Vegan Lentil Loaf

If you are a meat eater, this dish probably isn’t going to look too appetizing to you. But, for us veggie’s, this is a little piece of heaven. Regardless, my carnivorous eating family enjoyed the dish. I’m not vegan, but this recipe happens to be such. Easy to make, serve with a side salad or bowl of soup.

Here’s how to make it:
1 1/2 cups lentils
3 1/2 cups water or vegetable broth (I used broth)
2 onions
2 cloves garlic
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 cups pre-cooked rice
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup ketchup or bbq sauce
1/2 tsp sage
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

Pre-heat oven to 350 F degrees.
In a large soup or stock pot, simmer the lentils in water or veggie broth until cooked, about 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly then mash the lentils until they are half mashed.
Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil for 3-5 minutes, or until soft.
Combine the onions, garlic and olive oil with the mashed lentils, rice, salt, sage, ketchup and Italian seasoning.
Gently press the mixture into a lightly greased loaf pan (I used a 9×13 dish). Drizzle a bit of ketchup and bbq sauce on top.
Bake for 1 hour. Allow to cool slightly before serving, as this will help the lentil loaf to firm up. Serves about 6 adults.

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Vegetarian does NOT = Boring!

Tofu chili, with a delicious “sweet” tamale.
My tummy is happy after eating this veggie chili. I grabbed a home made tamale out of the freezer and threw it on top of the chili, yum!!

TOFU CHILI
1 package of tofu, baked (see recipe below)
2 15 oz cans of pinto beans (or refried beans) (do not drain)
2 15 oz cans of red kidney beans (do not drain)
1 15 oz can of of diced tomatoes
1 medium sliced zucchini
1 2.25 oz can of sliced olives
1 packet of taco seasoning (1 tsp for tofu, the rest for the pot)
1/3 cup of whole grain brown rice (any rice is fine though)
1/2 tsp crushed garlic
2 green onions diced
3 TBsp olive oil.

Baked tofu:
Drain tofu and lightly press with paper towel to absorb a little of the water. Slice tofu length wise and place on greased cookie sheet. Using about 1 teaspoon of the packet of taco seasoning, Light dust top and sides of tofu with taco seasoning. Safe the rest of the taco seasoning for the cooking process. Place in pre-heated over 400 degrees, for 20 min. After 20 min, turn tofu to brown on another side, bake for another 15, repeat one more time. Total baking time about an hour. Let tofu cool and dice into small chunks. Set aside. You can bake up to a day ahead of time.

Heat olive oil on high, until hot. Toss in the onions, garlic, rice and cooked tofu. Stir constantly while browning, about 2 min. Turn heat down to medium heat. Put in all ingredients except the zucchini. Bring to a quick boil, then put on low heat. Cook for five minutes, then toss in the sliced zucchini, then turn off heat. DONE! Let sit for up to half hour before serving, it will thicken up nicely while waiting. Salt to taste 🙂 Even better the next day!!
Enjoy!

South of the border! (from where I live, LoL)

http://wholeandfree.blogspot.com/2012/05/mexican-haystacks.html?m=1

This is delicious anytime of the year, any season! I substitute extra firm tofu instead of the turkey meat. Don’t forget my tip for finding the perfect avocado. Look it up on my blog if you haven’t seen it.

Mexican Haystacks

RICE
2 cups uncooked brown rice
1 bunch fresh cilantro

MEAT
1 1/2 lbs ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste
4 cups salsa (I used Kirkland organic salsa from Costco)

TOPPINGS
1-2 avocados, chopped
1-2 red peppers, chopped
1-2 ripe mangoes, chopped
fresh cilantro for garnish

Start your brown rice in a pot on the stove, or in a rice maker. Next, add ground turkey and chopped onion to a large saute pan. Add garlic powder and salt and pepper. When the turkey is browned, add 4 cups of salsa. Bring the salsa to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes. In the meantime, chop the cilantro, pepper, avocado, and mango. When the rice is done, simply stir in almost all of the fresh cilantro, leaving just enough to garnish each dish.

I served each person with the rice and meat already on the plate, and everybody had fun adding their own toppings. Kids always like to feel that they “made” their own dinner!

I’d recommend serving this with a nice big green salad on the side.

*Also, the recipe above made enough for our family of five to have leftovers the next day. If you are cooking for a smaller family, just chop one avocado, pepper, and mango. You can also make less rice and only 1 lb. of turkey. If you do this, reduce the salsa used to only 2-3 cups.

Enjoy, mi amigos! 🙂