This nut roast recipe consists of a combination of sweet versus savoury. I'm talking about mixed nuts, cranberries, red lentils, oats for structure, herbs, spices and lots more goodness. Perfect to form part of a main meal for special occasions like thanksgiving, Christmas and it's free from gluten and vegan friendly!
If you are looking for a nut roast that's satisfying, delicious, filling not stodgy or too heavy. Then this one will not disappoint, I promise!
The past few months I have been working on a few holiday recipes because I know the holiday season is coming up.
I know what my readers are always looking for, those dietary friendly holidays dishes to share with their loved ones.
I've finally got this nut roast perfected, after copious amounts of trial and error and I'm very excited for you all to make this recipe too.
What is a nut roast?
In case you're not in the loop with what one is..well....in short. A nut roast is a vegetarian dish made using a combination of nuts, vegetables, grains, broth and seasoning.
Not all of these ingredients are included in a nut roast, for example rice or squash may or may not be included.
All of the aforementioned ingredients are combined together, usually to form a slightly wet mixture which is transferred into a loaf tin for roasting in the oven.
Nut roasts are popular in the UK as an alternative to a British roast dinner. As well as being popular around Christmas time and in the states and Canada for Thanksgiving or during the other celebrations.
Nut roast gets a bad press, well at least the store bought ones do for being bland, boring and overrated.
Reasons to make this nut roast
This bad boy nut roast ticks all the right boxes, it's doesn't contain any eggs, only ground flaxseed and rolled oats are used for structure.
Making it the ideal meat free replacement for vegans, vegetarians and those who are gluten free.
You don't even have to wait until the holidays to make a nut roast, if you're vegan and fed up of the typical meat free replacements such as soy(a) then more reason to make one.
Besides, nuts are rich in fat, fibre and protein making them a good source of building blocks, energy and keep hunger at bay (keeping you fuller for longer!).
Making a good nut roast
I'm by no means a nut roast expert, but I can share some of the things I learnt about how to make a good nut roast, especially a gluten free one.
Structure is key, meaning if you don't want to use breadcrumbs, then you will need something that behaves very similar.
Oats are a great alternative along with some legumes too. In my case, I used red lentils because they help with the binding process and work really well with the oats to make a really good structure.
Also, flaxseeds are popular in the vegan world, they are used to make Flax Eggs which are a egg replacement and act as a binder.
Another thing that I have learnt is the cooking time is essential, under cook and it's too soggy/mushy and over cook it and it's dry and crumbly.
I personally prefer to brown the top of the loaf and then roast it, covered, to retain that moist, softness that prevents it from over drying.
The steps
- Preheat the oven to 356F/180C and line a standard-sized loaf tin with parchment paper so it sticks out over the sides like 4 flaps and set aside.
- Heat a medium sized frying pan/skillet with olive oil on medium heat.
- Proceed to saute the onion and garlic until soft and translucent.
- Stir in the carrot, tomato puree, soy(a) sauce and cook for 1-2 minutes then pour in the vegetable stock.
- Continue to cook while stirring for a further 2-3 minutes then leave to cool down completely and set aside.
- Add the oats and mixed nuts to a food processor fitted with an S blade.
- Proceed to pulverize the oats and nuts into a coarse consistency. Don't make the texture fine it's okay to have some chunky pieces (very important).
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the red lentils, dried cranberries, vegan cheese, flaxseed, mixed herbs, paprika, black pepper, chilli and pink salt and set aside.
- Pour the cooled sauteed ingredients into the food processor along with the bowl consisting of red lentils, dried cranberries, vegan cheese, flaxseed, mixed herbs, paprika, black pepper, chilli and pink salt and set aside.
- Pulse the mixture a few times to form a soft, slightly sticky mixture (it shouldn't be too wet nor too dry).
- Transfer the contents into the loaf pan then firmly press the mixture into the lined loaf pan, using the back of a spoon to flatten.
- Bake in the oven for roughly 45 minutes.
- Check the nut roast 15 minutes into the cooking time, the nut roast should taken on some colour by now, cover with a piece of aluminium foil and leave to bake, covered, for a further 30-35 minutes.
- Once cooked, leave to cool in the loaf pan for 10-15 minutes before using the flaps of parchment paper to lift out the nut roast from the tin onto a cooling rack.
- Leave the loaf to sit and completely cool down for at least 2 hours or even longer as the longer it sits the more firm it becomes making it easier to slice.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can make up to 2 days in advance. If you choose to do so then store in the refrigerator (store in a sealed food storage container)
Alternatively, you could do some of the prep work i.e cutting, chopping and peeling a head of time i.e the night before.
Simply wrap the dried goods and leave in a medium sized bowl and refrigerate the other ingredients.
Absolutely! Mixed nuts are recommended for a variety of flavour. However, there's no reason why you can't use half cashew and half almonds and so fourth.
Yes, be sure to cool down and slice up your nut roast prior to freezing. Simply wrap the individual slices in parchment paper and some freezer friendly wrap.
Leave it to thaw out before re-heating, it shouldn't take very long to defrost but you can do so by leaving in the refrigerator overnight if you wish.
You can make it into a sandwich, make a vegetable patty i.e falafel or serve with some caramelized onions
Yes!! What I like to do is, place the slices on a baking tray with parchment paper and cover the slices with aluminium foil.
Then heat through at about 180c/350f for about 10-20 minutes or until the slices are hot.
If your nut roast is still wet, that means it still needs some more time to roast in the oven.
Simply return the nut roast to the oven, preferably covered and cook a bit longer, check every 10-15 minutes.
