Toasted bread, crispy marinated tempeh, lettuce, tomato, creamy vegan garlic mayo, and avocado… this is a vegan BLT made in heaven, affectionately known as the Avocado TLT.
I introduced my vegan fried green tomato TLT’s last summer, but today I’m sharing my quintessential vegan BLT.
It starts with my savory, crispy black pepper tempeh bacon, which is quickly becoming a fan favorite!
The rest of the sandwich is inspired by a wonderful lunch I had at Hudson Street Deli in Providence, Rhode Island. They had a bunch of vegan sandwiches but I went for The Rabbit because it didn’t have mushrooms :D.
I enjoyed that sandwich to such a great extent that when crafting my own vegan BLT, I went around to several different stores looking for the same marbled rye bread that the restaurant sandwich used.
Vegan BLT ingredients
You’ve all heard of the BLT before; no need to reinvent the wheel here when it comes to the vegan version. My ideal vegan BLT is made up of the following components:
- Bacon substitute – tempeh bacon is especially good on vegan BLT’s, but tofu bacon or even rice paper bacon are also yummy!
- Lettuce – I often choose baby romaine because then I don’t have to chop anything, but of course, regular lettuce is the classic. Even spinach is good if you want something more nutritious.
- Tomato – Local tomatoes in the summer are your best bet for a flavorful, juicy and non-mealy addition to your vegan BLT. If tomatoes are out of season, look for larger varieties that are nice and firm. Roma tomatoes or other paste tomatoes are more likely to be a bit blah.
- The bread – Lots of kinds of bread can be good here but as you can see, I like my vegan BLT on rye. The extra flavor helps give this plant-based sandwich a little boost. I’d stay away from a super hearty whole grain type of bread because the tomato and lettuce are too delicate for that, but otherwise, your favorite bread reigns supreme.
- The mayo – Not all vegan mayos are created equal, many store-bought brands can break or go rancid easily. Try to use freshly purchased mayo that isn’t near its expiration date. Of course, homemade cashew mayo is always a good option!
- Avocado – For a vegetarian BLT with a little something extra, add fresh avocado, either sliced or mashed.
Those are my thoughts on the general topic, but my favorite vegan BLT recipe is below!
Avocado TLT - The Best Vegan BLT!
Ingredients
- 1 batch tempeh bacon
- 8 slices rye bread or other bread of choice
- 1 head romaine lettuce (or a few big handfuls of baby romaine)
- 2 large tomatoes sliced
- 1 ripe avocado sliced or mashed
- 1/2 cup cashew mayo or other vegan mayo
- 1 clove garlic minced or pressed
Instructions
- Prepare the tempeh bacon according to the recipe, if not already prepared. Also, prepare the garlic mayo by mixing together the mayo and garlic.
- Lightly toast the bread slices if desired. For each sandwich, spread about 1 tablespoon of the garlic mayo on each slice of bread. Layer with avocado, tomato slices, lettuce, and several slices of tempeh. Enjoy!
I'm Shannon, the writer and photographer of Yup, it's Vegan! I'm a morning person based in Baltimore, USA. My mission is to create healthy plant-based recipes that anyone would enjoy, using seasonal produce with inspiration from global flavors.
Katerina Shukhat💕 says
i think the proportions are very incorrect because this is for about 2 sandwiches instead of 4 but otherwise it was really good! tasted perfect, going to make this again! it was also easy & quick
Kendra says
I made your tempeh bacon for Easter brunch and it was freakin’ magical! So, I’ve definitely been making it and using it on sandwiches as well. Not exactly like this one but similar. It’s so good.