vegan gluten-free dairy-free savory nut roast

 

This is from BBC Good Food; they called it "perfect nut roast."

And it pretty near is.

You'll need: 

• 300 g mixed nuts (I tend to use almonds and walnuts)
• 1 veggie stock cube or sachet
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 stalks celery, also finely chopped
• 1 leek, thinly sliced
• 2 carrots, grated
• 2 (or more!) cloves garlic, minced
• 4 tablespoons cashew butter (I make my own)
• 180 g cooked chestnuts, chopped
• 75 g dried cranberries
• 20 g fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 lemon, finely grated zest only
• 4 tablespoons vegan milk (I use soy)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• I also add in dried sage to make it taste Christmassy

For my own vegan gravy: 

• 4 cups water
• 3 sachets vegan bouillon ("chicken" or veg)
• salt to taste
• pepper to taste
• sage, thyme, rosemary, parsley
• vegan butter
• splash of olive oil
• vegan milk
• katakuriko (potato starch) or cornstarch for thickening

For the gravy, do this:

Bring the water to a simmer and add the bouillon, salt, pepper, herbs, olive oil, and vegan butter. Add vegan milk to taste, then thicken with a starch and milk slurry. 

For the nut loaf, do this: 

In a food processor, blitz the nuts and bouillon till finely chopped but not paste. Mix well, then dump into your prepared loaf tin. 

Mash it down and smooth its feelings, I mean top.

Cover with foil and then bake it for 30 minutes. 

Then remove the foil and bake another 20 minutes. 

Let it rest for a few minutes, remove, and slice. 

Slosh with gravy. 

Preheat the oven to 200 C.

Oil a 900 g/2 lb loaf tin then line with baking paper.

In a large frying pan, cook the leek, celery, onion, and carrot in oil till soft. Add the garlic last. 

In a large mixing bowl, add the nut mixture, the veg mixture, the cashew butter, and the rest of the ingredients.