Recipe: Glazed Vegetable Lentil Loaf

From the Vitality Food Feature ‘Marvellous Meatless Meals‘.

Introducing meat-lovers to meatless meals is easy with this tasty loaf which comes out of the oven oozing with a mouth-watering glaze. This dish goes great with fermented beets, a green salad, and a crispy roll on the side. Leftover slices can be sprinkled with flour and fried in olive oil until brown and crispy … every bit as good second time around!

INGREDIENTS

• 1-1/2 cups dry green (or brown) lentils
• 3 cups vegetable stock or water
• 4 Tbsp ground flaxseed
• 1/2 cup water
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 chopped onions
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1 minced sweet pepper
• 1 diced jalapeno pepper (optional)
• 1 stick minced celery
• 3 grated carrots
• 1/2 teaspoon each of ground cumin and coriander
• Pinch of thyme and basil
• Sea salt and pepper to taste
• 1 egg (optional, for those who want a firmer loaf)

1) Wash lentils under cold running water and put them into a large saucepan; add stock or water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 35 to 45 minutes, or until mushy and liquid is mostly evaporated, stirring frequently to ensure lentils have not boiled dry.

2) Remove from heat, let stand until cool at which time the lentils should be very thick.

3) In a bowl, combine ground flax seed with water. Let stand 10 minutes. If you like a more delicate loaf you can skip this step but if you fancy a firmer texture this makes a good binder. Set aside.

4) Heat olive oil in a skillet and sauté onions, garlic, peppers, celery, and carrots until soft. Sprinkle in the spices, herbs, sea salt, and pepper.

5) Mix the flaxseed and the vegetables into the lentils, add the egg and mix well. The mixture should have a ‘meat loaf’ consistency. If you find it is not stiff enough you can add some seasoned wholewheat bread or cracker crumbs for extra binding power. Set aside.

6) Grease a 10” x 5” x 3” loaf pan with coconut or olive oil, and pack loaf mixture into pan.

7) Spread with the glaze (recipe here), and bake 45 minutes at 375F, or until firmly set. Let stand 15 minutes before slicing.