As many of you know, my husband and I have been pescaterian for a decade. For many years, plant-based meat options were limited and the best of these options were recipes you made at home with beans or lentils. Delicious, but time consuming.

Our reasons for eliminating meat were three-fold, leading with the environmental impact, overall health and mass market production of meat and poultry. The recent news of the fires in the Amazon rainforest (a result of deforestation for cattle) combined with the growing trend of plant-based meats inspired me to share a few of our family’s favorite vegan meats and how we enjoy them.  Perhaps you’ll be intrigued and go meat-free one day a week.

Beyond Burgers are our new favorite. They BBQ, taste and look just like a beef burger without the beef, and also without soy, if that’s important to you. We enjoy off the BBQ with fun toppings like Mama Lil’s peppers, Follow Your Heart Vegenaise vegan chipotle dressing and cheddar cheese, organicgirl butter lettuce, red onion and tomatoes.

Another staple in our house is Field Roast’s Smoked Apple Sage sausages. We slice them and pan sear them in avocado oil and add them to our pesto pasta with broccoli. We use regularly parmesan for the pesto, but Parmela Creamery has a great vegan option.

For breakfast, we love MoringStar’s soy sausage and also Hilary’s spicy sausage patties. We add them to an english muffin with an egg, avocado and sliced tomato or cheese for a kid-favorite.

While there are many more options, these are our go-to options at home. We’ve also enjoyed the Impossible Burger at Tom Douglas’ The Carlile Room and are curious to try Rebellyous Foods’ no harm, no fowl chicken nuggets.

The plant-based food trend has finally taken hold, reshaping the way we eat. We’re eagerly watching where it’s going and finding opportunities to promote its success. If you have plant-based favorites, share them with us!