Okay, I am going to make a bold statement here, but this is my favorite summer salad. So it’s really one of my favorite salads. It’s got fresh cherry tomatoes and corn so to me that feels extra summery. But trust me you will be eating this all year round.
So a vegan BLT. Obviously we need to discuss the B first huh? We are going to replace the bacon with smoked tempeh for this salad. Have you ever had smoked tempeh? I absolutely love it. It brings a real bacon flavor to the BLT, well as close as you can for keeping it vegan. Of course you can buy regular tempeh and add flavoring to make it taste more like bacon but that seems like a lot of work and this salad is not about a lot of work. This is a simple yet flavor packed salad here folks.
Speaking of how amazing some this tempeh is, it reminds me of one of favorite places to eat when I lived in Venice. They made a BLTA sandwich that was unreal. I ordered it every single time I ate there. I think the amazingness of the sandwich came from the smoked tempeh and a delicious aioli sauce that was spread over the bread. So with that in mind, the salad has to have a delicious dressing. Something similar to the aioli.
So now we’re gonna talk about that. It’s a homemade dressing. It’s creamy, tangy, a little sweet, and a little savory. It really pulls this whole thing together though. Now if for some reason you don’t feel like making your own dressing I’m sure there’s something you have that would work. I am never opposed to ranch dressing. But keep in mind the flavors I mentioned in the homemade version and try to find something similar.
So what else do we have going on with this salad? Lots of corn which is why I feel like this is a very summery salad. If you don’t use fresh, which confession time, I rarely do, use a canned sweet corn. There are also lots of fresh chopped cherry tomatoes because it’s summer and we have lots and lots of tomatoes to use up. Then there is avocado. It adds fullness and creaminess, plus who doesn’t love avocado.
All this is places over a fresh bed of greens. The mix is enough for about two full salads. It could be 4 if serving as a side.
Vegan BLTA Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup sweet corn
- 2 strips smoky tempeh* 3 strips if you love it like I do
- 4 handfuls lettuce
- 3/4 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
- 1 avocado diced
- 1/4 cup plain (non) dairy yogurt
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar apple cider vinegar works too
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp maple syrup or honey if non vegan
- 2 scallions, diced
- juice from 1/2 small lemon
- 1 tsp (vegan) worcestershire sauce fine to use regular if not vegan
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- In a dry skillet, cook the tempeh for a couple minutes on each side. Remove and tear into small pieces
- In a medium bowl, toss avocado, tomatoes, and corn. Spoon over two salad bowls, each with a couple handfuls of lettuce. I like doing a mixed blend of lettuce or baby butter.
- In a smaller bowl, mix the rest of the ingredients for the dressing. Season with a small pinch of salt and pepper. Taste and adjust if need be. Spoon equally over the salads. Top with tempeh crumbles.
Notes
Here’s a few other recipes I think celebrate summer produce nicely:
These ROASTED TOMATOES WITH BROILED FETA. Get me some toasty bread and dive right into this one! A perfect summer appetizer or side dish.
SOUTHWEST VEGGIE FRITTERS featuring corn! Perfect little dumplings of deliciousness
And if you are looking for a way to use up a bountiful tomato harvest, try this ROASTED TOMATO SOUP. All the ingredients are roasted on a tray then blended for a perfect summer soup. Although tomato soup is really great year round. I love a bowl with a grilled cheese on a cold winter night.
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