Vegan Mofo #16 - Robin’s Finger Licking Tempeh Fingers...

Vegan Mofo #16 - Robin’s Finger Licking Tempeh Fingers

The Book - "Party Vegan"
The Author - Robin Robertson
The Recipe - Finger Licking Tempeh Fingers
Page # 145
Difficulty - Easy
Duration - 30-40 minutes total time

I have returned! I had a wonderful vacation though two weeks wasn’t long enough - It never is right? - and though I’m sad to be back I am happy to be returning to finish up Vegan Mofo. I have a lot of blogs and comments to catch up on, but it’s going to take some time, as I’m still exhausted from the trip, so bare with me. Today’s posts are also going to be short but sweet, but tomorrow I’ll be back in full force, and once Vegan Mofo is over I can’t wait to tell you all about my vacation!

Here in the Midwest fall is in full swing, which means soups, roasted vegetables, hot pots, stews and comfort foods. Yet I’ve just come from the tropics where everyday it’s in the mid 80's. Summer weather, and one thing I’ve always loved about summer is Barbeque! I love Barbeque, and I always have. There’s something so divine about that delicious blend of sweet, tangy and smokey sauce. I love thick, gooey bbq sauce that completely smothers whatever you put it on. When I was an omnivore, even though I’ve never been partial to pork, ribs were the one thing I always enjoyed. When I first went vegan I was worried I’d never again be able to enjoy bbq, but boy was I wrong. Now that I’m vegan I realize it wasn’t the ribs that I found so delicious it was the sauce! In fact I’d always found the meat itself to be quite a pain to eat. Chewy, gristly, greasy, it always got stuck in my teeth, and more often then not gave me a gut-ache when I was finished. All those years I’d it was ribs that I loved and as it turned out what I truly wanted was the sauce, the ribs had just provided the vehicle for the sauce to arrive at my mouth.

Now I see there are many great animal-free vehicles for good ole’ bbq. You can make an exquisite bbq Tofu, Seitan, or Tempeh dinner, and slathering bbq sauce on a good hearty veggie burger is still one of my favorite ways to use a bit of bbq. Generally I’m not a huge fan of Tempeh. It’s one of those foods I can only take in small doses, and only if cooked certain ways, but smothered and simmered in bbq is definitely one of those ways! This recipe works really well, the sauce is thick and sweet with a touch of tang and a hint of heat. The Tempeh is moist and tender with none of the bitterness that is often associated with tempeh.

As far as alterations go I think I only played around with the seasonings a little. Adding in more cumin and coriander. More garlic and a pinch of onion powder. Otherwise I kept pretty faithful to the original recipe. Though both my husband and I think this would work even better as a shredded ‘pulled pork’ kind of dish, served on a bun with a bit of lettuce, tomato and onion.