Ingredients

For the Mushrooms:

2 tablespoons light olive oil
2 tablespoons raw cane sugar
1 teaspoon molasses
1 tablespoons chopped canned chipotle chile
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 cup tamari
8 ounces trumpet mushrooms, cut lengthwise into 1/8-inch-thick slices

For the Vegan Smoky Red Pepper Sauce (or use your favorite vegan dressing):

2 medium red bell peppers
1 teaspoon of extra-virgin olive oil
1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 cup vegan mayonnaise
1 tablespoon hot sauce
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

For the salad:

½ batch of Marinated Red Onions, ½ cup of Marinated Red Onion Oil
Vegan Spicy Red Pepper Sauce (see below for recipe)
3 cups corn kernels, cut off the cob or frozen
2 cups of cherry tomatoes, sliced
1 -2 avocados, chopped
2 small romaine lettuce hearts (about 8 ounces total), halved lengthwise
Kosher Salt

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Instructions

Make the Mushroom Bacon:

Preheat the oven to 225°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together the safflower oil, sugar, molasses, chipotle, paprika, tamari, and 1/4 cup water. Add the mushrooms and toss to coat well.
Spread the mushrooms on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 2 hours. Remove from the oven, transfer to a cooling rack, and let cool completely.

This mushroom bacon recipe is slightly modified and “reprinted with permission from Vegetable Kingdom: The Abundant World of Vegan Recipes by the Bryant Terry, copyright © 2020. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House.” The recipe originally calls for safflower oil but I use light olive oil.

Get Bryant Terry’s Vegetable Kingdom here

Make Vegan Smoky Red Pepper Sauce (if making):

Preheat the broiler and raise the oven rack to 5 or 6 inches below the heat source.
Put the bell peppers on a baking sheet and drizzle evenly with the olive oil. Sprinkle ½ teaspoon of the salt and black pepper over them. Broil until charred about 15 minutes. Flip the peppers over and broil, flipping every 5 minutes until completely charred, 10 to 15 minutes more. Remove the peppers from the oven and let cool.
Remove and discard the charred skin, seeds, and stems and transfer the flesh from the peppers to a blender or food processor. Add the mayonnaise, vinegar, the remaining 1 teaspoon of salt, the hot sauce, and the cayenne and blend until smooth.
Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Make the Corn:

In a large pan over medium heat add extra virgin olive oil and add corn. Sprinkle with salt, to taste. Stir continually until golden brown for about 5 minutes.

Assemble your salad platter:

Start by placing the romaine lettuce hearts on the platter. Sprinkle thoroughly with salt and drizzle with the marinated onion oil.
Layer the tomatoes, avocados, corn, and bacon mushroom.
Top the entire salad with Marinated Red Onion and serve with Vegan Smoky Red Pepper Sauce.

Notes

choosing, storing, and cleaning mushrooms

If possible, choose loose mushrooms over prepackaged. This allows you to examine each one before buying. Your mushrooms should look healthy, without discoloration, so put them back if they are slimy. You also want them to smell fresh and earthy, so avoid sour-smelling mushrooms at all costs. I store them in the refrigerator inside a breathable container like an open plastic bag or a lidded container that is only partially covered. Be sure to use mushrooms within a few days because they go bad quickly.

In order to avoid waterlogging your mushrooms, gently wipe them with a damp paper towel when cleaning. I know this is a tedious process, but it is worth it to maintain the integrity of your mushrooms. If you are in a rush, you can quickly rinse them in cold water and immediately pat them dry with paper towels.