Christmas Nut Roast With Mushroom Gravy Food

NUT ROAST

Steps:

• Combine the lentils with 4 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium-high heat until the water reaches a vigorous simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low to maintain the simmer, cover and cook until the lentils are completely tender, about 20-30 minutes. Drain the lentils completely using a strainer, and set aside until later.
• Heat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a 9 x 5-inch bread pan with parchment paper.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large sauté pan. Add the onion, carrot and bell pepper and sauté for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add the mushrooms and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are softened and most of the liquid in the pan has evaporated. Add the spinach, sage, rosemary, smoked paprika, and thyme. Sauté for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove pan from heat.
• In a large mixing bowl, add the cooked lentils, cooked veggie mixture, nuts, dried apricots, and orange juice and zest. Toss until the mixture is evenly combined.
• Before we add the eggs, go ahead and give the mixture a taste and season it with salt and pepper as needed. (The level of saltiness will vary considerably based on the type of nuts you used, but you will likely need to add a generous amount of salt and pepper, so don't be shy!)
• If you own a food processor, transfer about 1/3 of the mixture to a food processor and pulse a few times until the mixture is fairly puréed. (Or alternately, use a potato masher to mash about 1/3 of the mixture on one side of the mixing bowl until it is puréed.) Stir the puréed mixture back into the overall mixture along with the whisked eggs until everything is evenly combined.
• Transfer the entire nut loaf mixture into the prepared bread pan, packing it down fairly firmly (which will help the loaf to slice more easily later).
• Bake uncovered for about 45 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned and the loaf is cooked through. (I also like to remove the roast about 5 minutes before it has finished baking to brush the top of the roast with a bit of melted butter or oil to help it crisp up on top during those final few minutes in the oven, but this step is totally optional. Alternately, if the top of the roast starts to get too browned during cooking, just gently lay a sheet of aluminum foil on top of the bread pan.)
• Transfer the pan to a wire cutting rack and let the nut roast rest for about 15-20 minutes.
• Carefully lift the edges of the parchment paper up to remove the nut roast from the pan and transfer it to a cutting board. Use a bread knife to slice the roast into your desired size of pieces. Then serve warm with gravy or cranberry sauce and enjoy!

CHRISTMAS NUT ROAST WITH MUSHROOM GRAVY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. Line the loaf tin with baking paper.
• Wash the spinach in plenty of water and put into a saucepan. Heat gently until it has wilted down, stirring a couple of times, then drain over a sieve. Leave to cool, then roughly chop.
• Put the cranberries into a small saucepan and cover with the sherry. Bring to the boil, remove from the heat and set aside until the cranberries have plumped up and absorbed most of the sherry.
• Heat the olive oil and butter in a frying pan. Add the onion and mushrooms and cook over a medium heat until any liquid coming out of the mushrooms has evaporated and the onion has softened. Add the parsnip and continue to cook until the parsnip has reduced in volume and the onion has started to caramelise. Add the garlic, dried sage, thyme and lemon zest, then cook for a couple more minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
• Put the freekah or spelt into a large bowl along with the mixed nuts, chestnuts, breadcrumbs, spinach, cooked vegetables and the eggs. Season well with salt and pepper and mix thoroughly.
• Spoon into the lined loaf tin and dot over the butter. Smooth down, but do not pack too tightly. Cover with a layer of greaseproof paper and bake in the oven for about an hour or until piping hot.
• Meanwhile, to make the gravy, heat the olive oil and butter in a saucepan. Add the onion and cook for several minutes until starting to caramelise around the edges. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly. Add the garlic and thyme season well and continue to cook for a couple of minutes. Turn up the heat and pour in the sherry. Allow to bubble until almost completely evaporated, then add the stock. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Stir in the cream just before serving.
• To make the cranberry sauce, put the cranberries into a saucepan with orange juice and zest and the sugar. Gently heat until the sugar has dissolved then turn up the heat and simmer until the cranberries have softened and started to burst. Stir and remove from the heat - you should have a mixture of whole and broken down cranberries. Allow to cool and store in the fridge until needed.

