| Moscow Food Co-op Recipes | |
The Best Partner for Mashed Potatoes
by Jen Hirt, from the January 2002 newsletter
How about that word 'loaf'? It sound just right paired with the word 'bread,'
but in other unions it is not so appealing - meat loaf, ham loaf, Jell-O loaf.
Long before I was a vegetarian, I cast doubting glances at meat loaf and other
loaves. I just wasn't sure about these concoctions, these strange meldings of
meat and eggs and crumbs. Thus, I scoffed at a duo of "lentil loaf"
recipes from my Vegetarian Times cookbook, but the more I thought about
those recipes, the more I realized I had an unfulfilled longing to make a nonmeat
loaf. After some tinkering with the original recipes, I came up with this tasty
version. If you are not into beans and couscous, use lentils.
I have to advise that this dish be partnered with yummy mashed potatoes and vegetarian gravy. Hains offers a delicious veggie gravy packet, available at the Co-op. It is flavored with mushrooms and spices, and it is very, very good. Bean loaf alone is fine—a bit dry, a bit beany, even with the garlic and spices-but when I hooked it up with some fresh mashed potatoes and a little pool of gravy, it was an awesome dinner. Think warm, filling, healthy comfort good.
My Vegetarian Times cookbook says this recipe is also suitable for camping. Make the loaf a day ahead of time, slice it, and wrap the slices in foil for a filling meal on the trail.
Bean Loaf
2 cups dry couscous or couscous mix (such as Southwest Couscous, or any boxed couscous mix)
1 can black beans
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/3 tsp. marjoram
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 egg
1/2 tbsp. ketchup
2 tbsp. tomato sauce or tomato paste
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Prepare the couscous as directed - usually, this means pouring 2-3 cups of boiling water over the couscous in a large bowl, allowing it to absorb for a few minutes. (The Co-op has stocked an excellent Southwest Couscous in the bulk section, so if they still have it, use it. Otherwise, plain couscous or boxed couscous would work. If you opt for plain couscous, you may want to add some cumin or garlic powder to taste.)
After the couscous has absorbed all the water, mix in the beans (drained and rinsed, but reserve a bit of the bean liquid). Add in the bread crumbs, the herbs, and the garlic. Stir well.
In a small bowl, whisk the egg with the ketchup and about a teaspoon of the reserved bean liquid. Stir this into the bean and couscous mix. Add more liquid if the mix seems too dry.
Spray a 5 x 9-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray. Spoon the mix into the pan, and pat it down evenly. Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes, until firm but not dry. Brush with the tomato sauce or tomato paste. Bake another 5 minutes, until the top darkens and looks savory.
Remove from oven and let it sit for 15 minutes to finish cooking. Slice and serve. The loaf should come out clean from the pan, retaining its shape, or you can just slice and serve it directly from the pan.
Jen Hirt is an MFA student in creative writing at the University of Idaho. She's working on a collection of essays about greenhouses.
|
Copyright: Copyright on articles, recipes, and
images are jointly held by the Moscow Food Co-op
and the respective authors, except were otherwise noted. |
For additions or corrections to this page, please contact the Webmaster.
