Homestyle Barbecue Sandwiches

I live in Texas, and here, barbecue is just a thing. A big thing. There's probably something wrong with you if you don't eat it or cook it or, well, yeah. Not vegan friendly, to be sure.

Before I was vegan, my husband and I used to go out for barbecue sandwiches. Now he goes for the barbecue and I get fried okra. I needed to remedy this.

So I did.

Homestyle Barbecue Sandwiches

One can tomato puree
1 c. water
1 c. barbecue sauce

Heat everything in a frying pan. Add either vegan beef strips or vegan ground beef and heat through. Serve on buns with your favorite toppings. We like sliced onion.

I made this two different times, using either the beef strips or the ground beef. The beef strips were from Trader Joe's, and the ground beef was Gardein. I gotta say I much preferred the ground beef to the strips. It seemed to absorb the sauce better and stretch further.

Serve with chips, or French fries, or fried okra!

Warning - they are messy! Keep lots of napkins close by!

Needless to say, I am happy to resume my place amongst the barbecue lovers, vegan and cruelty free style!

Beefless Stroganoff

I've made a stroganoff before, a green bean and mushroom stroganoff and then another green bean and mushroom stroganoff for the crockpot. But a couple of weeks ago, I took a trip to a new Trader Joe's in town, just to check it out. I came across these beefless strips and bought a package, figuring I would no doubt come up with something to use them in.

I did.

Beefless Stroganoff

One package of Trader Joe's Beef-less Strips
Vegan butter
One onion, chopped
2 c. vegan mushroom soup (use your favorite recipe)
One container vegan sour cream
Favorite cooked noodles

Saute the onion and beef-less strips in the vegan butter until the onion is softened. Add the mushroom soup and half of the container of vegan sour cream. Stir until well mixed and heated through. Serve over your favorite noodles. Season to taste. Serve. Enjoy!

As simple as this recipe was, it was absolutely delicious! My son and I had two servings and my husband polished it off the next day for lunch. I had never used the Trader Joe's beef-less tips before, but I will most definitely buy them again!