favorite vegan burgers?

I’ve enjoyed a vegan diet for many years now, with only a few exceptions for specific reasons. In my years of meatless existence, I’ve come across a few brands of vegan burgers, or veggie burgers, that I’m going to list below. I had the idea for this post recently when I cooked up a couple of vegan burgers from a brand I’m not very familiar with yet. For this dinner, toppings I used were Daiya dairy free cheese, vegan mayo, and ketchup, with a side of Hidden Valley vegan ranch dressing. I know those condiments might hide the flavor of the burger but I must say, it was delicious. The brand of burger is Dr. Praeger’s. They make a few different flavors of burgers, I went with black bean quinoa.

And now I will rank my favorite vegan burgers from the five brands I’ve tried.

  1. Beyond Burger. This one tastes most like a normal beef burger. It’s also hefty, but the downside is that I’m thirsty afterwards. Too much salt.
  2. Sweet Earth. It’s hard to find this brand but their teriyaki burger is amazing. Highlight recommend this one.
  3. Dr. Praeger’s. Great flavor and not as much sodium. A little on the small side for each patty but still, delicious.
  4. Morning Star. Nothing to be excited about.
  5. Impossible Burger. All the excitement of not eating meat, but without the flavor or enjoyment. Just blah.

Have you tried these brands? Is there another meatless burger brand I should be trying? Comment below, thanks for dropping in!

-Out of the Wilderness

I almost had a date in Tulsa

Hello! Thanks for clicking on my post today. A couple things you should know before continuing: 1. I’m single. 2. I have been traveling in a travel trailer on and off this year.

Ok, that’s a preface for my experience in Oklahoma recently. I had been camping around the southwest (you can read about all that here) and one of the final stops was in Tulsa where I was to go to a concert then begin the journey back to Florida. Along the way I was making myself available on random dating apps and that deserves a little bit of explanation, too.

Why?

To be totally honest, an out-of-town date is almost completely pointless given the fact that I value quantity time, not just quality. But it is what it is… or it was what it was? Even if it’s just a new friend, there’s value in that I suppose. So I connected with someone and we planned to meet the day of the concert. We’d find a fun place to have a first date (short, so we’d both have a way out if it wasn’t going well). But a couple hours before we were to meet up, I got a message that basically cancelled the date. We exchanged one or two more messages the following day and poof, she was gone. I guess she’s a lot like me… dates sound good in theory but when it’s time to actually do it, she’s like, “Nah, I’m good.”

I had a feeling she would cancel so I was bracing myself for it anyway. I just wish she was a little more transparent. If you change your mind, tell me. There’s no need to make up an excuse. I’m a big boy, I can handle the truth!

Jack Nicholson You Cant Handle The Truth GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY

An out-of-town date is kind of pointless, like I said earlier. We need to live relatively close by. It just makes sense. That’s why I wasn’t totally devastated she cancelled. But it would’ve been nice to be social for a couple hours.

Do you have any dating stories where the other person cancelled on you? Have you cancelled a date because your heart wasn’t in it? I’ve been on both sides so I can understand how plans can fall through in a hurry.

Thanks for dropping in…

-Out of the Wilderness

What’s the music in the new DoorDash ads? The answer’s here!

DoorDash has a series of new ads showing the wide array of items they can have delivered to you. A few are included below and if you watch, you’ll catch on that they use the same song as a tag at the end of each commercial… and if you like what you read today, consider making a small donation to help me continue posting daily… thank you in advance!!

Donate to Out of the Wilderness here

Would you believe this song is over 50 years old? It’s true! From 1965, the instrumental song is “Mae” by Herb Alpert. A version with English lyrics was recorded and released that same year by Ella Fitzgerald. Here are those two versions…

Thanks for dropping in!

-Out of the Wilderness

Flag Photos and Cemetery Session

I like walking through cemeteries to see the birth dates and when they died. I visited a small one recently that had a person who was born in the mid 1800s. That fascinates me very much. What was their life like? What kinds of things did they do each day? Did they ever foresee cars, airplanes, the changes in music? I snapped a few photos then got way too distracted with a ragged, tattered American flag. With the sun setting behind it, I love how the pictures where looking (even with some dust on the sensor :/ ). Here are photos from that afternoon. Thanks for dropping in!

-Out of the Wilderness

One Night in Palo Duro

I had just finished 5 days at Caprock Canyons State Park and if you read my blog consistently, you definitely know it’s become my favorite park to visit. But the thing is, my trip around the “south by southwest” wasn’t over. Next up was a beautiful location, another state park. This one is called Palo Duro Canyon State Park.

It’s just as pretty as Caprock Canyons but I’ll be honest. I checked in, drove down into the canyon where my campsite was located and my heart just wasn’t in it. There are a few reasons for this:

  1. Coming from an amazing park, I wasn’t sure Palo Duro could measure up
  2. Lots of flies
  3. No internet or cell connection

That last one sounds shallow, I know. But coming from Caprock where connection was spotty, I didn’t think I could make it another 5 days with no phone or internet. Sometimes the truth is ugly. On top of that, I didn’t want to leave the trailer because of the flies. They were already getting in the trailer and I had just been there a couple of hours. Whether I was going out or getting back in the trailer, they were right by the door waiting to get in. It was frustrating and annoying. I thought that I just needed to gird my loins and endure this for the next 5 days and it would be fine. I’d focus on taking pictures, walking the dogs, swatting flies.

But that’s no way to enjoy a state park, even if it was gorgeous. So one thing led to another and without having to tuck my tail and run, God provided a way out and I took it. After one night, I packed up and headed east towards Oklahoma City (where I biked around and took pictures). The next destination was Tulsa, Oklahoma for a Judah and the Lion show. Check back in tomorrow for my recap of that fun night. With all that said, I DID manage to take a few pictures in the short time I was there. Hope you enjoy!

In summary, Palo Duro is pretty but for me it wasn’t the right timing. I’ll have to go back so I can really enjoy everything that’s there. But hey, take my advice, don’t go to Caprock Canyons first. Everything after that will pale in comparison.

Thanks for dropping in!

-Out of the Wilderness