Meatless Monday! Week 3

Thanks to the good people at Harmony Valley, I've been nudged to try something new - Meatless Monday. This is the third Monday in a row that I've used Harmony Valley vegetarian meat substitutes to prepare dinner. 


The first week, I made vegetarian meat balls with Harmony Valley Vegetarian Hamburger Mix and mixed with pasta. 


The second week, I made homemade pizza from scratch and topped it with browned and crumbled Harmony Valley Vegetarian Sausage Mix. 


This week, I made breakfast sandwiches for dinner. First I made some baking powder biscuits. These are very simple and quick. I use a recipe from my trusty Betty Crocker cookbook.

• 2 cups flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder (if using self-rising flour, omit)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 cup milk

1. Mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. 
2. Cut in the shortening with a pastry blender or two knives.
3. Add milk and stir until soft dough forms (it will be sticky).
4. Drop by 12 spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet.
5. Bake at 450 F for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from the cookie sheet.

While these were baking, I formed the prepared Harmony Valley Vegetarian Sausage Mix into small patties and browned them for a few minutes over medium heat. When the biscuits were done, I made the eggs. I simply whisked together four eggs and a little milk, poured them into a non-stick skillet, and when the egg began to form around the edges I used my spatula to separate it into sections and flipped each section over as it was ready. The consistency is sort of that of a flat omelette. There is no method to my egg cooking, but the eggs come out well for sandwiches this way. I cut each biscuit in half horizontally, added a sausage patty, some egg, and some cheese.

Chris went out for the evening before dinner was ready, so he didn't get to try this. The kids seemed to like it. Connor had seconds and then finished Mathilda's. Nobody complained. No one noticed that they were not eating real sausage. I personally didn't love the flavor of the sausage, but it wasn't bad. I'm not sure if other spices can be added to it to alter the taste a little, but it would be worth playing around with it. Most importantly, I felt good feeding my kids a healthier breakfast sandwich. I would eat it again, it just didn't have any of that savory sausage flavor that I was looking for.

All in all, I've been pleasantly surprised by my adventures in meatless cooking. I'm especially pleased that my kids haven't complained or even seem to have noticed the absence of real meat. I wonder what I'll make next Monday...