Vegan Lentil Loaf

Vegan Lentil Loaf

This easy veggie filled vegetarian and vegan lentil loaf is even better than the classic meatloaf! Be sure to use green or brown lentils, not red.

I’ve been working on this lentil loaf recipe for weeks and am so excited to finally share it with you. This veggie lentil loaf is hearty and has those cozy flavors I remember from when my mom made meatloaf when I was a kid. If you’re ready to move away from light summery salads, this is a great place to start. I’m not going there yet, but you may want to pin this recipe for Thanksgiving.  Just saying.

This recipe developed in a funny way. One night a few months ago, my family was having dinner at one of our favorite local Italian restaurants. My littlest love started having a hard time and went on a little walk with Yummy Hubby. They strolled past a diner and came back to our table excitedly chatting about “Meatloaf Mondays” at the diner. As you can imagine, I immediately began dreaming up ways to make a meatless Meatloaf Monday at home. I tried a vegetarian lentil meatloaf recipe but it was just too mushy, and I wanted to get rid of the dairy. After about 5 tries, I’ve gotten the lentil loaf down.

INGREDIENTS

 2 cups cooked French lentils (I used vacuum packed steamed lentils from the produce section. Be sure your lentils aren't too wet from cooking.)

 1/2 yellow onion, diced

 2 carrots, diced

 2 celery stalks, diced

 1/2 cup diced red bell pepper

 1 ¼ cup diced crimini mushrooms

 2 cloves garlic, minced

 2 tablespoons tomato paste

 1 tablespoon bbq sauce

 2 tablespoons flax meal

 1 tablespoon dried parsley

 ¼ teaspoon salt

 ¼ teaspoon pepper

 ½ cup quick oats

 ½ cup breadcrumbs

 3 bell peppers, halved and seeded (optional)

 1/3 cup ketchup

 pinch brown or coconut sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large skillet over medium heat, saute onion, carrots, celery, pepper, and mushrooms with a pinch of salt and pepper until softened. Add the garlic and saute another minute longer.

In a food processor, pulse together the lentils, cooked vegetables, tomato paste, bbq sauce, flax meal, parsley, salt, pepper, oats, and breadcrumbs. You may have to work in batches if your food processor is small. Do not puree, but blend into a chunky dough. You want some bits of veggies for texture.

Form the dough into a ball and place on the prepared cookie sheet. Form into a "loaf" shape as shown in the pictures. Alternatively, fill bell pepper halves with the lentil mixture and place in a baking dish. Bake for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and spread the ketchup on top. Sprinkle with sugar to help caramelize the topping. Bake for another 10 minutes. Let the lentil loaf cool at least 10 minutes as it firms up during this time.

NOTES

Nutrition information is approximate and calculated by a third party. If your health depends on nutrition information please calculate again.


Get Full Recipe Vegan Lentil Loaf

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