Alissa's Vegetarian Lentil Meatloaf

My husband and I "mmmm'd" our way through each bite. YUM! I made a few changes because of what I had on hand: oat flour instead of flax meal, wheat bran instead of germ. I also used veg. broth when cooking lentils and added 1 Tbsp. vegetarian Worcestershire to the lentils while they were in the food processor. Put mix of tomato paste and ketchup on top, covered with foil and baked for 45 mins, uncovered for 10 and it was great! (Not too dry, not too mushy.) This was my first time making vegetarian meatloaf and it was the best my husband and I have ever had. Thanks for the recipe!

I cooked this recipe according to the directions and it came out fine, not too mushy or dry. I followed suggestions from the previous reviewers and topped it with tomato paste and ketchup. This recipe was pretty good, but I didn't like the thyme. The thyme flavour really overwhelmed the whole recipe. I think this one might be better if it went in a more Indian direction, using cumin and coriander instead of the thyme. I'll definitely alter the spices if I make it again, but I did like the lentil/flax/wheat germ/veggie aspects of the dish.

my meat-a-tarian husband LOVED this! but i had to cook it twice as long for it to 'set'. next time i plan to add a little tomato paste to the top, cover with foil, and cook appx 2 hours. delish!

I made some alterations. For the person that asked about dryness, you can add 1 tin of light coconut milk. Roland is the brand that I buy in the supermarket. I sprouted the lentils for2 days in advance. I put them in a glass bowl, cover them with water and I left them in a cupboard, a warm place and they sprouted. They become more protein than and they digest better. I crushed them into puree raw, with out cooking. I did not want to lose the nutrients. I also added mushrooms, celery, and broth. I did not use the flaxseeds. I followed a suggestion and I used barley flour and wheat bran instead. I also added 1/4 cup of cheddar cheese, and 1/2 cup of dried sun tomatoes, and the egg whites. I also added 1/4 of chopped jalapenos pepper, sea salt and ground black pepper. It was delicious. Thanks for sharing your recipe!!!

Excellent "meatloaf!" I took some of the below suggestions and put a mixture of tomato paste/ketchup on top of the loaf before I put it in the oven. Then I baked it, covered in foil, for 45 minutes. After that, I uncovered it and baked it for another 20 minutes. Next time I think I will add a little more onions!

so i did the whole bag of lentels, two carrots (about half a lb) a whole green bell pepper, whole med/large red onion, and coupple hand fulls flax seed and zatarans jyumblya mix (we just happened to have on hand) rather than great the carrots i rough chopped everything then threw it in the processor and plused in my lentils. while my rice was cooking. once everything is mixed i foled in the rice to avoid turning it to mush then used my icecream scoop to do 'muffins' of it baked them and they rock!

OUTSTANDING!! we loved this so much, it's destined to be one of our staple meals. I got all wacky with Indian spices. I commandeered the leftovers for lunch the next day. Looove it!

This turned out really great. I took other reviewers' advice and put some tomato paste on top . I also added worsteshire sauce and dijon mustard to the lentils. We don't like spicy food so instead of thyme and cayenne pepper I added Cavender's Greek seasoning (which is what I used to put on grilled meat for my husband). He liked it a lot, but does not want to call it meatloaf.

This was my first ever attempt at making a homemade veggie "meat" meal. I've only been eating a vegetarian diet for about 2 weeks now, and as long as I can eat stuff like this I think I will be just fine. This recipe is excellent and very tasty, even for someone who is used to eating meat. It even has a meat like texture once cooked! I followed the recipe, but pureed the onion (I don't like onion chunks)and also added in some Portugese seasoning in addition to the other seasinings required. I followed the recomendations by others and baked the loaf covered in foil for 45 mins, and then uncovered it and poured a mixture of ketchup and tomato sauce sprinkled with parsley on top and then baked for another 30 mins. It tastes great and the recipe made a lot way to much to fit into a standard size UK loaf pan.

This was okay, definitely tasts healthy. Also, this dish is VERY high in fiber- watch out.

This is a nice vegetarian option. I made a few small changes: 1) I added ketchup on top near the end of the baking 2) I used a different type of lentil. 3) I baked mine in small muffin tins instead of a loaf pan. It is different than the 'meat' version which my kids found weird, but my husband and I prefered. Serving this with a side of mashed potatoes and creamed corn is extra yummy. Thanks for this good recipe!

