The first time I had a vegan Big Mac, I was visiting Phoenix with my friend Britney. We visited the vegan restaurant Green, and I was blown away by their version of the famous McDonalds burger – the Big Wac. As soon as I got home, I constructed my own.

Because I was living in San Francisco at the time, I had not experienced the vegan Big Mac taking LA by storm at a small restaurant called Doomies. And because it is a secret menu item, the first time I went to Doomies I ordered a different burger. When I finally tried the Doomie’s Big Mac I was completely smitten and it’s all I’ve ever ordered from there on out (save for some deep-fried appetizers). Though I knew how to make it myself, I lived alone with a tiny kitchen – that kind of decadence was left for very special occasions.

When Mike and I first got together, he confessed to me that Doomies was pretty much his favorite restaurant, thanks to that Big Mac. I boasted that I could make one for him just as delicious, if not better. It was on!

We decided to indulge after a seven mile run with our run crew, BlacklistLA. Thoughts of it fueled my run, as well as some anxiety over replicating one of my new boyfriend’s favorite Los Angeles dishes. Long story short, he took one bite and decided he was in love with me.

You can see, we are thinking about Big Macs!

Alright, enough small talk, time to get to the recipe part! Or rather, the part where I give you some tips and tricks on building your own, because the only “recipe” is making the special sauce.

For two people, you will need:

1 -2 TB vegetable oil
4 beefless burgers (if we used Beyond Burgers, we opt for one patty each)
Vegan American or Cheddar cheese
2 TB Ketchup
1/4 cup vegan mayo
diced white onion (about 1/4 -1/2 of a small white onion)
Sliced dill pickles (about 12 slices or “chips”)
sliced romaine or iceburg lettuce (about 1 cup, unpacked)
3 buns

I fry up my beefless burgers in vegetable oil, unless I’m making Beyond Burgers, as those contain enough fat to fry up nicely on their own. When they are nice and hot on both sides, and cooked all the way through, I add one slice of vegan American or Cheddar cheese to each patty, turn off the heat and cover the pan so the cheese can melt. If you would like a toasted bun, add two bun bottoms and two bun tops to the pan during this time. This should leave you with another un-toasted bun on the side.

Mix the ketchup and mayo to make your “special sauce”. Any 2 -1 ration will work, depending on how saucy you like your burgers. Dice or slice any onions, pickles and lettuce as well.

Now we assemble! Take two toasted bun bottoms, slather on some sauce on each! Place a beefless patty on top, followed by lettuce, pickles and onions. Take one of the un-toasted burger bottoms and place on top of the first burger. With the un-toasted burger top, delicately slice off the mound to make it flat like a burger bottom. Place on top of the second burger. Sauce up those up, and place the third and fourth burger patties on top. Dress them the same way with the pickles, onions and lettuce, put some more sauce on the toasted burger bun tops, and BOOM YOU HAVE A VEGAN BIG MAC!

A side of salad because eating your greens is important! A totally balanced meal, as you can see!

Enjoy!