Herbed Lentil Loaf
Ingredients
4 1/2 C. water
2 C. lentils, cleaned/rinsed
1/2 pound firm tofu, crumbled
1/4 C. rolled oats
1/4 C. soy sauce
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 C. fresh parsley, minced
1/2 C. fresh basil, finely chopped or 2 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. rubbed sage
1 Tbsp. olive oil
3 celery ribs with leaves finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced topping
1 C. raw almonds
2 Tbsp. nutritional yeast flakes
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
Mushroom miso sauce:
1/4 C. whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 C. nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 C. brown rice miso
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 C. mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 C. water
Cooking Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil an 8 x 8 baking pan. Put 3 1/2 C. of the water and the lentils in a large saucepan. Cover and bring to a boil over medium high heat, then immediately reduce the heat and simmer until the water is absorbed, 50 to 60 minutes. Meanwhile, put the tofu, the remaining 1 C. water, the oats, soy sauce and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. Add the parsley, basil, thyme, and sage and pulse just to mix. Transfer to a large bowl. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat. Add the celery, onion, and garlic and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Add to the tofu mixture. Add cooked lentils to tofu vegetable mixture, and stir to mix. Press the mixture firmly into the prepared pan, and bake for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, put the almonds, yeast flakes and soy sauce in a food processor fitted with the metal blade, and pulse to coarsely chop. Sprinkle the topping over the top of the lentil loaf and bake for 15 minutes more. Let the loaf cool for 10 minutes before cutting into squares. Serve with the mushroom miss sauce on the side. Mushroom miso sauce: Put flour in a small dry frying pan over medium heat and toast, stirring often, until it has darkened evenly to a light brown. Transfer the browned flour into a medium bowl. In a small bowl, stir the nutritional yeast, miso and hot water together. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Sauté onion until softened, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and sauté until lightly brown, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, add 2 C. water to the browned flour. Whisk until well combined. Spoon flour mixture into the mushrooms, and simmer, whisking often, until the mixture is thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the nutritional yeast and miso mixture. Bring just to a simmer, and remove from the heat. Serve hot.
My tears have been my food day and night, While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” (Psalms 42:3)