Welsh Laverbread Seitan Faggots (vegan) with Onion Gravy

I've featured vegan Welsh Faggots on my blog in the past, but have always wanted to enhance them textually and visually.  I was able to do this a few days ago for our homely St Davids Day Welsh Vegan Menu with the addition of another Welsh delicacy Laverbread.  

For those of you not  from Wales and not familiar with Welsh faggots, well in a nutshell Faggots were traditionally made with the innards of pigs. The pate like mixture was then wrapped in the lacy casing of the animals caul and oven roasted slowly.  

I remember reading a while back, that the Welsh faggots is what haggis is to the Scots and is often referred to as Welsh Haggis in some parts of Wales.  There may be some truth in this as The Scotsman also make reference to haggis being popular in the Welsh Valleys of Wales, but they still credit the Scots for the haggis jokingly writing that a Scottish haggis escaping to Wales in 1690, hence its popularity in Wales. 

Faggots are still made in Wales and are still quite popular.  Faggots are traditionally served with mushy peas and onion gravy or brown meaty gravy.  My Welsh Laverbread Seitan Faggots are of course is suitable for vegetarians and for vegans and so is the onion gravy. 

D absolutely loved the onion gravy.  He didn't mind the Welsh Laverbread Seitan Faggots either.

Welsh Bara Lawr Laverbread Seitan Sausage (vegan)

Wales is still not popular for its vegetarian cuisine, its often seen as the land of Welsh lamb, cockles and mussels, faggots - a Welsh meatball made from offal and meat off-cuts.  But what many people do not know is St David, the Patron Saint of Wales was a vegetarian.  I speculate, but its possible that St David may actually have even been a vegan as he only ate bread, vegetables, herbs and only drank water.  

The green green lush land of Wales has also given us leeks and laverbread. Laverbread or 'bara lawr' as it is known in these part of the Welsh valleys.  Laverbread is not actually a bread, its a seaweed, that is cooked down to a jet green paste famously described by the acclaimed Welsh actor Richard Burton as 'Welshman's caviar'.  Laverbread is often enjoyed with shellfish, buttered toast or as Laverbread Cakes.   The best laverbread comes from Selwyn's who are based on the beautiful shores of the Gower Peninsula. 

So today for St David's Day celebrations, I present to you an alternative Welsh vegetarian recipe that makes an interesting  change from the traditional Selsig Morgannwg - Glamorgan sausages and Welsh Rarebit - homely cheese on toast.  This recipe is made with both Welsh leeks and laverbread and also happens to be vegan.  Behold the Welsh Bara Lawr Seitan Sausage that I have created especially for the 1st March, celebrating the Patron Saint of Wales and all things Welsh. 

For those of you who are neither vegetarian or vegan, may find these vegan Welsh Bara Lawr Seitan Sausage a little difficult to process visually, but they make for a good mock meat substitute for those who do not wish to consume meat.  These Welsh Bara Lawr Seitan Sausage do not replicate the taste of meat in any way, just mimic it.  

I was inspired to create these vegan Welsh sausage with laverbread for two reasons.  One I had read somewhere in the past that someone somewhere in Wales had created a meat version of laverbread sausage; and two, I had recently had a vegan sausages made with Irish Dulse Seaweed  and that's was me on the path to making a vegan alternative of Welsh Bara Lawr with Seitan.   

We have sliced and pan fried them and enjoyed them with mashed potatoes, two veg and gravy, but you can also cook them whole.  The flavourings in these  Welsh Bara Lawr Seitan Sausage is based on my vegan Welsh Faggots (Ffagod) recipe.  I think the recipe still needs a little tweaking, but I am happy to share it with you today.

Dydd Gwŷl Dewi Hapus

Welcoming March Eat Your Greens

Wow, I really cannot believe its March and still the possibility of snow in this part of the world.  

Well I am not looking forward to more cold weather, but I am looking forward to your submissions as its my turn to host the Eat Your Greens challenge this month.  To participate this month, just post a vegan or vegetarian recipe that is made with green vegetables on your blog.  Then copy the link to the comment section below.  The deadline is the 30th March 2017.

For more details Follow this link on how to participate just please remember to link back to the host page (this page) and co-host The VegHog.   The use of the logo is optional, but appreciated.


If you are tweeting your recipe, please use #EatYoursGreens #eatyourgreens and include @SeasonalShaheen @TheVegHog and we will retweet all those that we see.   

If you want some Eat Your Greens inspiration, see what food bloggers from around the world shared in February , then check out my co-host The Veg Hog for inspiration.