
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.
Oh my goodness, this looks SO GOOD!!! I’m wondering if there is something that I could substitute for the nuts. My son has a nut allergy, so we don’t even have them in the house. :-( I am really anxious to try this and hoping that something else can be used. Your suggestions are greatly appreciated! :-)
Maybe you could use sunflower seeds? I would use much less though.
Not sure if I can get Green Lentils here where I live – would it work just as well if I substituted them with Brown Lentils? Never made a Lentil Loaf before, so am really keen to try this!
Yes I think brown lentils would work well too :)
I am making this right now. I switched the Apple Butter for Traders Joes Fig Butter. Mine is not done yet, but the glaze does taste amazing!
Just made this last night. It turned out amazing. My non-veg husband ate TWO pieces and said it was good. My friends at work did a double take because they swore it was “meatloaf”. They could not believe it was vegan. This is definitely my go to Thanksgiving “main course” option this year. Oh and I served it with the last few green beans from my garden and the last potatoes I dug up :(. Can’t wait till next season to grow those items in my backyard.
This looks super delish! and a fantastic swap out for meatloaf. I will try for sure. Thanks!!
Never add salt or tomato products to lentils until they are soft and cooked. Salt will prevent the outer shell of the lentil from becoming perfectly soft!!
Lovely looking loaf- I will be making it today!
Hi there. Just wondering do you think this can be made and refrigerated overnight before cooking the next day?
I made the loaf this weekend and it was awesome! We had it for dinner and then again for lunch on Saturday. My husband loved it and especially liked the left over sauce served with rice and veg. My mother is a vegan and I can’t wait to share this.
Love. Love. Love. Seriously, every single recipe of yours I’ve tried has turned out perfectly–I’m telling you, flavor soul mates we are! I made this today and brought it to my brother’s birthday with our family and it was a huge hit. My very omnivorous family is slowly warming up to the idea that no animal products doesn’t have to equal dry, bland, unsatisfying dishes. The only one who didn’t like it was my brother, ha! He’s weird. I followed the recipe exactly except for subbing the celery with green bell pepper, since that’s what I had on hand. It’s soooo delicious, and I’m glad I have leftovers to eat for the next few days. Thank you yet again, Angela!
Hey Jamee, This is great news, thank you!
I made this and my husband named my version “Mush Loaf” :-( Any ideas what I could have done wrong or ways to make it more dry and less mushy? We loved the flavors and think it would have been pretty great if I hadn’t somehow messed it up!
Hey Megan, Try baking it longer next time and/or adding more breadcrumbs. Also, if you haven’t already you might want to test your true oven’s temp to make sure it’s accurate. That can throw off cooking times.
for those not doing grains – I omitted the flour and breadcrumbs and it still came out DELICIOUS! Still added eveything else the reicpe calls for. Plus cinnamon and pecans instead of walnuts. So yummy!!
That’s great to know, thanks for sharing!
Hey Angela
So I decided to try this recipe. I didn’t roast the walnuts. I was a little rushed so I used a mini food chopper for the onions,celery and carrots. I didn’t make your glaze cos I had leftover sweet and sour sauce and used that. I baked it all up in large silicone muffin tins (made 6), thinking the whole time I am not going to like this….it was sooooo gooood!! Sooo stick to your ribs good. Can’t wait to share this with my meat loving brother who is trying, grudgingly ,on doctor’s suggestion ,to go veg.
Thanks again for another winner!
Great news – so glad you enjoyed it!
I made this last night for dinner and used a single large loaf pan…it took forever to cook. Ended up cutting off the ends and pan searing them so we could eat….the rest was super mushy and raw tasting. All said and done, I doubled the cooking time for a 5×9 loaf. This was totally my fault and nothing to do with the recipe because I didn’t plan to adjust the cooking time for a single loaf up front. Learn from my mistake…if you want a single large loaf plan to cook it for at least 60 minutes and maybe closer to 80 depending. Angela, thanks…this is fantastic (for lunch today and dinner tonight) will definitely be making on the regular!
Thanks for the tip Megan! I will add a note to the recipe :)
This lentil loaf is pretty much my favorite meal now…and I have to say that I just got an idea…lentil loaf baked in muffin pan, with pureed mashed potatoes piped on top as the “frosting”. Or squash!
Love that idea!!! Wow
Do you have any tips on warming the frozen loaves? I made two small loaves and froze one (delicious!) and now I’d like to eat the second :)
In the past I have just let it that in the fridge or on the counter, but I suppose you could speed things up by cooking it at a low heat in the oven?
I stumbled across your website and oh, I’m so glad I did! My naturopathic doctor put me on a very strict anti-inflammatory diet for my allergies and I’ve been pulling my hair out trying to find recipes that actually contain ingredients I’m allowed to eat! Your website has so many recipes I can enjoy w/ only having to cut out or substitute just a few ingredients (sometimes none! or just 1 or 2).
Can’t wait to try this Lentil Walnut Loaf! Only have to cut out the ketchup and balsamic in the glaze, but that’s okay!
This is my new favorite recipe! The walnuts and celery gave it such a great texture, and that glaze! It was perfect. I ate the last of it on my sandwich for lunch, and now I’m so sad it’s all gone. Thank you for creating such delicious recipes. Because of you, my boyfriend thinks I’m a fabulous cook. Ha! :)
I have a mini loaf tin that holds 8. Can I use that? Would I just use nonstick spray or use the parchment paper? Do you spray the parchment paper if that’s what you use?
I made this last night and it is awesome! I substituted whole wheat flour for oat flour because I couldn’t find oat flour in my supermarket.
I made this last night using my mini loaf pan . Came out perfect! I baked them at 350 for 25 minutes! I will definately make these for Thanksgiving for the vegans!!
I forgot to mention I ground oats in the food processor for oat flour!