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You are here: Home / food / Quick and Easy Vegetarian Meatloaf the Kids Will Love

Quick and Easy Vegetarian Meatloaf the Kids Will Love

By Jen

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Onward with our quest to creating kid friendly Meatless Monday recipes. Yep, we are on a mission to embrace a less meat focused lifestyle and that means feeding our kids vegetarian recipes that are kid approved.kid friendly vegetarian meatloaf lentil meatloaf recipe

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

When I finally decided to learn how to make lentils (which I learned is super easy) I discovered that lentils are super versatile. Yep, they can be used as meat substitute in all kinds of meaty recipes. So, why not give a lentil meatloaf a try?

I love recipes like meatloaf. These are the perfect end of the week, fridge-cleaning-out kind of recipes that busy families love. When I dove into our fridge we had the end of a bag of carrots – perfect. You could easily add broccoli, red peppers, cauliflower, or whatever vegetables you have available. My only suggestion would be to make sure that they are chopped finely – so they cook quickly and evenly…after all this is a quick dinner.

vegetarian lentil meatloaf on cutting boardI wanted to make a vegetarian meatloaf that would still taste hearty. Wait until you see what my family thought about this lentil meatloaf (hint: it wouldn’t be here if they didn’t love it). 

Easy Lentil Meatloaf

2 cups dried green lentils
4 cups vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
1 cup large flake oats
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1 cup finely chopped carrots
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp dried basil
2 tbsp fresh parsley
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/3 cup ketchup

ingredients for lentil meatloafBegin by cooking the green lentils. Bring a pot of vegetable stock to a boil and then add the green lentils and the bay leaf. Bring the liquid back up to the boil and then drop down to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender. Once the lentils are cooked, drain off any excess liquid. Transfer the lentils to a tea towel lined baking sheet. This will help to further dry the cooked lentils. Set the lentils aside and prep the other ingredients.

cooked lentils on baking sheetAdd the olive oil to a skillet, over medium-high heat. Add the shallot, garlic and carrots to the pan. Stir to coat with the oil. Cook the vegetables for 2-3 minutes, until they begin to soften.

carrots an onions cooking in panAdd in the tomato paste, dried basil, brown sugar, soy sauce and apple cider vinegar. The brown sugar, soy sauce and apple cider vinegar work like a dash of worchestshire sauce – which isn’t vegetarian – thus the substitute. Stir and cook the mixture until the tomato paste browns and the carrots soften. Remove from the heat and set aside.

large flake oats in food processorNow it’s time for the food processor to go to work. Pour the oats into the processor and whiz it to breakdown the oats a little. They don’t have them into a flour, you just want to chop them up a little, so they aren’t full oat flakes.

lentil meatloaf filling in the food processorAdd the cooked lentils, the cooked vegetables, fresh parsley, salt and pepper to the oats in the food processor. You can add a dash of your favourite barbecue sauce at this point, if you would like to add a smokey flavour. Okay, it’s time to process the ingredients together. This is only going to take a few seconds to come together. Zip-zip and everything will be mixed together.

lentil meatloaf filling in food processorTransfer the meatloaf “meat” to an oiled loaf pan. Use an offset spatula to press the meatloaf into the pan. Brush the ketchup on top of the meatloaf.

meatless meatloaf being pressed into loaf panBake the meatloaf, covered, in a 350°F oven for 30 minutes. Then remove the cover and bake for an additional 10 minutes. 

kid friendly vegetarian meatloafLet the loaf cool and then slice and serve. We served our meatloaf with a super simple side salad, but if your kids love mashed potatoes they would be perfect. 

vegetarian meatloaf cooked on a cutting boardI didn’t tell my family that the meatloaf was actually meatless…and they couldn’t tell. Yep, they didn’t realize that it was made with lentils and not ground beef. Pretty awesome, right?

lentil meatloaf recipes kid friendly meatless monday recipeIf your kids aren’t keen on vegetables being cooked into foods, then process the vegetables first in the food processor. Get the veggies super fine and the won’t be noticed in the meatloaf. 

