Tofurky: Smoky Maple Bacon Marinated Tempeh

I have a love/hate relationship with Whole Foods. I love the selection of local, organic, and especially vegan products, but I hate how expensive it is! Last night I had a typical Whole Foods shopping spree where I promised to stick to my short list and then spotted vegan items that aren't sold in other stores and ended up spending a ridiculous amount of money on vegan food items that I don't need but are fun to try. Ugh. Plus since transitioning back to vegan, I miss Morningstar Farms "bacon" strips. I like the thin slices and the crunch on a "BLT."

That is exactly how I ended up buying these:


I tried them at work today, and I'm not sure how I felt about them. I made 3 strips (a serving is SEVEN strips! what?!) for a vegan club sandwich with Tofurky, and one just to sample on it's own. I bit into it and was a little surprised by the texture. They made them reminiscent of bacon with a feeling of fat through the "meat", except that the strips themselves were too thick to really pull this off. It didn't gross me out, but wasn't a huge fan either. The marinade was good but I could taste a little too much soy sauce.

The other thing that I didn't like was that for cooking instructions, the only option was on the stove top in a pan with oil. I'd like to see an option that doesn't involve pan frying. I might experiment with baking for the rest of the package.

I might not eat them alone, but on my sandwich I really enjoyed the extra flavor and texture.

Crappy cell phone pic of my vegan club: Vegenaise, romaine lettuce, Tofurky slices, Smoky Maple Bacon Marinated Tempeh, avocado tomato on whole wheat.