Vegetable Not-Meat Loaf

A nutritious and delicious dinner loaf filled with vegetables, lentils, and soy curls. The ultimate comfort food and perfect served with potatoes.

When I was a kid, I loved Sunday dinners. They were special. Not only did we have dessert (which was awesome!); but we sometimes had someone over for dinner. And my mom always made something special when we had someone over for dinner. We’re talking the good stuff – like homemade ravioli, eggplant parmesan, lasagna, or meatloaf. From that list, you might think that I’m Italian; but I’m not. I guess those are just some of the fond Sunday dinner memories I had with my family. I think I liked the meatloaf because it was always served with potatoes – either mashed or roasted. Both are perfect, especially when served with comfort food like meatloaf.

So this is not actually a meatloaf. Instead, it is a combination of a lot of stuff in the form of a traditional meatloaf. There’s a ton of vegetables, including yellow squash, zucchini, celery, onion, carrots, baby bella mushrooms, beets, roasted red peppers, rolled quinoa (or oats), potato flakes, lentils, soy curls (or TVP), and a chipotle pepper. When you add all the colors of the rainbow together, you get brown. For real. But that’s not the only reason why I used these vegetables and grains. Each of these adds nutritional value and an abundance of healthful fiber. Well that chipotle pepper is ultimately included solely for flavor.

So what do you call a vegetable meatloaf that doesn’t contain any meat? It’s not technically meat loaf. And yet, it’s what I’d call meatloaf because it looks like it, it’s made like it, it’s baked like it, and it kinda tastes like it. And it makes me think of those fond childhood memories sitting around the kitchen table with my family.

But this is not an ordinary meal for the faint of heart. This is a meal you make when you have someone over for dinner and you want to make something special for them. I might even call this a labor of love vegetable loaf. It takes time to gather all of the ingredients and it takes time to prep said ingredients. Then it takes a little more time and a lot of patience while it bakes in the oven. But when it comes out, it’s worth the wait. Just serve this labor of love vegetable loaf with some potatoes – roasted or mashed. I recommend serving it at any family gathering or holiday dinner, a time when loved ones are able to cherish one another and make memories together.

Ingredients

• ¾ cup brown lentils

• Soy Curls
• 2 cups soy curls
• 2 cups vegetable broth or water
• 1 tsp molasses
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp black pepper
• ½ tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp poultry seasoning
• ½ tsp liquid smoke
• ½ tsp white wine vinegar

• Vegetables
• 8 oz baby bella mushrooms
• 1 yellow squash
• 1 zucchini
• 3 carrots
• 1 onion
• 3 celery
• ½ cup roasted bell peppers
• ½ cup beets
• 1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (optional for hint of heat and smokiness)

• Dry Ingredients
• 1 cup rolled quinoa or oats
• 1 cup panko crumbs
• 1 cup potato flakes
• ½ cup nooch (nutritional yeast)
• 1 tsp poultry seasoning
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp parsley
• ½ tsp garlic powder

• Sauce
• ½ cup ketchup
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp white wine
• 1 Tbsp molasses
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp liquid smoke
• 2/3 cup barbeque sauce 

Instructions

1. In a small pot, bring the lentils and 2 cups water to a boil.  Turn down to simmer and cover for 25-30 minutes, until the water is absorbed and the lentils are cooked.
2. In a bowl, combine all of the seasonings with the soy curls.  Add 2 cups boiling water and set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the sauce ingredients, except the barbeque sauce.  
4. Mince all the vegetables. In batches, I pulsed each in the food processor. 
5. Sauté the vegetables in a large pan or pot on medium heat until cooked.  Add soy curls and lentils and cook until almost dry, about 5 minutes.
6. Combine all of the dry ingredients.
7. Add the dry ingredients to the vegetable-lentil-soy curl mixture.
8. Add the sauce to the mixture, reserving 1/3 cup. Set aside.
9. Form into one large loaf or two smaller loaves.
10. Add the barbeque sauce to the reserved 1/3 cup.  Using a basting brush or spoon, cover the loaf or loaves with the sauce.  Any remaining sauce can be served with the vegetable loaf.
11. Bake for 1 hour.  Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing.

Notes

You can shape the loaves into a traditional meatloaf shape in a roasting pan or pack into a bread loaf pan.

I like to bake one loaf and then shape the remaining mixture into patties. Then, I sauté the patties in a large skillet until golden brown. Serve the crispy patties with mushroom gravy on top alongside mashed potatoes.

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Vegetable Not-Meat Loaf

Rachele (Pebbles and Toast)

A nutritious and comforting dinner loaf filled with vegetables, lentils, and soy curls.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 12

Equipment

• oven
• food processor
• stove

Ingredients

  

• ¾ cup brown lentils

Soy Curls

• 2 cups soy curls
• 2 cups vegetable broth or water
• 1 tsp molasses
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp black pepper
• ½ tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp poultry seasoning
• ½ tsp liquid smoke
• ½ tsp white wine vinegar

Vegetables

• 8 oz baby bella mushrooms
• 1 yellow squash
• 1 zucchini
• 3 carrots
• 1 onion
• 3 celery
• ½ cup roasted bell peppers
• ½ cup beets
• 1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (optional for hint of heat and smokiness)

Dry Ingredients

• 1 cup rolled quinoa or oats
• 1 cup panko crumbs
• 1 cup potato flakes
• ½ cup nooch nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp poultry seasoning
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp parsley
• ½ tsp garlic powder

Sauce

• ½ cup ketchup
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp white wine
• 1 Tbsp molasses
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp liquid smoke
• ⅔ cup barbeque sauce

Instructions

 

• In a small pot, bring the lentils and 2 cups water to a boil. Turn down to simmer and cover for 25-30 minutes, until the water is absorbed and the lentils are cooked.
• In a bowl, combine all of the seasonings with the soy curls. Add 2 cups boiling water and set aside.
• In a separate bowl, combine the sauce ingredients, except the barbeque sauce.
• Mince all the vegetables. In batches, I pulsed each in the food processor.
• Sauté the vegetables in a large pan or pot on medium heat until cooked. Add soy curls and lentils and cook until almost dry, about 5 minutes.
• Combine all of the dry ingredients.
• Add the dry ingredients to the vegetable-lentil-soy curl mixture.
• Add the sauce to the mixture, reserving 1/3 cup. Set aside.
• Form into one large loaf or two loaves.
• Add the barbeque sauce to the reserved 1/3 cup. Using a basting brush or spoon, cover the loaf or loaves with the sauce. Any remaining sauce can be served with the vegetable loaf.
• Bake for 1 hour. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Notes

You can shape the loaves into a traditional meatloaf shape in a roasting pan or pack into a bread loaf pan.

This vegetable loaf can easily be made the day before and baked or reheated 90 minutes (to allow time to rest) before serving.

Keyword lentils, loaf, soy curls, vegetables