Vegan Cooking

For the most part, I am a vegan, though on occasion I turn a blind eye to egg and/or milk ingredients in sweets that I get out. That's rare. Being veg* provides an incredible opportunity to experiment with foods, though I usually refer to myself as "a vegetarian who doesn't eat vegetables." I'm into carbs. Trust me; it's something I am working on.

Whenever I cook, I usually have to play around with ingredients to find workable substitutions for things like milk and eggs. Even when I find a vegan recipe, I usually end up making some changes anyway.

I am by no means a gourmet, but I do enjoy cooking. I would like it even more, except I am usually cooking for one. Recently, I tried out a recipe for a "mock meatloaf" made with "meatless ground" that I found at Black Vegetarians. With the adjustments that I made, it didn't hold together and was a little too catsupy. That left me wanting to give a lentil loaf a try. I am always happy to find one on a veg* menu at a restaurant. And, an ex's mother used to make a good one, though probably not vegan.

I began to put the ingredients together in my head, and here's the easy, super-healthy version I came up with:

Lentil Loaf

2 1/2 C. lentils, cooked
1/2 med. onion, chopped
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 C. carrots, chopped
1/2 C. mushrooms, chopped
1 C. whole oats
1/3 C. sunflower seeds, unsalted raw
1/3 C. flaxseed meal
2 T. olive oil
2 T. catsup
2 tsp. vegan worsteshire sauce
1 tsp. Bragg's liquid aminos (optional)
1 T. vegetable broth base (or 1 vegetable bouillon cube + 1 T. water)
pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to °350 F.

In large mixing bowl, mash lentils with potato masher.

Saute vegetables in olive oil untils onion begin to become transparent.

Add vegetables to mashed lentils.

Blend in (with a spoon) remaining ingredients.

Oil 1 lb. loaf pan and press in lentil mixture. Cover pan with foil.

Bake for 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake for additional 5 minutes.

Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

This is really tasty, so I'm going to stick with this recipe for all my future Lentil Loaf needs.

Notes:

I didn't use any topping because I served my loaf with gravy and mashed potatoes.

If you click on the links in the recipe, they will take you to The World's Healthiest Foods website. It's not a veg* site, but if you are interested in eating healthy foods, this is the spot. Whfoods.org has wonderful information on some of the healthiest foods you can include in your diet. Check it out. You may want to look into their "healthy saute" method and use vegetable broth in place of the olive oil. I did not try out my recipe that way, so I don't know what effect this method would have on the outcome. If you are counting calories, or if you are concerned about heating oil, it may be worth a try.

I purchased a package of "steamed lentils", from Trader Joes. Perfect, since I know little about actually cooking legumes. Every time I try to cook lentils, the skins come off. The lentils from TJs were cooked, firm, and still retained their shape. When you mash them, don't worry about every little lentil. The effect is better when people see that the loaf is made from lentils. That way they don't have to worry that they are eating something really strange.

I also chopped carrots from the package of shredded carrots that I purchased there. Easy. Red Mill Flaxseed Meal? Organic Catsup? Virgin Olive Oil? Mushrooms? Raw sunflower seeds? All from TJs, as well.

The vegan worsteshire sauce was Annie's brand. If your local grocery stores don't carry it, check the local health food stores. I bought the Superior Touch Better Than Bouillon vegetable base from my local grocery store. I was planning to use a bouillon cube, but when I was in the grocery store, I was sold by the "V" for "vegan certified by vegan. org" on the Better Than Bouillon label.

And, if your are not a veg*, use whatever you have that works for you.