Nut Roast

 

Every vegetarian needs to have their preferred go-to nut roast recipe and this is currently mine. Although I'm sure I'll be updating this on a regular basis. 

Ingredients

180g chestnuts, cooked, roughly chopped

150g of mixed nuts, such as cashew, Brazil, pistachio, finely chopped

1 onion, (about 125g), finely chopped

1 leek, thinly sliced

1 carrot, cut into 5mm dice

5 garlic cloves, finely sliced

10g dried porcini, rehydrated and finely chopped

150g chestnut mushrooms, destalked, chopped

100g puy lentils, (cooked drained weight)

100g of brown bread, torn into small pieces

50g tomato pasata 

50g butter

250ml veg stock

nutmeg, to taste

5g rosemary, finely chopped

5g thyme leaves

2 eggs, beaten

salt

Optional - for a Christmas touch

1 orange, zest

25g cranberries

Method

Melt the butter in a large pan on medium heat, then add the onion, leek, carrot and garlic. Stir and cover with a lid to sweat the vegetables for a good 10 minutes until soft. Stir every so often.

Add the mushrooms and cook through, then add the lentils, chestnuts, mixed nuts, (optional cranberries), breadcrumbs and then the stock.

Leave to simmer until the stock is completely absorbed, then add nutmeg, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. (Also the orange zest if you're adding them.) 

Fold in the beaten eggs through the mixture then pack into a 1lb (450g) loaf tin lined with baking paper.

Place in a pre-heated oven at 180C and cook for 40 minutes, until browned and slightly crisp on the outside. Test to see if it's cooked on the inside with a skewer (like a cake).

Serve immediately in thick slices.