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Category: Cooking and Recipes

Vegetarian Taco Crumbles Made with Split Peas

These plant based crumbles are the perfect filling for vegetarian tacos, burritos, and more!

Made from the plant based protein, split peas, these crumbles are healthy and hit the spot! They make a fantastic vegetarian taco and make great burritos and enchiladas too. In fact, you can use these crumbles sans the taco seasoning in nearly any recipe you would use ground beef. I have also had great success using these crumbles in Sheppard’s pie and cheeseburger salads. Feel free to get creative!

Vegetarian tacos can be pretty hard to find on restaurant menus. Some restaurants will let you swap out the beef or chicken for beans, but the mushy beans often just end up squishing out of the taco. The best meat alternative I had found previously was potatoes, which I still love, but they are a bit higher in carbs than I would like. So after much experimenting and taco eating (such a sacrifice), I finally created these taco crumbles. The flavor is there, the texture is on point, and they pack a protein punch.

  • Taco ’bout delicious!
  • The Vegetarian Taco Experience
  • Cheeseburger salad made with these crumbles

Honestly, this taco filling is so satisfying! Taco night with these crumbles has never felt like a substitute, but rather delicious and filling. The split pea and walnut filling is also much healthier and less costly than traditional beef. One bag of dried peas and a small package of walnuts from the baking aisle will more than double this recipe and cost much less ground beef.

Another bonus is that most of the ingredients in this recipe you probably already have on hand. However, you might want to check your BBQ sauce and Worcestershire sauce if you are aiming for completely plant based sources. BBQ sauce often includes beef broth and Worcestershire sauce traditionally includes anchovies, so take a look at the labels. Some of my favorites that are vegetarian are Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce and Annie’s Worcestershire sauce.

I will say that these crumbles are a little more labor intensive than just heating up a bag of frozen plant based ground “beef” but they freeze very well. I love to make a big batch and save some for a quick meal down the road. They also are a much less processed product and don’t leave you wondering what it is that you actually ate.

So if you’re looking for a meat-free meal, give these tasty split pea and walnut crumbles a try! Also, if you’re looking for a good veggie burger recipe, check out my black bean burgers. I really hope you enjoy these as much as I do!

Split Pea and Walnut Taco Crumbles
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Split Pea and Walnut Taco Crumbles

Recipe by JulesCourse: Cooking and Recipes, Lunch, Dinner
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

5

minutes
Cooking time

30

minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup dried split peas

  • 3 tablespoons vegetable broth

  • 1/4 red bell pepper, small diced

  • 1/4 white onion, small diced

  • 1 garlic clove, minded

  • 1 medium white button mushroom, minced

  • 1 tablespoon BBQ sauce

  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce

  • 6 drops vegetarian Worcestershire sauce

  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

  • 1 packet taco seasoning

  • 1/4 cup finely chopped raw walnuts

  • 1/2 cup bread crumbs, unseasoned

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

Method

  • Add the first 10 ingredients to a small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, or until split peas are just barely tender and have absorbed the liquid.
  • Drain any excess liquid and place the split pea mixture to a large mixing bowl to allow to cool to room temperature.
  • Meanwhile heat up a large non-stick pan on medium.
  • Add walnuts, breadcrumbs, and taco seasoning to the split peas and gently combine.
  • Pour the olive oil into the hot pan and saute the split pea mixture, gently breaking up and forming crumbles.
  • Use just as you would use traditional taco meat.

Notes

  • Feel free to add more complexity to your simmering spit peas by adding a dash of thyme, rosemary, oregano, crushed red pepper, or your favorite herb or spice.
  • If you are used to a higher hamburger fat %, incorporate 1-2 tablespoons of room temperature coconut oil to the split pea mixture before sauteing.
  • You can also use lentils and split peas interchangeably in the recipe.

Loaded Vegan Hash Browns

Mmm there’s nothing like a warm, indulgent breakfast in the morning, especially when there’s no guilt!

Homemade hash browns topped with chili, vegan cheese sauce, sauteed onions, tomatoes, jalapenos and scallions

So I’ve been experimenting with a plant-based diet and I’ll tell ya, boy is it hard and if any meal takes the icing on the cake of difficulty, it’s breakfast!

