Memorial Day in the United States is (or should be) a day of remembrance and a time when we should stop and thank those who have shown their bravery and made sacrifices to serve in the armed forces. Memorial Day in the United States is also a day of grilling… grilling meat. Lots and lots of meat. Hot dogs, pork chops, brats, ribs, steaks and are you ready to vomit yet?
I had a packed Saturday and Sunday with the nieces so today was a day of relaxation. It was hot out today, too hot to grill in my opinion, and it was just me and my parents anyway, so we didn’t do anything fancy. For lunch, I made some guacamole and some bean burgers.
I used Christie’s recipe for the burgers but minus the mushrooms. My mom and I went back to Jerry’s today, which is still one of the most annoying places on earth to go to, but we also got a crapload of stuff for less than $100. Seriously. If you are in the Chicago area, a trip to Jerry’s is worth whatever it takes to get there and be there. That said, all they had in terms of mushrooms were button mushrooms (packed or you could pick) and giant portabellas. I wasn’t quite feeling either of those.
Now, get ready to vomit again. I really miss the McRib. I know, I know!!! It’s so nasty. But, even after reading what actually goes into a McRib, I still found myself craving it. CRAVE NO MORE, MELISSA. Soy curls and BBQ sauce to the rescue!
I soaked the soy curls and then covered them with some barbecue sauce. It’s as easy as that — the proportions you use are up to you. Unfortunately/fortunately, we had a bottle of Sweet Baby Ray’s which is the best BBQ sauce but is not totally vegan because of the brown sugar. I baked the soy curls in the toaster oven for 15 minutes at 325 degrees, turning over once, and then for another 5 minutes at 350 to get them a little crispy.
It looks dry, but I like having the BBQ flavor without having sauce dripping all over the place. This was tasty and just about one of the easiest soy curl recipes ever. I finished off the day with a slice of vegan chocolate cake and some blueberries and raspberries (not pictured on account of I ate it all).
Finding vegan ways to celebrate what are essentially food-centric holidays is a small victory. VICTORY! –Melissa
Turning Veganese 
1. I’m really proud of you: holidays are the hardest – peer pressure, temptation and goodness knows what else. Kudos, madam!
2. WANT your noms!!!
3. I am really lucky to call you “friend”.
BBQ soy curls. ( ~m~) <That's a lip bite.
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[…] in Chicago). I ended up having a laid back, no frills day. In terms of food, I celebrated with some soy curl barbecue which is so easy and fast and […]