Television reveals a vegetarian’s feast
One of my favorite things to do while eating lunch on weekdays
is to tune in to the Food Network to see what’s cooking.
Admittedly, though, it’s 95 percent for entertainment purposes. My
favorite personality on the network, Paula Deen, for example, uses
a heck of a lot of butter and mayonnaise and meat for my taste
buds.
Television reveals a vegetarian’s feast
One of my favorite things to do while eating lunch on weekdays is to tune in to the Food Network to see what’s cooking. Admittedly, though, it’s 95 percent for entertainment purposes. My favorite personality on the network, Paula Deen, for example, uses a heck of a lot of butter and mayonnaise and meat for my taste buds.
My favorite chef to watch whose recipes I do try a lot is Giada De Laurentis who uses lots of fresh ingredients for her Italian cooking. Recently she had a vegetarian-themed episode where the main course was a veggie meatloaf that looked mouthwatering and included many of the fresh ingredients I had on hand.
I visited the Food Network’s Web site to get a hard copy of the recipe and perused the many comments people posted about the recipe. While it had several rave reviews, a lot of folks said it was really time consuming, most saying it took two-and-a-half to three hours. Now this might sound like a nightmare to people who need quick meals for dinner. But for someone like me, who loves to devote a Saturday to the kitchen, I jumped at the challenge to make this loaf. And I was curious to see if it really felt as draining as the reviewers said.
The initial step is to make a Checca Sauce, which is basically the Italian equivalent of salsa. You pulse fresh tomatoes, garlic, scallions, basil, olive oil, salt and pepper quickly in a food processor. Prep and pulse time combined took about 10 minutes. After sampling some on a tortilla chip, I knew the flavor of these fresh ingredients was enough to move to the next step.
I love lentils and I know I don’t eat enough of them so part of the appeal of making this loaf was a way to include some in my diet along with brown, short grain rice – another food I don’t ever use, but know I should. So the next step is to boil lentils in a pot. Meanwhile, bring some vegetable broth to a boil in a saucepan and then add the rice and cook for 10 minutes. While the rice and lentils are cooking, cut up a celery rib, a small onion, and grate one carrot. Once the lentils start boiling, drain them. After 10 minutes of the rice cooking on its own, mix in the lentils, carrots, onions and celery and let it simmer for another 30 minutes.
At this point my kitchen smelled divine. The most difficult part so far was dealing with the anticipation of what this was going to taste like once it came out of the oven! During the 30 minutes, I went on to the next step and sauteed a bunch of spinach and then chopped it up and placed it in a large mixing bowl. I then added Parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese cubes, eggs, chopped basil, salt, pepper, and half of the checca sauce to the bowl.
By this time, the rice and lentils were done. The recipe says to add half a cup of corn, but I preferred a diced zucchini. I placed this on top of the rice mixture and covered it for 5 minutes. After this, I fluffed the rice with a fork and let it sit for another 5 minutes.
While this was sitting, I sliced the tomatoes for the top of the loaf. When it was time, I transferred the rice and lentils to the large mixing bowl and tossed everything together. I then poured it into a greased 10 x 4 1/2 x 3 inch loaf pan. I then placed the tomatoes on top of the loaf and put some more cubes of mozzarella and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese over the tomatoes.
At that point, it was ready to go in the oven! You bake it at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the top is brown. Once done, you let it cool for about 15 minutes before serving. The rest of the checca sauce is meant to be served on the side for dipping.
I cannot express how delicious this loaf was! It’s truly a vegetarian’s dream meal with its savory, warm flavors bursting in each bite. It is truly the perfect comfort food for a cold evening meal. If you are a food lover and don’t mind spending a few hours on a meal, I highly recommend this delicious dish. Enjoy!
Veronica’s Veggie Meatloaf with Checca Sauce
from the Food Network
Checca Sauce:
1 pint cherry tomatoes (about 2 c., or 12 oz.), halved
3 scallions (white and pale green parts only), coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
8 fresh basil leaves
3 tbsp. olive oil
Pinch salt
Pinch freshly ground black pepper
Lentil Loaf:
3/4 c. lentils (about 5 ounces)
3 c. reduced-sodium vegetable broth
1 c. uncooked short-grain brown rice, rinsed well
1/2 c. finely chopped white onion
1/2 c. shredded carrots
1 celery rib, sliced
1/2 c. frozen corn kernels
2 tbsp. butter, divided
10 oz. fresh baby spinach leaves (about 4 cups)
1 1/2 c. cubed whole milk mozzarella cheese, divided (about 8 ounces total)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus 2 tbsp.
1/3 c. chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tomato, sliced
For the Checca Sauce:
Combine the cherry tomatoes, scallions, garlic, basil, and oil in a processor. Pulse the tomatoes until they are coarsely chopped, being careful not to puree. Set aside. Season the sauce with salt and pepper.
For the Lentil Loaf:
Place the lentils in a large saucepan of cold water. Bring the water just to a boil over high heat. Carefully drain the boiling water and rinse the lentils. Meanwhile, in a heavy large saucepan over medium heat, bring the broth to a boil. Add the rice and return the liquid to a boil. Decrease the heat to low, cover the rice, and gently simmer without stirring for 10 minutes. Stir in the lentils, onion, carrot, and celery. Cover and continue cooking without stirring until the rice and lentils are tender and the liquid is absorbed, about 30 minutes longer. Turn off the heat. Sprinkle the corn over the rice and lentils and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes. Uncover and fluff the rice with a fork. Cover and let stand for 5 more minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Spread 1 tablespoon of the butter over a 10 by 4 1/2 by 3-inch loaf pan. In a heavy, large skillet, cook the spinach over medium heat until the spinach wilts, about 3 minutes. Drain and squeeze the excess liquid from the spinach. Transfer the spinach to a work surface and coarsely chop.
In a large bowl, gently mix the lentil mixture, spinach, 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese, eggs, 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, basil, salt, pepper, and half of the checca sauce. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan. Arrange the sliced tomatoes in a row over the lentil mixture. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and 2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese. Dot the top with the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter.
Bake uncovered until the loaf is heated through and the topping is melted and starting to brown, about 30 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes. Slice the loaf into 2-inch slices, arrange on plates, and serve with the remaining checca sauce.
