Vegetarian BBQ Buffet Meal Prep: Tempeh, Roasted Veggies, Corn Fritters & Slaw

Prepare the green beans: Add the green beans, olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic to a sheet pan. Toss with a wooden spoon or your hands to coat the green beans and spread them out a bit on the pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes. The green beans should be bright in color and slightly wrinkly when finished. If they're still too hard, flip them and bake for another 5 minutes or to your preference.

Prepare the tempeh: in a bowl, toss the sliced tempeh and BBQ sauce. Heat up a skillet (nonstick, cast iron or stainless steel) for a minute or two, then add the oil and let that heat up for another minute. Add the tempeh (you may need to do it in batches) to the pan. Avoid getting a lot of sauce in the pan, otherwise, it won't be crispy! Cook on each side for 3-4 minutes. The edges of the tempeh should look crispy and the strips should be darker in color. Set aside when finished cooking. 

Make the corn fritter batter: Add the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and sugar to a bowl and mix. To the same bowl, add the milk and fold in the corn. Here, you can add chopped scallions, red bell peppers or any other veggies you want! 

Cook the corn fritters: LIne a plate with paper towels. Heat up a nonstick skillet over a medium flame for 1-2 minutes, then add the vegetable oil and let that heat up for 2-3 minutes. It needs to be hot! Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup or standard ice cream scooper,  add the batter to the pan. I was able to fit 3 in a 10" skillet at once. Cook on each side for 2-3 minutes (they cook fast!). Set aside on the plate lined with paper towels and keep cooking until you're out of batter!

Make the slaw: pour out the entire cole slaw bag in a bowl. In a separate smaller bowl or measuring glass, add the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, liquid sweetener, salt, pepper if using and garlic. If you like a little kick, add a pinch of cayenne or chipotle powder. Mix well and taste it - adjust flavors as necessary. Add the dressing to the bowl of slaw and toss. 

Assemble! To make this a buffet prep, keep all the ingredients in separate containers. You can also pre-portion the meals (like we normally do) in containers as you wish! This should yield 3-4 meals depending on how much you like to eat.