This is our Wicked Healthy take on an old classic, the BLT Club. There are lots of plant-based ingredients you can use to mimic the smoky elements for a BLT, like shiitake, maitake, eggplant, rice paper, or coconut, but today we’re shining the spotlight on the humble chickpea to create a powerhouse recipe, full of flavor and awesome texture!
Ingredients
for the bacon chickpeas
¼ cup tamari
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons 100% pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
½ teaspoon sea salt
small piece of red beet (for color)
2 cans of chickpeas (15.5 oz), drained
for the lemon-garlic aioli
½ cup vegan mayo
½ tsp garlic powder
splash of fresh lemon juice
for the BLT Club Pita
6 Pita bread, homemade or store bought
lettuce
cherry tomatoes, sliced
avocado, sliced
Instructions
to make the bacon chickpeas
Add all of the bacon chickpea ingredients (except for the chickpeas) to a high speed blender, give it a whiz until smooth.
Put the drained chickpeas in a bowl, plastic bag, or Mason jar and pour the marinade over the peas.
Let marinate overnight, give it a shake or toss a few times if you remember.
Once the chickpeas are fully marinated, preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Drain chickpeas from marinade, then spread them evenly onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake for 10 minutes, stirring around after 5 minutes.
to make the lemon-garlic aioli
Combine the three dressing ingredients.
Chill until ready to use or make while your chickpeas are baking.
to assemble the BLT Club Pita
Toast pita breads quickly, if you like. Assemble pitas with bacon chickpeas, lettuce, tomatoes, avocado and dressing.
These BLT Club Pitas are a great meal to serve for lunch, dinner, or for a party. Just lay out all the ingredients with the toppings and let guests build their pita however they want. Fresh pita breads, bacon chickpeas, red leaf lettuce, avocado, cherry tomatoes, and lemon garlic aioli is the set up we’re working with here.
To infuse the chickpeas with the maximum amount of bacon flavor, we let them marinate overnight (in a mason jar to save space in the fridge). Then, the marinated bacon chickpeas are spread on a parchment-lined baking sheet and roasted to perfection. They are salty, smoky and maple-y, with a crunchy outside and tender inside.
Did you make this recipe?
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