Lentil Loaf For St. Patrick's Day

Lentil Loaf

Tunes: Adele – 19 and 21

I adapted this recipe from one called “Neat Loaf”.  It was only vegetarian though, so I veganized it and changed some things to better suit what I wanted :-)  Oh, the joys of cooking for yourself!

I made this last weekend to take to a corned beef and cabbage dinner, so I had the loaf with a side of cabbage and salad… and some soda bread.  :-)

 

1 cup lentils

3 cups water

2 TBSP ground flaxseed

3 TBSP room temperature water
1 TBSP olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 med red onion, finely chopped

½ red pepper, finely chopped

2 carrots, finely grated

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

½ cup corn (I used thawed frozen)

1 cup steamed broccoli, finely chopped

1 cup walnuts, finely chopped

1 TBSP parsley

2 TBSP basil

1 TBSP oregano

2 tsp rosemary

6 oz tomato paste + 8 oz water

2 cups cooked brown rice

2 TBSP Dijon mustard

sea salt and peppercorn

ketchup (I use Organic Ville, it’s sweetened with agave, delicious!)

1.  Combine the lentils and 3 cups water in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, partially cover and simmer for about 15 minutes, until lentils are soft.  Drain and set aside.

2.  Combine the flaxseed and 3 TBSP water in a small bowl, whisk to combine and set aside.

3.  Preheat oven to 350°F.

4.  Heat oil on medium.  Add the garlic, onion, red pepper, carrot and celery.  Sauté for about 10 minutes, until onion is soft.  Add the corn, broccoli and walnuts; cook 1 minute more.

5.  Place spices in mortar, use pestle and smash to combine.  In a large bowl, combine lentils, flaxseed, onion mix, spices, tomato paste and water, rice and mustard.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

6.  Oil or spray a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan.  Place mixture in loaf pan  and spread ketchup (or chilli sauce or barbeque sauce) along top.  (I actually divided the mixture between the loaf pan and a mini loaf pan but I think it would do fine all in the loaf pan.)

7.  Bake for about 50-60 minutes, until the top is firm to the touch.  Let it stand for 10-15 minutes before serving (this allows the loaf to firm up).