applebee's make over

Applebee's is another of those casual-dining chain restaurants. Very much like Chili's, T.G.I.F and The Cheesecake Factory. Applebee's was among my first make overs in my first year of MoFo. That time I recreated their Oriental Chicken Salad and Ribs. This time around I took up the challenge of Grilled Shrimp 'n Spinach Salad. This salad tosses shrimp, peppers, onions and spinach in a hot bacon vinaigrette. 

Bacon and shrimp are the problem children here. I could have replaced the shrimp with tofu or seitan (more cost effective), but I decided on hearts of palm. I marinated the palm with a little dulse, a seaweed, and used Bac'uns for the bacon. Typically tvp doesn't stand up to cooking in liquid because it looses the crunch, but because this was a hot dressing, I cooked the Bac'uns in the oil before adding the vinegar. This worked out perfectly.

After the hearts of palm marinated, I sauteed them to a golden brown.

Disclaimer. The result was not shrimp. But it was delicious. The palm was a bit vinegary because it is pickled and the dressing was smoky and the bac'un in it crispy. The almonds add another crunch to the dish and the veggies are just right. Nothing is overwhelming and there is a hint of the taste of the sea. 

Applebee's charges $10.99 for a serving.

Cost Breakdown

spinach: $3
hearts of palm: $8
tomato, pepper, onion: $3
almonds, dulse: $1
spices, oil, vinegar, Bac'uns: $2
mustard, smoke, sugar: $1
Total for 4 servings:
$18.00

Their charge per Serving: $10.99

Make-Over cost per Serving: $4.50

GRILLED HEARTS OF PALM AND SPINACH SALAD PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

applebee's (MoFo 2)




We all have one of these in our neighborhood, don't we? Well, maybe not everyone, but then I didn't exactly research the number of these fine establishments that are dotting the planet. I guess I chose Applebee's, not for their super fabulous menu, but because I worked at one. In fact, I thought I was just hired to work at a place that was going to put a bunch of $$$ in my pocket and drove 90 minutes each way to go to work.

I quit within a month. It wasn't the gold-mine I was expecting.

I never really understood Applebee's phenomena; every time we ate there (pre-veg), they never managed to get the order right and we got some pretty awful food because of it. That is a good enough reason to make it at home.

We made two of Applebee's signature dishes... the Asian Chicken Salad - cleverly omitting the 'fried' part from the name and...the more-famous-than-Houdini Applebee's Ribs. No need to have Babe on a plate, we have seitan all ready to transform a plate of something my daughter called "eww, gross,'' as she gazed upon Applebee's website, to "this is really good, Mom," as she was chowing down on her Seitan Rib.

Finger-licking good.

The Oriental Salad has fried Tender Seitan on it and a mustard-maple sesame dressing. It never ceases to amaze me that someone can transform a perfectly healthy plate of greens into a heart-attack on a plate fare. And, yet, that is what seems to be happening across the board in restaurants - veg or not, fried tastes right. This was no exception; it was really good.

So, while you dear reader, can pick and choose wisely when or if to indulge in these fried delicacies, my family will need a good detox in December.

The sacrifices we make for the blog.

Cost Breakdown

Salad:

lettuce, cabbage, carrots, onions: $4

chow mein, almonds, cashews: $1.50

maple, vinegar, mustard, veganaise: $1.50

seitan, corrnflakes, flour: $4

Total for 4 servings:

$11.00

Ribs:

seitan: $5

ketchup, spices, herbs, vinegar, sugar: $2

potatoes: $3

Total for 5 servings:

$10.00

Asian Chick'n Salad

Applebee's Style Ribs

Asian Chick'n Salad Recipe

Applebee's Style Ribs Recipe