If I were any kind of proper patriot, I would have done an entire week on American food but as it turns out I will be capping my series today after three. I could genuinely have done a week on foods that have come to be known as truly representative of the land of the free. Everything from grilled corn on the cob to apple pie and "fried" chicken could have gotten a veganising and a shout out on this here blog but, well, I got the idea on Wednesday so you get three days instead of 5-7. It's all well and good anyway as I have a massive hankering for tacos and would like to try out a walnut taco filling recipe, so there you have it. Stay tuned.
The fourth of July is a day that is commonly observed with hot dogs on the grill and that marked no exception for us. Really, the hot dog has come to be synonymous with American when discussing regional cuisines, which is kinda strange considering that they're of German origin. Though there's some dispute over who developed the hot dog first, the frankfurter is said to have been invented in Germany back in 1487 while it wasn't until the 1800's that it began to gain traction in the states after its introduction by German immigrants (source). Today, one can't go to a baseball game or 4th of July celebration without seeing hot dogs on the menu, so completely has the little processed meat stick become woven into our national fabric.
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| You're a grand old combination of weird parts and mystery ingredients.... |
Which left an opportunity for vegetarians to come up with their own version, and come up with one they did. Or several, I should say. The first company to take up residence in the veggie dog market was Worthington Foods with their Veja-link back in 1949 (source) and since then brands like Tofurky, Yves, Lightlife, Veggie Patch and Morningstar Farms have thrown their weiner into the ring. (oh grow up....hee hee, weiner.)
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| Hey! Vegans want mystery sticks too! |
I've tried a fair amount of them and I'll be perfectly honest, none of them impress me a huge amount. For cookouts I tend to prefer my own, homemade Italian sausages. I've been making them for years using Julie Hasson's recipe from Everyday Dish. They grill, saute or nuke quite nicely and I have total control over what goes into them. Plus, their nutritional content kicks the shit out of a commercial veggie dog's when it comes to protein content. You will absolutely feel full after eating one of these.
But hot dogs were being grilled so I grabbed a pack of the least expensive vegan dogs on the shelf and trotted on home to talk about bald eagles and gun rights while whistling Yankee Doodle Dandy. You know, do American stuff.
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| As a kid, I thought it was "for witchit stands." Took me years to figure out that a witchit stand isn't a thing. |
So, here you have it. This is an Yves Good Dog loaded down with ketchup, mustard, relish and tomatoes. A little fruit salad and some carrots rounded it out, along with a pickle that was as long as the entree itself. Nothing fancy, nothing earth shattering, but sometimes that's the way a meal is. A common misconception is that vegans have to spend a ton of time in the kitchen if they want to have anything to eat. The truth is, many vegans choose to do that because we know that we can cook something up ourselves that's far healthier and tastier than anything we're gonna find at the supermarket. But sometimes you just wanna throw $3 at a pack of Not Dogs and call it a day. Fast, efficient and tasty.
It's the American Way.
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