Out of all my favourite vegan recipes, this lentil loaf ranks in my top 10. This is a big deal, considering I’m in love with no less than 3,000 foods at any given moment. The original loaf recipe hails from talented chef and author, Terry Walters. I’ve enjoyed playing around with the recipe countless ways since I first made it in 2011. There’s just something about the combo of hearty, stick-to-your-ribs lentils, shredded carrots and sweet apple, chunky celery, toasted walnuts, and a sweet tangy glaze to finish it all off. It’s total comfort food to me.
I find myself eating the cold leftovers for breakfast in the morning. It gets crumbled over salads, stuffed into wraps and buns, and more recently thrown onto pasta sauce over a bed of spaghetti squash. I once ate half a loaf in the span of about 8 hours. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I guess it could be worse! To complicate matters, Eric is also a huge fan and we often find ourselves vying for the last slice…
The only issue I have with the recipe I made a couple years ago is that it’s quite labour intensive. For this version, my goal was to simplify the recipe without compromising the flavour and texture. I also played around with different ingredients and amounts. I’ll be sharing my 3rd trial with you today – it’s actually my new favourite out of all of them I’ve made. Make sure to see my notes below for a few tips I’ve picked up along the way.
Glazed Lentil Walnut Apple Loaf, Revisited
Yield
1 loaf
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Adapted from 2011 recipe, which was adapted from Terry Walters.
Ingredients
For the loaf
- 1 cup uncooked green lentils
- 1 cup walnuts, finely chopped and toasted
- 3 tbsp ground flax + 1/2 cup water
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1.5 cups diced sweet onion
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup grated carrot
- 1/3 cup peeled and grated sweet apple (use a firm variety)
- 1/3 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup oat flour
- 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 tsp fresh thyme (or 3/4 tsp dried thyme)
- salt & pepper, to taste (I use about 3/4 tsp sea salt + more Herbamare)
- red pepper flakes, to taste
For the balsamic apple glaze
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 2 tbsp apple butter (or unsweetened applesauce in a pinch)
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
Directions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Rinse and strain lentils. Place lentils into pot along with 3 cups of water (or veg broth). Bring to a boil and season with salt. Reduce heat to medium/low and simmer, uncovered, for at least 40-45 minutes. Stir frequently & add touch of water if needed. The goal is to over-cook the lentils slightly (see pictures in post). Mash lentils slightly with a spoon when ready.
- Toast walnuts at 325°F for about 8-10 minutes. Set aside. Increase oven temp to 350°F.
- Whisk ground flax with water in a small bowl and set aside.
- Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sautee the garlic and onion for about 5 minutes. Season with salt. Now add in the diced celery, shredded carrot and apple, and raisins. Sautee for about 5 minutes more. Remove from heat.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix all ingredients together. Adjust seasonings to taste.
- Grease a loaf pan and line with parchment paper. Press mixture firmly into pan. Whisk glaze ingredients and then spread half on top of loaf. Reserve the rest for a dipping sauce.
- Bake at 350°F for 40-50 minutes, uncovered. Edges will be lightly brown. Cool in pan for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. I usually wait until loaf is cool before slicing.
Tip:
Note: Use Gluten-free oat flour and breadcrumbs if necessary. If you need a nut-free version you might want to try using toasted sunflower seeds.
I used to have a problem with my lentil loaves falling apart on me. I’ve since discovered that it really helps to over-cook the lentils a bit, so the consistency of the lentils is doughy, almost like mashed potatoes. As you can see in the photos, the lentils are the perfect consistency to bind with the other ingredients.
In addition to playing around with the ingredients, I also switched up the sizes of the tins/pans:
Trial 1: I made 4 mini loaves (the green and red ones).
Trial 2: I used a muffin tin. I got about 16 portions out of the batter which was great, but I made the mistake of using paper muffin liners and they completely stuck to the paper. Next time I will grease the tins well and not use paper liners. I also cooked them a bit too long (40 mins at 350F) and they dried out more than I’d like.
Trial 3: I made 2 medium-sized loaves using 9×5 loaf tins and baked for about 45 minutes or so. Keep in mind you can also use one big loaf tin too!
The loaves freeze well too. Just make sure to fully cool the baked loaves before wrapping and freezing.
If you are looking for a nut-free version, you might want to try using toasted sunflower seeds. I probably wouldn’t use a full cup of seeds, but maybe 1/2-3/4 cup. For a gluten-free loaf, use GF oat flour and breadcrumbs and of course be sure to check all other ingredients.
As for serving suggestions, this loaf is great paired with applesauce, sautéed greens, and mashed/roasted potatoes.
With any luck, I might have a few left for our Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday. If you are celebrating Thanksgiving this weekend, have a wonderful holiday!
Looking for more Thanksgiving recipes? Check out my Thanksgiving Recipe round-up here, featuring high-protein garlic mashed potatoes, holiday salad, pumpkin garlic knots, and more.
Thank you for this lovely recipe! I made it for a holiday dinner, and my non-vegan parents have asked me to make it again at a future party/celebration!
Yum!!!
Looking forward to making this, but I have an oat allergy in my family – what kind of flour do you think is the best sub? What do you think of brown rice flour?
