Old Fashioned Lentil Loaf

After listening to one of the last Food For Thought podcast episodes entitled "For the Love of Lentils" by Colleen Patrick Goudreau, I suddenly began craving...well, lentils. She mentioned that The Vegan Table had a recipe for Old Fashioned Lentil Loaf, so last week I gave it a shot.


Meatloaf was one of our staple family dinners while growing up. And of course the best part of meatloaf dinner is the sandwich leftovers for lunch the next day. I am so pleased to say that the lentil loaf did NOT disappoint! There was plenty left over for several days.

I followed the recipe pretty exactly, but next time I will be a lot more liberal and creative with the spices. There is a lot of room for experimentation here since the main ingredient is the plain lentils, so it would be really easy to make this spicy/sweet/Mexican/Italian/etc. In fact I think maybe next time I would try marinara sauce on top instead of ketchup, as well as a few dashes of onion powder and garlic salt. I would also add more walnuts and not chop them as finely, because every time you got a bite of a big one it was just soooo good. Oh my gosh look at me changing up a recipe, who do I think I am, Jessica?! ;)


I also ate the lentil loaf in a sandwich the next day with a pickle and a little Vegenaise, which was awesome. This is a hearty, fairly simple, delicious meal that is perfect to make for a week when you don't have a ton of time to cook. It's easy to grab and go and it's full of good protein to keep you full until your next meal. I recommend making it and playing with the flavors to create your favorite version.