SUNDAY POT ROAST WITH MUSHROOM GRAVY

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Pat the meat dry with paper towels and season well on all sides with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add the roast and brown all sides, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the meat to a plate and add the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and beginning to release liquid, about 5 minutes.
• Add the onions and broth and stir until combined. Nestle the roast into the vegetables, adding any juices it released to the pot. Add the beef broth, bring to a simmer, cover, and transfer to the oven to roast for 2 1/2 hours. Remove the lid, carefully flip the meat and continue cooking for 30 minutes; the meat should be fork tender and the liquid reduced.
• Remove the pot from the oven, transfer the meat to a cutting board and tent with foil to keep it warm. Let the mushrooms and onions stand several minutes undisturbed to allow some of the beef fat to rise to the surface. With a large spoon, skim off the excess fat and discard. With a ladle, add about 1 1/2 cups of the mushrooms and onions with some cooking liquid to the bowl of a blender or food processor. Carefully puree the mixture until very smooth. Pour the puree back into the pot and stir very well until combined; taste and adjust seasoning.
• To serve, slice the pot roast and arrange on a serving platter. Drizzle some mushroom gravy over the top and pass the extra gravy at the table.

NUT ROAST

Steps:

• Make the chia eggs: In a bowl, combine the ground chia seeds and water. Mix to combine and let thicken at least 10 minutes.
• In a food processor, pulse the walnuts, brazil nuts and cashews into a nut-meal like substance. Set aside.
• Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Line a 9-inch loaf pan with parchment paper with overhang on both of the long sides.
• Bring a large deep skillet to medium-high heat, add the olive oil, onion, garlic and mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the sage, nutritional yeast, tamari, tahini, rosemary, thyme, oregano, and sea salt. Mix to combine.
• Add the mushroom mixture to the food processor with the nuts and pulse a few times until the mixture is well combined, ground, and slightly doughy in texture.
• Transfer the mixture back to the skillet (with the heat off) and add the chia eggs and cooked brown rice. Mix everything to combine. Scoop the nut roast mixture into the prepared loaf pan and press gently to create a smooth, even surface.
• Bake the nut roast in the oven for 50 minutes, or until lightly golden around the edges and on the top. Let cool slightly in the pan, about 10 minutes, to solidify before serving.
• To make the mushroom topping (optional): melt vegan butter in a skillet on medium high heat and add the cremini mushrooms. Cook, stirring often until the mushrooms have browned and turned golden in colour, about 12 minutes.
• To make the vegan gravy: In a small saucepan, melt the vegan butter on medium heat, add the vegetable broth, miso, onion powder, tamari and nutritional yeast, Whisk to combine. Add the corn starch and whisk again. Simmer on low heat until the gravy has thickened, approx. 8-10 minutes.
• Serve the nut roast on a platter topped with the mushroom topping and vegan gravy on the side.

LAYERED CASHEW AND MUSHROOM NUT ROAST

Steps:

• Pre-heat the oven at 180 Celsius.
• Heat the oil and fry the onion and garlic until soft.
• Grind the cashew nuts in a nut mill, blender or mincer until they are in small pieces. Don't go too far. You don't want them in a powder.
• Mix the cashew nuts with the breadcrumbs.
• Beat the egg and add to the dry ingredients.
• Mix in the mashed parsnips and herbs.
• Add the fried, be sure to scrape the pan so that all the juices go in as this will help keep the nut roast moist.
• Dissolve the vegemite in the hot water or stock and add to the other ingredients. Season well.
• Melt the butter in a frying pan and saute the chopped mushrooms until soft.
• Grease a 900g loaf tin with butter and put in half the nut mixture. Cover with a layer of mushrooms and add the rest of the nut mixture.
• Cover with foil and bake for one hour.
• When cooked, remove from the oven and let it stand for 10 minutes before turning it out.
• Serve hot or cold.