In the mood for a little soul food? But you're a vegetarian? No problem. 

Head down to Rays Vegan Soul in St. Petersburg. For this visit, Chef Ray Milton cooked up a vegan sausage dish with mac and cheese and collard greens on the side. 

Milton's dish combines mushrooms, peppers, carrots with walnuts ground up in a food processor. The mixtures, with sea salt, cayenne pepper and balsamic vinegar, is used to make the sausage patties — which are baked for about 20 minutes and served up on a platter.

"I think all good food that’s from the earth and that’s natural is soul food," said Milton.

VEGAN SAUSAGE

Ingredients

  • 3 cups Walnuts or cooked green lentils, or other cooked bean
  • 1 cup of portobello mushrooms
  • 1 cup sundried tomatoes (that have been soaked at least 2 hours)
  • 1 cup fresh parsley
  • ½ tsp dried oregano
  • ½ tsp ground fennel
  • ½ red onion rough chop
  • 3 carrots rough chop
  • ½ red bell pepper rough chop
  • Pinch of Sea salt and Cayenne Pepper to taste

Directions: In food processor pulse walnuts, then add sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms, parsley, onion, carrots, bell pepper, sea salt, cayenne pepper and pulse until well mixed.

On a lined baking sheet make your patties you can pan fry or bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

If doing walnuts you can place in a dehydrator and allow to dry for approximately five hours.