No, chickpeas work just fine or any other nutty bean/legume. Also dried apricots or raisins are a great alternative.
Notes and tips
- Please refer to the FAQ section in the body of the post, this covers many of your questions about the nut roast.
- Once cooked, keep your nut roast refrigerated for up to 4 days.
- This is the link to the Homemade Vegetable Broth that I used.
- For best results, I do recommending slicing the nut roast when it is cold and not warm.
- Definitely use a food processor to pulse the oats/nuts, I pressed the "pulse button" several times until everything started to break down, remember we don't want it to be too fine (small pea sized chunks are perfect).
- Be sure to use old fashioned rolled oats (gluten free if you are sensitive to trace elements), the jumbo kind. Don't use instant or small ones or they will pulverise to a fine consistency (we need texture for this recipe!!).
- Use a sharp bread knife for cutting your nut roast as this will lessen the chance of the loaf crumbling.
- When slicing the nut loaf, do it slowly and don't be so heavy handed as this will cause the nut roast to fall apart.
- I have found that covering the nut roast while baking prevents it from drying out which eliminates cracks from forming, so keep it covered after the first 15 minutes of baking as per instructions.
- Before transferring the contents into the loaf pan, do a taste test, and adjust seasoning levels if you need to do so.
Serving suggestions
- Green Bean Casserole
- Parsnip Fries
- Dairy Free Mac and Cheese
- Sweet Potato Mash
- Cranberry Relish
- Steamed Vegetables
- Steamed Cabbage
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Vegan Nut Roast Recipe (Gluten Free)
Ingredients
Sauteed ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion chopped
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 small carrot grated
- 2 tablespoon tomato puree
- 1 tablespoon organic soy(a) or coconut aminos
- ½ cup vegetable stock (125ml) see notes for the recipe
Dry ingredients
- 2 cups mixed nuts (262g)
- 1 cup old fashioned jumbo rolled oats (236g) (gluten free if sensitive to trace)
- 1¼ cup red lentils (214g) cooked
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- 2 tablespoon ground flaxseed
- 2 tablespoon mixed herbs I used a combination of parsley, sage, coriander, oregano and thym
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon chilli powder optional
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon pink salt
- ½ cup vegan cheese (60g) grated
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 356F/180C and line a standard-sized loaf tin with parchment paper so it sticks out over the sides like 4 flaps and set aside.
Sauteed ingredients
- Heat a medium sized frying pan/skillet with olive oil on medium heat.
- Proceed to saute the onion and garlic until soft and translucent.
- Stir in the carrot, tomato puree, soy(a) sauce and cook for 1-2 minutes then pour in the vegetable stock.
- Continue to cook while stirring for a further 2-3 minutes then leave to cool down completely and set aside.
Food processing
- Add the oats and mixed nuts to a food processor fitted with an S blade.
- Proceed to pulverize the oats and nuts into a coarse consistency. Don't make the texture fine it's okay to have some chunky pieces (very important).
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the red lentils, dried cranberries, vegan cheese, flaxseed, mixed herbs, paprika, black pepper, chilli and pink salt and set aside.
- Pour the cooled sauteed ingredients into the food processor along with the bowl consisting of red lentils, dried cranberries, vegan cheese, flaxseed, mixed herbs, paprika, black pepper, chilli and pink salt and set aside.
- Pulse the mixture a few times to form a soft, slightly sticky mixture (it shouldn't be too wet nor too dry).
- Transfer the contents into the loaf pan then firmly press the mixture into the lined loaf pan, using the back of a spoon to flatten.
- Bake in the oven for roughly 45 minutes.
- Check the nut roast 15 minutes into the cooking time, the nut roast should taken on some colour by now, cover with a piece of aluminium foil and leave to bake, covered, for a further 30-35 minutes.
- Once cooked, leave to cool in the loaf pan for 10-15 minutes before using the flaps of parchment paper to lift out the nut roast from the tin onto a cooling rack.
- Leave the loaf to sit and completely cool down for at least 2 hours or even longer as the longer it sits the more firm it becomes making it easier to slice.
Notes
- Please refer to the FAQ section in the body of the post, this covers many of your questions about the nut roast.
- Once cooked, keep your nut roast refrigerated for up to 4 days.
- This is the link to the Homemade Vegetable Broth that I used.
- For best results, I do recommending slicing the nut roast when it is cold and not warm.
- Definitely use a food processor to pulse the oats/nuts, I pressed the "pulse button" several times until everything started to break down, remember we don't want it to be too fine (small pea sized chunks are perfect).
- Be sure to use old fashioned rolled oats (gluten free if you are sensitive to trace elements), the jumbo kind. Don't use instant or small ones or they will pulverise to a fine consistency (we need texture for this recipe!!).
- Use a sharp bread knife for cutting your nut roast as this will lessen the chance of the loaf crumbling.
- When slicing the nut loaf, do it slowly and don't be so heavy handed as this will cause the nut roast to fall apart.
- I have found that covering the nut roast while baking prevents it from drying out which eliminates cracks from forming, so keep it covered after the first 15 minutes of baking as per instructions.
- Before transferring the contents into the loaf pan, do a taste test, and adjust seasoning levels if you need to do so.
Lolly Michaud says
Do you have the vegan gravy that I can see you serving this with?
Thanks
Charla says
Hi Lolly, that would be this one, https://thatgirlcookshealthy.com/how-to-make-turkey-gravy-without-drippings/. Vegetable stock is used in place of turkey stock and browning sauce (2 tbsp if you are using my homemade sauce or 1/2 tsp if you are using storebought) is used to give the gravy a darker hue. I hope that helps!