apricot lentil loaf

With Christmas is just around the corner, the best way to show your love to your family and friends is through their taste buds.

Welcome, lentil loaf.

It’s sweet and savoury, packed with plant nutrients, and a mouth-watering replacement for the usual meaty main on the plate.

Roasted butternut squash, nutritional yeast, flax meal and oat flour hold this baby together, and a maple-y, molasses glaze tops it right off!

Who says Christmas has to be about guilty indulgence? This lentil loaf will benefit your bod, yet taste comforting and decadent.

Impress your family with a vegan main for Christmas dinner. Be a rebel and switch up the tradition 😉

You can make this ahead of time and throw it into the freezer once it’s cooled. Just de-thaw by letting it sit in room temperature for at least 1 hour (or in a pool of warm water in the sink for 30 minutes), then bake again at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or so.

Benefits:

–Lentils are one of the most healthy ingredients in the world. They’re packed with antioxidants, lower cholesterol and have anti-inflammatory effects. Eating these morsels and any other plant foods help protect the skin and ward off wrinkles too.

–Butternut squash is low in fat, high in fibre and high in beneficial plant carbohydrates. Plus it does wonders for immunity, and bone health.

–Apricots protect against free radical damage and inflammation. They also help your eyesight with all that vitamin A.

–Salt-free and Oil-free! Salt leads to water retention, which leads to bloating, a puffy face, and water weight. Go without it for a week and see if you notice a difference! Oil is a fat, packed with calories, and zero fibre. Even if it is said to be ‘health promoting’, it is still a processed ingredient that will aid in weight gain.

Serves: 8-10

Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Loaf:

• 1 cup green lentils uncooked
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup walnuts chopped
• 1 cup butternut squash, chopped in 1 cm cubes
• 1 cup carrot, grated
• 1 cup apple, grated
• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup vegetable broth (or water)
• 8 dried apricots, diced
• 3 tbsp flax meal
• 1/2 cup oat flour
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
• 6 sprigs-worth of fresh thyme, de-stemmed
• 1 tbsp oregano
• 1 tsp tarragon
• Dash of pepper

Glaze:

• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup  ketchup
• 2 tbsp dijon mustard

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees F
2. Cook lentils according to package
3. Spread pumpkin seeds and walnuts on cookie sheet, then toast in the oven for 8 minutes
4. Turn oven up to 350 degrees F
5. Roast butternut squash for 20 minutes
6. While squash is roasting, heat a pot to medium heat
7. Oil-free sautéing time. Add onions to pot, and stir until you see browning/caramelization on the bottom (about 5 minutes). Then add garlic and saute for another 30 seconds. Add 1/4 cup vegetable broth (or water) to deglaze the pot. The onions and garlic should have a brown tinge to them
8. Add carrots, celery, apple, tarragon, oregano and black pepper to pot. Let simmer 10 minutes
9. In food processor, blend 1/2 cup of the roasted butternut squash with 3/4 cup of the cooked green lentils. Once blended smooth, add in flax meal, nutritional yeast, oat flour, and thyme. Blend until smooth again
10. Transfer blended mixture to the pot. Add pumpkin seeds, walnuts and apricot. Mix together well
11. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper (leave some out along edges so you can use it as handles to pull out loaf when it’s done)
12. Press loaf mix evenly into the pan
13. Make the glaze: Mix together all ingredients in small food processor, or in a small sauce pan on low heat (this will help the molasses mix together)
14. Use spatula to spread the glaze over the loaf evenly
15. Bake for 45-50 minutes in the 350 degree F oven
16. Let cool 5 minutes, then move from the pan onto a cooling rack.
17. Enjoy with your favourite sides! Vegan mashed potatoes coming soon!

Play by play:

Toast Simmer Grate Roast & BLEND

Mix Press

Then Glaze & Bake!