What do you think? Will your family know that this is a meatless meatloaf?

kid friendly vegetarian recipe lentil meatloaf
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Easy Lentil Meatloaf

Quick, easy and hearty lentil meatloaf. A kid-friendly vegetarian recipe your entire family will love.
Prep Time20 mins
Cook Time40 mins
Total Time1 hr
Course: dinner, lunch
Cuisine: American
Keyword: kid friendly recipe, lentil recipe, meatloaf, vegetarian recipe
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 275kcal
Author: Jen

Ingredients

  • 2 cup dried green lentils
  • 4 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 cup large flake oats
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
  • 1 shallot chopped
  • 1 cup finely chopped carrots
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 tbsp dried basil
  • 2 tbsp fresh parsley
  • 2 tsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp brown sugar
  • 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground pepper
  • 1/3 cup ketchup

Instructions

  • Begin by cooking the green lentils. Bring a pot of vegetable stock to a boil and then add the green lentils and the bay leaf. Bring the liquid back up to the boil and then drop down to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender. Once the lentils are cooked, drain off any excess liquid. Transfer the lentils to a tea towel lined baking sheet. This will help to further dry the cooked lentils. Set the lentils aside and prep the other ingredients.
  • Add the olive oil to a skillet, over medium-high heat. Add the shallot, garlic and carrots to the pan. Stir to coat with the oil. Cook the vegetables for 2-3 minutes, until they begin to soften.
  • Add in the tomato paste, dried basil, brown sugar, soy sauce and apple cider vinegar. The brown sugar, soy sauce and apple cider vinegar work like a dash of worchestshire sauce - which isn't vegetarian - thus the substitute. Stir and cook the mixture until the tomato paste browns and the carrots soften. Remove from the heat and set aside.
  • Now it's time for the food processor to go to work. Pour the oats into the processor and whiz it to breakdown the oats a little. They don't have them into a flour, you just want to chop them up a little, so they aren't full oat flakes.
  • Add the cooked lentils, the cooked vegetables, fresh parsley, salt and pepper to the oats in the food processor. You can add a dash of your favourite barbecue sauce at this point, if you would like to add a smokey flavour. Okay, it's time to process the ingredients together. This is only going to take a few seconds to come together. Zip-zip and everything will be mixed together.
  • Transfer the meatloaf "meat" to an oiled loaf pan. Use an offset spatula to press the meatloaf into the pan. Brush the ketchup on top of the meatloaf.
  • Bake the meatloaf, covered, in a 350°F oven for 30 minutes. Then remove the cover and bake for an additional 10 minutes.
  • Let the loaf cool and then slice and serve.

Notes

Nutrition Info is to be used as a rough guide. Nutrition Info is based on the products I am using and you may not be using the same products/brands. Thus, the Nutrition Info may vary.

Nutrition

Serving: 267g | Calories: 275kcal | Carbohydrates: 42.16g | Protein: 11.15g | Fat: 7.9g | Saturated Fat: 1.24g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.75g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4.34g | Sodium: 822mg | Potassium: 695mg | Fiber: 8.3g | Sugar: 8.93g | Vitamin A: 4602IU | Vitamin C: 16.2mg | Calcium: 62mg | Iron: 3.65mg
Serving: 267g | Calories: 275kcal | Carbohydrates: 42.16g | Protein: 11.15g | Fat: 7.9g | Saturated Fat: 1.24g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.75g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4.34g | Sodium: 822mg | Potassium: 695mg | Fiber: 8.3g | Sugar: 8.93g | Vitamin A: 4602IU | Vitamin C: 16.2mg | Calcium: 62mg | Iron: 3.65mg

Our favourite food processor

KitchenAid 11-Cup Food Processor with ExactSlice System – I love it because it has two different size bowls. The small bowl is perfect for making pestos and the larger bowl is great for this meatloaf recipe.


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Filed Under: food, recipe, vegetarian recipes Tagged With: meatless monday, meatless recipes

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