NUT LOAF: it's wutz fer dinna.

soooo, i took about 1,400 PCC cooking classes since, as an employee-pcc-shelf-soy-milk-stocker/cashier-beeper-of-items, i get to take them for free! i took this awesome class called vegetarian holiday feast (thxgvn) two or three years in a row. no recuerdo. anyways! the woman who teaches the class, birgitte antonsen, whips up some of the most delish food/recipes/my stomach smiles and agrees!

we have a huge bag o' walnuts in mi refrigerador. walnuts + loaf pans = lil ideas poppin in my head: NUT LOAF! NUT LOAF! NUT LOAF!! and nut loaf it 'twas.

from the PCC website:

Roasted Vegetable Nut Loaf

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups whole mixed nuts (hazelnuts, walnuts and almonds)
• 1 to 2 carrots, peeled and chopped coarsely
• 1/2 pound celery root and/or parsnips, peeled and chopped coarsely
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin coconut oil or olive oil
• 1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
• 3/4 cup vegetable broth or filtered water
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
• 1/2 teaspoon mild curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 teaspoon marjoram
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme
• 2 tablespoons flax seeds
• 3 tablespoons arrowroot
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground pepper

Preparation

Preheat oven to 250º F. Spread the nuts on a baking tray and place in the oven. Toast until lightly colored, 15 to 20 minutes, then cool slightly. Place in a food processor and process until the nuts are the consistency of bread crumbs.

Increase the oven temperature to 350º F. Place the carrots, celery root and/or parsnips in a mixing bowl and coat with a little of the oil. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Roast in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes until lightly colored. Let cool.

Place the rinsed quinoa in a small saucepan with the broth or water, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let simmer for 7 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit, covered, in the pan for another 15 to 20 minutes.

In a skillet, sauté the onions, curry powder and herbs in the remaining oil for about 10 minutes. Finely chop the oven-roasted vegetables in a food processor. Grind the flax seeds in a spice grinder and process into a meal; place the flax meal in a small bowl with 6 tablespoons filtered water; let sit for 5 minutes.

Place all ingredients, including the arrowroot, salt and pepper, in a mixing bowl and combine well. Line an 8x8-inch Pyrex pan with parchment paper. Spread the mixture evenly in the pan. Cover with foil. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for another 10 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Cut into 12 slices.

yum!! this nut loaf was drool worthy. we topped it with this gravy (tweeked a lil bit):

Sherried Leek and Wild Chanterelle Gravy

Ingredients

• 3 to 4 small leeks, thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 cups sliced Chanterelle mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 2 tablespoons arrowroot
• 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 4 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
• 1/2 cup golden sherry wine
• 1 cup boiling water
• Freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

In a large, heavy pot, cook leeks and chanterelles in oil on medium-high heat for 10 to 20 minutes. Continue to stir as flour, nutritional yeast, soy sauce, sherry and water are added.

Reduce heat to low and simmer. After 30 minutes, season with pepper and serve.

my gramz claims to despise shroomiez, but i called her out on her BS! we used an immersion blender to puree the leeks and shroomz so that there were no visible chunks (sad porque i love chunky gravy, but anyways) , and she wouldn't stop commenting on how delish the gravy was-- she poured it on everything! hahaha. sorry, but i think that people who claim to hate mushrooms just had a bad experience where the shroomz weren't cooked right aka slime balls of shroom madness. SUCCESS! roasted up some brussels, steamed up some kale, aaaand we had a complete feast!