes on a tray lined with parchment paper. Try to evenly space out the coconut flakes as best you can – aim for the least amount of overlap possible.
  
• Once oven is at 350, bake coconut bacon for 5 minutes.
  
• After five minutes, take coconut bacon out and stir well. Once coconut bacon is evenly spaced again, put the tray back in the oven.
  
• After the previous step has completed, keep baking coconut bacon FOR TWO MINUTE INTERVALS, STIRRING AT EVERY INTERVAL. This step is crucial! It prevents the coconut bacon from cooking unevenly.
  
• In total, your coconut bacon should bake from anywhere between 10-15 minutes (including the first five minute bake). However, this time may vary based on your oven. Be sure to always take the coconut bacon out and stir EVERY TWO MINUTES. And be careful – it can burn easily!
  

The Rest of the Sandwich

• Spread a layer of vegan mayo onto one side of your slices of whole grain or whole wheat bread. Top with fresh cracked black pepper.
• Add on your layers of coconut bacon, sliced tomato, and greens, in whatever order you’d like.
• Cut sandwiches in half and serve!

Notes

These sandwiches are best enjoyed immediately, when the coconut bacon is fresh out of the oven and crispy.

P.S.

If you make this recipe and post it on Instagram, be sure to tag me @wellandfull and #wellandfull so I can see! I love seeing your takes on my recipes :)