The Best Vegetarian Eats at Sunday’s Hollywood Farmer’s Market

My most recent write up for NBC's Feast Blog.

What better way to kick off your Sunday than at the Farmer's Market with some good eats?

You know what they say, never shop hungry. Here are my three favorite meat-free finds to fire me up for a morning of chard selection and heirloom tomato hunting.

The Breakfast Sandwich at Taste of Life

Taste of Life should really be known as “Taste of Crack” because they have to be putting something perverse in their vegan breakfast sandwich ($5). Owner and chef Hosea promises it’s just “All love and energy,” but we’re unconvinced. The vegan pseudo McMuffin features a crumbly biscuit topped with al dente baked tofu, luscious faux sausage meat that would sate even the toughest carnivore, and their garlicy secret sauce, a cross between melted cheese and aioli, that will have you licking any residue from the wax paper your sandwich arrives in. In the six months since their debut, Taste of Life went from selling 18-20 every Sunday to 150. Get ‘em quick ‘cause they’re going fast.

Veggie Pupusas at Delmy Pupuseria

If you’ve never had a pupusa, you’re denying your taste buds tremendous pleasure. Sometimes known as “the El Salvadorian Pita,” pupusas are a thick corn flatbread stuffed and then topped with your filling of choice. At Delmy Pupuseria, the Vegetable Pupusa ($3) is stuffed with cheese, corn, tomatoes, peppers and squash, then served with fresh salsa, gently spicy pickled coleslaw, and crema. Dense and filling yet fresh and spicy, the aroma of sweet corn batter fresh from the griddle will have you floating from the rest of your morning.

The Papaya-Mint-Cane Smoothy at Raw Cane Super Juice
You gotta love a stand that gets down Costco style and invites you to sip free samples while you’re waiting for your order. Enjoy a few shots of the cane juice cleanser, a Master Cleanse-esque combo of lime juice, cane juice and cayenne, as they prepare your perfect end-of-weekend-pick-me-up, the Papaya Mint Cane Smoothy ($5). If you partied a little too hardy on Saturday, the mint and papaya will soothe your stomach while the cane juice promises to alkalize, amino-fy, and anti-oxidize you. They don’t call it Super Juice for nothing.

Hollywood Farmers' Market; every Sunday from 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM, from Ivar to Cahuenga, Sunset to Hollywood Blvd.