Breakfast, it’s that meal that we all associate with bacon and eggs. Or on busy school days, a big bowl of sugary cereal drowning in milk. Well unfortunately, both of those options include some sort of animal product. In fact, just about everything breakfast-wise I can think of has dairy or eggs. So that got me thinking, how can I transform breakfast?

When I started to contemplate some quintessential breakfast foods that are plant based my all time favorite, hash browns, came to mind. But how can I turn this side into a meal? Load ’em up of course!

The essential ingredients

First step, the potatoes. You can certainly buy the frozen shredded hash browns for this recipe and they will work great, but I’ve found it is also super easy to just grate a potato while the pan heats up, the choice is up to you. The real key to getting those delicious, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside hash browns is a hot pan.

Here’s my 1 large russet potato after spending a few minutes meeting the cheese grater. Like I said though, you can certainly use the frozen kind too

Once your pan heats up, drizzle in some olive oil and crisp up your hash browns. I will say though, I struggled with this part of making hash browns for a long time. They’d either end up super crunchy like tiny french fries, or mush. I finally discovered the secrets though! Be sure to get that pan nice and hot and get an even coat of oil all around the pan. Once you add in the potatoes, let them hang out there for a while. That’s the second biggest tip, just leave them alone until the first side gets some nice color and then you can flip the whole thing over (or if you’re lazy like me, just flip over sections of the potatoes at a time). It’s really pretty easy, I think I had just been overthinking it for a while.

Oh man, the cheese sauce!

While those tasty potatoes crisp up, go ahead and make the cheese sauce. I used a super simple and incredibly quick recipe by ElaVegan (https://elavegan.com/easy-vegan-cheese-sauce-recipe/) that turned out quite amazingly, but feel free to use your favorite cheese sauce.

I also warmed up a small dish of chili in the microwave while making the cheese sauce. To be honest, I usually have loads of my homemade veggie chili leftover in the fridge, but I’ve also found that Hormel makes a pretty decent vegetarian chili when you’re in a pinch. Feel free to use whatever chili you like!

Also, saute up your favorite veggies for this. I found that some classic white onions worked really really well, but you can also add bell peppers, spinach, or whatever you like really. In addition, chop up some fresh tomatoes, jalapenos, and scallions for garnish.

Next step, assemble! This is the best part! It’s almost time to eat and the aroma of a delicious breakfast is in the air.

Start with your hash browns and then layer on the chili, cooked onions, cheese sauce, tomatoes, jalapenos, and scallions. Viola!

My plate, it’s sans the fresh jalapeno (I was a chicken)

I made these large portions of hash browns for 2 in about 30 mins, but if you’re not in a rush, take your time and get creative with your very own version of loaded hash browns!

Loaded Vegan Hash Browns Recipe

Prep: 15 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Yield: 2 large portions

Ingredients:
  • 1 large russet potato, or 8 oz frozen shredded hash browns
  • 2 T + 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1/2 medium white onion, sliced
  • 1 medium tomato, diced
  • 1 fresh jalapeno, sliced
  • 1 scallion, diced
  • 1/2 batch of ElaVegan’s cheese sauce (https://elavegan.com/easy-vegan-cheese-sauce-recipe/)
  • 1/2 can vegetarian chili such as Hormel
  • salt and pepper to taste

Method:

  1. Dice tomato and slice onion, jalapeno, and scallion
  2. In a small saute pan add 1 teaspoon of olive oil and saute onion until soft and slightly browned
  3. Using a cheese grater, shred your potato, meanwhile heat up a large frying pan on medium-high heat
  4. Add 2 T of olive oil to the pan and then add the shredded potatoes and brown for 5-7 mins
  5. While the potatoes are browning on one side make the cheese sauce (note, it only takes about 3 minutes)
  6. Take cheese sauce off the the heat once finished and flip the potatoes to brown on the other side
  7. Heat up chili in a pan or microwave until warmed through
  8. Salt potatoes and divide among 2 plates
  9. Top potatoes with chili, cheese, onions, tomatoes, jalapenos, and scallions
  10. Enjoy!

