High Protein “Bacon” Scalloped Potatoes

Gluten-free Option

• Follow the gluten-free option instructions for the high protein vegan bacon bits.

Scalloped potatoes are one of my all-time favorite comfort foods! They’re gooey, salty, savory, creamy and delicious. And obviously, you literally can’t go wrong with potatoes. These scalloped potatoes have some added flavor with homemade vegan “bacon” bits, which I think makes them even more tasty!

The high protein-ness of these scalloped potatoes comes from the mushroom soup sauce we use, and the “bacon” bits. The mushroom soup is made with silken tofu and nutritional yeast. It’s definitely more time consuming than just using a can of condensed mushroom soup, but I personally think it’s worth it. The high protein “bacon” bits are made with TVP (textured vegetable protein).

This recipe makes six servings, so it’s great for a family meal or just a high protein meal prep! I think they heat up pretty well, and when we make them, we take the leftovers for lunch!

Ingredients

• High Protein Bacon Bits – these are made with TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein). If you haven’t used TVP before, it’s a kitchen must! TVP is just de-fatted soy protein – it’s cheap, versatile and easy to use. In most cases, you will add water/broth, and seasoning to it, and cook off the water – that’s what we’re doing here! Since these will be going back in the oven on top of the scalloped potatoes, don’t cook them as long as you might if you were to use them on a salad or something. They make vegan bacon bits that you can find in most stores if you’re running low on time, but I would caution against using those because those babies are salty! If you’re trying to save time, the bacon bits made out of coconut are good and have a similar flavor to these; just know that this will change the calories and macros quite a bit.

• High Protein Condensed Mushroom Soup – while it takes some extra time to make our own mushroom soup, this is how we are making the scalloped potatoes high protein. If you decide to use store-bought mushroom soup, just know that the calories and macros will change a lot. This mushroom soup recipe uses extra firm silken tofu (which you can find in the International Food Isle of most grocery stores or purchase online).

• Medium-large Russet Potatoes – I always peel my potatoes for this dish, but if your preference is to not peel them, I think that should be fine too! I used a mandolin to get all the potato slices the same size. Mandolins can be pretty dangerous so if you’re going this route, use caution! It’s important that the potato slices are the same thickness so that everything cooks evenly.
• Vegan Shredded Cheddar – if you’re trying to make this a WFPB (Whole Food Plant-Based) meal, you can skip the vegan cheese. I like to use Violife shreds for this.
• Vegan Parmesan – if you’re trying to make this a WFPB (Whole Food Plant-Based) meal, you can skip the vegan cheese. I like to use Follow Your Heart Parmesan for this – the one in the container, not the shaker.
• Soy Milk – we are adding a little extra soy milk to the mushroom soup recipe; this is just to thin it out some. If you have a preferred vegan milk other than soy milk, that will work too – this is just to add moisture!

Directions

• Pre-heat oven to 350 F (177 C).
• Make 2 x the High Protein Condensed Mushroom Soup Recipe. Add an additional 1 cup of Soy Milk to to soup recipe so that it’s thinner for pouring on top of the potatoes.
• Make 1 1/2 x the High Protein “Bacon” Bits Recipe.
• Peel and thinly slice the potatoes. I use a mandolin. It is very important that the potato slices are all the same width so that they cook evenly. I shoot for 1/8″ thick slices. If you’re using a mandolin, please be careful!

• Set aside the vegan Parmesan, 1/2 cup of the vegan cheddar and 1/4 – 1/2 cup of the vegan bacon bits (these will be used for the topping).
• If you have concerns with the food sticking, spray some oil on the bottom and sides of your casserole dish. In the casserole dish, cover the bottom with a layer of the mushroom soup (and soy milk) mixture.
• Layer as follows:
  • Potatoes

• Mushroom Soup

• Cheddar

• Bacon Bits

• Potatoes
• Mushroom Soup
• Cheddar
• Bacon Bits
• Potatoes
• Mushroom Soup
• Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes.
• Remove from oven, pull off the aluminum foil, and sprinkle on the Parmesan, and the remaining shredded cheddar and bacon bits that were set aside.
• Bake for another 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and potatoes are fork tender.

Silly Little Haiku

TVP Bacon

Silken Tofu Mushroom Soup

And the POTATOES