A Comforting Supper - More Magical Loaf

Totally Delicious Loaf

On this nippy, spring afternoon, I was in need of some culinary comfort in the form of a warm, old-fashioned meal.   My daughter and I had fun choosing ingredients for our vegan dinner loaf using the Magical Loaf Studio.  Accompanied by caulipots, easy, vegan gravy and a colorful side of saucy, garlic infused, French green beans, zucchini, tomatoes and peppers, our plates were swimming with love. 

The loaf takes about an hour to bake.  Once you have all the ingredients mixed, shaped in the loaf pan and popped in the oven, you can get to work prepping the rest of your meal starting with the potato-cauliflower mash.  Once the caulipots are bubbling away nicely, your veggies and gravy are a snap.  

I held my breath as Maggie took her first bite and almost jumped for joy when she asked if she could name it "Totally Delicious Loaf".   We celebrate small victories around here and not having to pick up bits of spit-out onion from the floor certainly count as one of them.

Totally Delicious Loaf

Ingredients:

1/2 cup pecans
2 TB olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
2 cups cooked garbanzo beans, partly mashed
1 cup dry whole wheat bread crumbs (I used Panko bread crumbs)
1/4 to 1/2 cup vegetable broth, as needed
1 heaping Tablespoon flaxseed meal
1/2 tsp. dried sage
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
2 Tablespoons ketchup
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350º. Spray a loaf pan or 8x8 square baking pan with nonstick spray and set aside (an 8x8 pan makes a crisper loaf).

Grind the pecans into a coarse meal using a food processor or spice/coffee grinder. Place in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

Sauté any vegetables you've chosen in the olive oil until soft. Add to the large mixing bowl along with all the remaining ingredients. Mix and mash together well, adding only as much liquid as needed to create a soft, moist loaf that holds together and is not runny (you may not need to add any liquid if the grains and protein are very moist).

Add more binder/carbohydrate as needed if the loaf seems too wet.

Press mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until cooked through.

Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes, then turn out onto a plate or platter and slice. Serve with potatoes, vegetables, and vegetarian gravy, if desired.

Cold leftover slices of make a great sandwich filling.