Versatile Black Bean Burger Recipe

This is a versatile black bean burger recipe that can be used for grilled burgers, taco meat, or even breakfast sausage. You can also opt to make this vegetarian or entirely plant based.

Grilled black bean burger patties

To be honest, I’m not the biggest fan of meat substitutes. Store bought veggie burgers and “meat” crumbles seem so overly processed that I don’t even want to look at the ingredients label. But I do love the social aspect of a good hamburger.

Summer wouldn’t be a true summer without a few cookouts and these burgers are perfect to bring along to any cookout. They’re packed with flavor from all of the spices and fresh vegetables, that even a meat eater can enjoy them. Serve them with pepper-jack cheese and chipotle mayo for some southwest flavor, or smother with mushrooms and swiss for a classic.

  • All the best burger fixings
  • Homemade sesame seed hamburger buns

This recipe is also versatile beyond just burgers too! I love to grill the burgers for dinner one night and the next day create a whole new recipe with any leftovers. You can chop them up, saute them in olive oil, and sprinkle in your favorite taco seasoning for taco night. Or you can toss chopped up burgers with some herbs in a hot pan and whip up breakfast sausage crumbles in minutes! I’ve used my breakfast sausage crumbles in a killer biscuits and gravy casserole before!

Leftover burgers turned into a Biscuits and Sausage Gravy casserole!

Ultimately, feel free to adapt this recipe to what you’re craving for dinner. The texture is great and very satisfying for any rendition you choose. I hope you enjoy this burger recipe as much as I do!

Black Bean Burgers
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Black Bean Burgers

Recipe by JulesCourse: Cooking and RecipesCuisine: Lunch, Dinner, vegetarian, vegan
Servings

6

servings
Prep time

1

hour 

15

minutes
Cooking time

10

minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 egg, or 1 Tablespoon flax meal + 3 Tablespoons hot water

  • 15 ounce can black beans, drained

  • ½ yellow bell pepper, small diced

  • ½ small onion, small diced

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

  • 2/3 cup unseasoned breadcrumbs

  • 1 Tablespoon chili powder

  • 1 tsp cumin

  • ½ tsp chipotle powder

  • 1 tsp onion  powder

  • 1 tsp garlic powder

  • 1 tsp brown sugar

  • 2 Tablespoons chopped, fresh cilantro

  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil

  • 6 slices of pepper jack cheese, optional

  • Additional ingredients required for taco meat or sausage prep, optional

Method

  • Mix flax meal and hot water together in a small dish if not using an egg
  • Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a pan on medium heat with a few dashes of salt and saute the onion, peppers, and garlic until soft
  • Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl smash the drained black beans with a potato masher until they are half a paste like texture and half small chunks
  • Add the egg or flax seed mixture to the bowl of bean along with the rest of the ingredients through the salt and pepper and mix together thoroughly
  • Form into 6 patties and place on a greased cookie sheet
  • Blot the patties with a paper towel and let sit uncovered in the refrigerator for at least an hour to draw out excess moisture
  • When ready to cook, take out of the refrigerator, blot with paper towel, and then brush with the remaining 1 Tablespoon olive oil on both sides
  • Pan sear or grill on medium-high heat until cooked through, about 3-4 minutes per side
  • If adding cheese, place the cheese on the burgers during the last 2-3 minutes of cooking

Notes

  • Serving suggestion includes smearing the bottom of a homemade sesame seed bun with chipotle mayonnaise, adding a slice of tomato, then the burger, topping with pickled onions, pickles, jalapenos, lettuce, and finally smearing chipotle mayonnaise on the top bun to help hold it all together
  • Note that if making taco meat the first day, crumble the mixture into hot pan with olive oil and taco seasoning to taste until golden brown. If using leftover burgers, simply chop them up and heat through in in skillet with olive oil and taco seasoning to taste.
  • If making sausage omit the cilantro from the recipe. Either crumble the bean mixture in a hot pan immediately or use chopped up leftover burgers. When making sausage first add the olive oil to a hot pan, add a few dashes of dried rosemary, dried thyme, and crushed red pepper, then add your sausage meat and crisp up until cooked through. (It’s also really delicious to add some shredded cheddar cheese to the pan to crisp it up more.)