Hot Dog

Have you ever had a craving for one of those char-grilled ballpark franks covered with a generous squirt of ketchup, mustard, and relish?  Anyone, or is it just me??  I remember one of my favorite meals as a kid was beans and franks (hot dogs chopped up and mixed in with baked beans) with a side of brown bread.  If you're wondering what brown bread is, you need to drive to the grocery store right now, buy a can, break it open, and indulge.  Seriously, tonight.

I agree, it doesn't look appetizing, and I shudder to imagine the ingredient list.  Although I did notice the can says 99% fat free.  However, I'll never forget how much my brother and I LOVED a thick slice of the bread with a smear of butter.  I wonder if this recipe would begin to recreate my childhood favorite?

Anyways, back the hot dog I've been craving.  I've never been very excited about the bits and pieces of mystery meat that are crammed into a casing to create a "hot dog".  They may taste good, but the whole concept is too disgusting for me to handle.  When I was wondering through Earth Fare last week, I came across these "Smart Dogs".

Is it too good to be true?  At 80 calories and 15 gram of protein per "protein link" it certainly seemed to be.  However, I was desperate for a hot dog, so I picked them up.  Could veggie dogs really begin to satisfy my craving for a grilled hot dog?  

Last night I finally decided cook them up.  I "grilled" one on my George Foreman for a few minutes on each side, wrapped the hot dog in a bun (too lazy to by an 8 pack of hot dog buns so I used bread), and doused it with ketchup, mustard, and dill pickles.

Served alongside was roasted red and sweet potatoes and a cucumber tomato salad.  The verdict - it was pretty doggone good.  If you were truly set on having a traditional ball park frank, you'd probably be disappointed.  However, it was much closer to the real thing than I anticipated.  In fact, if it were grilled on a "real" charcoal grill, I think you could pass it off as the real thing.  

Craving satisfied, mission accomplished.  Now back to that brown bread . . .