Aussie Day Barbeque! Carrot Sausages :)

Hi there friends!

In case you hadn't realised, or in fact, live in another country, yesterday- the 26th of January- marked the founding of the colony of New South Wales in 1788... in other words; AUSTRALIA DAY!

 And if there is one guaranteed tradition on Australia day... it is the great Aussie barbie! (Barbecue, for all you out of the Aussie slang loop ;)

Ok, I'll stop bombarding you with random pics of strangers celebrating Aus day and instead get onto the topic of this post.

BARBECUES!

See, as a vegetarian, I have found some really great veggie sausages over my years, whether they be made with soy, beans, mushrooms, rice, lentils- whatever the case may be I've had some good ones. However, there comes a time when a girl simply craves something as close to nature as possible. And no, I'm not talking about meat. Because when one does not eat meat, one substitutes in something else...

Yep, you guessed it- veggies!

But what would be the right shape and texture and general appealing-ness of a regular sausage??

Yes, my friends, I made carrot sausages... and they were delicious!

I first came across this genius idea from Clean Eating Veggie Girl's blog where she made carrot hotdogs by steaming some carrots, rubbing them in a marinade and then pan frying them.

So I decided to act upon that idea and transform it into my own carrot 'hot dog'.

Carrot Sausages

Ingredients:
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut on both ends to form the most sausage like shape
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 teaspoon garlic
1 teaspoon onion flakes
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius and line a tray with baking paper
2.Heat some water in a deep fry pan until simmering
3. Place the carrots into the simmering water and boil for around 15 minutes until slightly tender
4. Meanwhile stir together the oil, garlic, onion flakes, paprika, vinegar until combined
5. Remove cots from water, pat dry with a tea towel and place on tray
6. Rub with oil mixture and place in the oven for 40 minutes or until golden and tender:

7. Leave to cool slightly and then transfer to plate/ bun and enjoy!!

This is what my Australia Day barbecue dinner turned out to look like:

Carrot sausages on a spelt bun with lettuce and salsa with some spinach, grilled eggplant and charred corn on the side- so tasty!

I also cannot describe the amazing aromas from these 'sausages' as they cooked and if I closed my eyes and bit into this hot dog I would have a hard time accepting them to be merely cooked carrots!

Next time you want a barbecue but not the heaviness of meat? Try one of these bad boys! Still full on flavour with all the goodness of a regular ol' carrot!!

Your turn:
Are you a fan of barbecues?
Favourite veg to barbecue with?
Ever tried carrot sausages?

That's it from me today folks, I hope you all have a brilliant day, take risks, show love and SMILE! Bye for now!! :D