Ingredients
-Veggie Bacon
-Avocado
-Fresh Basil
-Mayonnaise
-White bread
-Butter
Christian: Before this sandwich, I had never eaten veggie bacon (or “facon”). So before we assembled the sandwich, I had to try the imitation meat product by itself, and I can now definitively say that my life will never be the same. I never knew what I was missing by selfishly consuming real meat. You mean to tell me I can savor this kind of deliciousness without eating actual animals?!
Okay. I’m lying. The veggie bacon was… weird. After we fried up the strips, they looked and felt like fruit leathers, and tasted like thin strips of fried bologna, which makes me wonder about what Oscar Mayer is putting in their “meat.” (Bonus fact that I just made up: Oscar Mayer is actually musician John Mayer’s great-great grand grandfather. That is why he always ends his concerts with a blues-y version of the Oscar Mayer Wiener song. Nevermind that they are not pronounced the same way.)
Anyway, I don’t think I will be giving up real bacon anytime soon. Especially because the veggie version of it was lost in the sandwich. Maybe it’s because the avocado and basil (which, in my opinion, is not a good substitution for lettuce in a BLT) overpowered it, but I could barely taste it. And after being underwhelmed by the stuff just by itself and a small package of it costing almost $4, no thank you.
Another thing to mention, we did the toast two different ways on this one. Susannah didn’t like the thickness of the Artesano bread on Sandwich #14, so her sandwich’s toast was just regular white bread in the toaster, and mine was buttered Artesano bread toasted in the frying pan. We both preferred our own type.
Overall, I liked what I ate because, again, I liked most of the prominent flavors. But I am still rating this one less than three stars because I think that is my base level to indicate that I’d eat it again. I don’t think I’d do this one again because the veggie bacon (especially at its price point) didn’t add anything here.
★★ ½
Susannah: I knew it was a thing, but not something I’d experienced before: veggie bacon (or “fake’n”, as some call it.) It was certainly an unusual experience. From the moment we opened the package, it smelled like that artificial bacon scent you get with markers or candles. It looked a little like turkey bacon, but upon frying it, it reminded me more of a dog treat. It turned kind of brittle and the flavor was vaguely bacon-y. But the biggest surprise of all was once it was in the sandwich, it almost disappeared against the basil. Although the basil added a green pop, it nearly overpowered everything else.
I suppose I may just be a BLT-purist. Give me the lettuce, give me the pork bacon. I need that unctuous, greasy, crispy bite. No offense to vegans, but I will not be joining their camp.
★★★
Next Up: #16 – Chicken, Buffalo Sauce, Blue Cheese Dressing, Potato Chips, Wrapped
Christian Yost 