I wanted traditional comfort food. Meat loaf fit the bill, but I'm working to reduce the plastic I buy, and since meat at the grocery store is all wrapped in plastic, we are trying to reduce the meat in our meals.
I was curious about lentil loaves, having read several recipes about them, it seemed simple enough. I perused through a few different recipes, and came up with this combination.
Canned lentils could be used in place of dry lentils. Dry lentils can be simmered in any type of liquid: broth or water would be just as good. I typically use a tomato sauce in my meatloaf mixture, so I opted to cook the lentils in a tomato sauce for this recipe.
Loaf
1/2 C dry lentils
1 C chopped mushrooms
32 oz tomato sauce
1 C water
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp chipotle powder
1/4 salt
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Vegetables
onion
2 carrots
2 celery stalks
1 zucchini
olive oil
salt and pepper
3 garlic cloves
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Binder
2 eggs
1 C flour
1 C oats
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Glaze
32 oz tomato sauce
3 T balsamic vinegar
3 T maple syrup
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Place the loaf ingredients into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer until lentils are soft, about 30 minutes.
Finely chop vegetables and saute in olive oil for about 10 minutes, until onions are translucent. Finely chop garlic cloves and add to vegetable mixture, sauteing for another 2 minutes before removing from heat.
Using an immersion blender, mash lentil/mushroom mixture, or put in a food processor. Add binding ingredients: eggs, flour, oats, and mix until well blended. Combine lentil mixture with vegetables. Place into loaf pan and bake in 350 degree oven for 40 minutes.
To prepare glaze, place tomato sauce, balsamic vinegar, and maple syrup into sauce pan. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 40 minutes to reduce sauce. When lentil loaf has baked for 40 minutes, remove from oven, spoon glaze over top, and return to oven for an additional 10 minutes or until glaze starts to caramelize (brown).