Hey Janet, I haven’t tried this with others flour yet, so I can’t say for sure. I would expect other flours would work though! Let me know if you try something out.
This was great! A very good mix of flavors, thank you for the recipe! Last night I wanted it again, but it was already late, so I tried it casserole style – no bread/oats/flax and I added a bit of sage and fresh cranberries, served over barley….delish! So again, thank you for the idea and great mix of flavors! I love reading your creations.
Thanks for the tips! Your site has been my saviour. On December 30, my vegetarian husband and carnivore son, both decided to go vegan. As the cook in the family, I wasn’t sure how to approach this. Just did your vegan lasagne – two thumbs up from my son! (Proudly vegan week 3)
OMG this was SO GOOD. Thank you!
Ay, ¡qué bueno!
Made this yesterday, and it’s super delish! Thanks so much for the recipe– I have wanted to try a lentil loaf for a while, but never thought I’d be into it, not having grown up eating meatloaf… and then I saw your pictures :). So, so good.
I took the advice of another poster and used mustard instead of apple butter in the glaze, and added a half tbsp of Bragg’s Liquid Aminos. Ehermagerd.
You’ve inspired me with your talk of leftovers. I think later on I’m going to put small slices in wraps of boiled cabbage, with a drizzle of the glaze on top…
Thanks for a superb blog!
I have been using and recommending your site for a long time. To be honest, I’m not a die-hard vegetarian or vegan, but we do eat FAR less meat and animal products than most people. (And when we do eat meat…always local and organic) I enjoy experimenting, and I have surprised many friends and families with yummy vegan meals. This loaf is in the oven as I speak. Thanks for doing what you do…your site is amazing!
I made this today, and it turned out incredibly well! I used crushed up crackers instead of bread crumbs, as that was all I had lying around, and kept the rest the same. It tastes great; I can’t wait to freeze some slices for later. Thanks for the recipe, Angela!
I read “Eat and Run” by Scott Jurek last month, and decided that I would challenge myself to try and eat and train like Jurek this month (albeit with few less miles than he does and a little less stringent on the diet), and this is the first vegan recipe I’ve made that is actually delicious. SO SO GOOD! Thank you for sharing it!
I love your Lentil Walnut Apple Loaf. I make it in small loaf pans and freeze them. 2 servings from each loaf. I’m just about out of my last double recipe freezer supply and was looking through my vegan cookbooks for the recipe and of course I couldn’t find it. If it isn’t HH then it’s OSG. I’m hooked on flavor and variety of veggies in this yummy loaf. Your cookbook has been preorder.
Super yummy!
I made it without raisins and celery, and used onion and garlic powder because I didn’t have fresh – and it came out great! Next time I will follow the instructions – I bet it’s even better with fresh garlic and onion.
Makes a mean leftover sandwich!
I am new to your site and recipes and I reluctantly gave this a shot and I am glad I did. My daughter was really worried about dinner and she ended up liking it. Woo hoo!
Can I try replacing unsweetened apple sauce for the grated apple?, anyone try this ? Thanks :)
Hi Tanya, I think applesauce might make the mixture too wet, but I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure.
My husband grew up in a vegetarian household and was raised on “loafs” and the like. This got his approval and mine! It’s way healthier than the kind we’re used to making, so I love it! My favorite part was the glaze and the carrots.
Hi. Have made this a few times. Last time, just processed everything & didn’t pre-cook the vegies before baking it. It seemed a bit quicker to prepare, although required more baking. Also, have used a can of lentils instead of boiling them – also a time-saver. However, your method makes the best loaf. :-)
I LOVE this loaf! I made it for Christmas dinner this year, but I also made it this week for family dinner and leftovers for lunch. The texture and flavors are amazing. It’s definitely very time consuming, but it’s so good it’s worth it!
Easter email suggested this from page 167 of the OSG cookbook. Didn’t get to make it for Easter, but just put it in the oven now. The mixture was very dry and wouldn’t hold together. I check the website and realized the cookbook didn’t mention any water and the apple was optional . So before placing in the loaf pan, I added about 1 1/2 cups to mixture in pan (didn’t know to remove from stove) . Pressed into loaf pan and it seemed to hold together. Can’t wait to try it!
It was so delicious. The 1 1/2 cups water did the trick, but next time I’ll use the web site recipe and be sure to use the apple. I’m addicted to this, two big slices. YUM!
Hi Angela!
Just wondering if this can be made the night before (not cooked) and then popped into the oven after work the next day? Or would you recommend cooking and then re-heating?
Thanks!
Julie
Hi Julie, I can’t see why that wouldn’t be ok. I haven’t tried it myself but it should be fine?
I just made this for dinner tonight and my whole family loved it!! The kids (I have 4) asked me to save it for their lunches tomorrow! That never happens! Thank you for the delicious recipe!!
Hello Angela, this looks great another recipe to help my husband on this lifestyle change, he loves traditional meat filled meatloaf therefore I really want to try this and make it right. My question is: can the flax be replaced with something else? Maybe ground chia seeds? Idk. Asking because I have a negative ovarian reaction to flax seeds.