This is a wonderful recipe to make on a Sunday afternoon to eat for lunch the whole week. While it may seem like there is a good bit of work upfront, it comes together relatively quickly. The wrap themselves are crunchy, smokey and absolutely delicious. I would say they are close to a vegetarian BLT wrap but with a few extra ingredients on the inside, including homemade fake meat.

I was introduced to the world of homemade fake meat when my mom started making it a few years back. She bought me the cook book she was using to show me how easy it is. That cookbook is the homemade vegan pantry by Miyoko Schinner, and it is one of the best cookbooks I own. It has taught me to make everything from a vegan meatloaf to homemade mustard — I can not recommend it enough. Thus, I can not take credit for the fake meat (also called seitan) used in this recipe, it is from this cookbook and it is called Unpork.

A few notes about the recipe here, first off, you’re going to want to buy large tortillas. The one’s I use have a 10 inch diameter as they are the largest I can find. Second, when rolling these, you’re going to want to try and roll them very tight to include as much romaine as possible. While it may seem self explanatory, good rolling technique will go a long way here. If you haven’t rolled many wraps or burritos, quickly watch this video. The most crucial step is when you have rolled the tortilla over the fillings, use the top side of the tortilla to pull back and squish the ingredients together. Lastly, in the seitan there is both liquid smoke and vital wheat gluten. These can be found at most well stocked natural food stores or online. I hope you enjoy!

Active time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

Unpork

• 1 cup water
• ⅓ cup neutral oil
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp liquid smoke
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp sea salt
• 2 ¼ cups vital wheat gluten
• Oil, for cooking

Coconut bacon

• 2 ½ tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp liquid smoke
• tbsp neutral oil
• 1 ½ tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• pinch of cayenne chili powder
• pinch of salt
• black pepper to taste
• 4 cups large, unsweetened coconut flakes

The rest:

• 2 heads romaine
• medium white onion
• cherry tomatoes
• bottle of ceasar dressing
• large, whole wheat flour tortillas

Directions

1. First we will begin the seitan. In a large bowl combine the water, oil, soy sauce, liquid smoke, a tsp of the salt and combine. Then, slowly add in the 2 ¼ cups vital wheat gluten, first working it with a spatula but then with your hands as it begins to form. Work it until there is no vital wheat gluten visible. We want the dough to be stringy, I like to take large clumps and pull them apart.
2. Heat a heavy bottomed skillet on medium heat, cover the bottom of the pan with a thin layer of oil. Add the seitan to the pan and get it nice and brown on all sides, we want there to be a slight crunch to it. Once this is finished, add water to the skillet until the seitan is submerged. Add in another tsp of salt and lower the heat down to a simmer. Let it cook, covered, for roughly 45 minutes. It is done when you cut open a piece and see tiny are pockets throughout.
3. While the seitan is simmering we will make the coconut bacon. Start the oven to 325F. In a large bowl, combine the soy sauce, liquid smoke, oil, maple syrup, garlic powder, cayenne, salt and pepper. Whisk it until well incorporated then add in the coconut flakes. Mix the flakes in until they are all evenly coated. Prepare a large baking sheet with parchment and transfer the coconut flakes over to it. Cook for 13-14 minutes on the 325. At the halfway point take them out to toss and turn them before returning them to the oven. Once the 13-14 minutes is up, let them cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes to finish cooking.
4. Prepare the wraps. Chop and wash the romaine. We want the lettuce to be in small strips. Thinly slice the onion into semi-circles. Now, halve the amount of cherry tomatoes you will use on that day. We can chop the onion and lettuce in advance but not the tomatoes.
5. Assemble the wraps. Add the lettuce, onion and tomatoes you will use immediately and toss it in a bowl with the ceasar dressing. You should put a bit more than you would typically like on your salad. Now, lay a tortilla out add a strip of coconut bacon down the middle. Add the seitan on top of this, letting some liquid drain from it before adding it. Now add the vegetables. Here comes the most important part — tightly wrap it. Now enjoy your crunchy, smokey wrap!

Some tips about satorage: the seitan should be kept in it’s cooking liquid in a large tupperware. The coconut bacon can be stored in a tupperware at room temperature.