The flavor was great, though I would recommend cooking it longer to get a more appetizing/less mushy consistency.

Loved the texture of this. i pretty much doubled the recipe since i sprouted a bag of lentils for a couple days and had to alter a few things. - i used two whole eggs, -bulgar instead of wheat germ, -ground flax seed meal, -brown rice with red kidney beans i had made a couple days before for dinner and -panko bread crumbs. As i do not have a food processor i used my blender and added two tomatoes to help mash up my lentils. i also added the bulgar to the blender too. Once i had everything mixed together i used a mini loaf pan to bake them for 30 minutes. I did not have thyme so i used italian season and more oregano. On my next attempt i might up the tomato sauce and add some chili seasoning to it and something to kick up the flavor a little more.

Alissa should go back to cooking school. A can of tomato sauce with 1 1/2 cups of lentils? All you will get out of that is a sour tasting mush. Also you should leave out the red pepper, and maybe the carrots too. Otherwise its not a loaf.

I loved the idea of this recipe, but it didn't work at all. I was so disappointed. I don't know what I did differently than those who were successful with it, and I'm a little bit jealous. :) I've had lentil meatloaf before and I was excited to find this recipe. I followed it as is, and after 2 hours in the oven it wasn't even set; the consistency was the same as when I first put it in the oven, it wasn't even edible. I don't plan on trying this recipe again, and will continue looking.

Love this recipe! I used a mix of BBQ sauce and tomato paste for the "glaze" coating. Oh so good!

I made this once before and it ended up too moist and fell apart, but given all the positive reviews, I figured I messed up somewhere. I decided to try it again, and this time it came out perfectly. It's very easy to make and tastes great if you add enough salt. I also added a lot of red pepper flakes because I wanted it spicy. Came out great, perfectly moist. I also poured tomato sauce on top of the loaf after 20 mins of bake time. Will definitely make this again. Thanks for a very nutritious, filling recipe!

I had high hopes for this but honestly neither my husband nor I liked it. I didn't like the texture and it tasted very bland.

I hate to do this but we really disliked this lentil loaf. We are a family of six vegetarians and usually the kids are hit or miss but my husband and I are pretty flexible but not one single person liked it.

This did not turn out at all like a meatloaf for me. I did not expect it to be exactly like meatloaf, but my family hated it. It was time consuming to make. I cooked it longer than stated and it never "solidified" enough to cut into slices. It was more like a pureed texture and reminded me of meat for babies. I will not be cooking this again.

This lentil meatloaf just was not good. Very bland. Also, the texture just was gross.

too mushy and alittle bland

This was great! I added salsa to the top before baking which worked out really well. Baked for an hour to set properly.

i have to say that i was so excited for thiis.i actually planned my whole week around it. ( I work split shifts and have a baby) I made it according to directions. And I started early just in case I was included in the worst case scenario after reading. I cooked that dang thing for over 2 hours and its consistency never changed from mushy. so I used a spoon and globbed it onto a cookie sheet and baked it for another 30 minutes. I ended up having to go back to work with no dinner. After 3 hours of cooking my poor family gave it a try. And did not care for it. Not the flavor. The mushy "refried bean" texture. i am definately bummed. i am very jealous of the people who got this to work

These definately taste better the next day! I used instant brown rice, but the regular brown rice would probably work best. I didn't have any flax, so I used whole wheat flour instead. I made individual portions by baking it in muffin cups and cutting the baking time. Perfect texture...not too dry or mushy.

Loved it will make it again. Made a deviled sauce to pour over top 3 tbsp brown sugar, 1/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, 1 tsp dried mustard. It was amazing. Freezes well. Very filling.

This was easy and turned out very nicely exactly as written. I took one reviewers advice and made muffins which went over well with the kids. The thyme was the predominant flavor, which we liked, But I'll probably try a different spice angle next time. It made enough for appx 18 muffins, which I cooked as suggested, with foil on top for the first 35 minutes then removed fir the last 15.

In the oven right now! Before even trying it, I have to say that I ended up with enough mixture for at least 2 loaves, maybe more. I'll add to this after I've tasted it!

I modified the recipe because I didn't have some of the veggies on hand and substituted mushrooms. Next time I make this I will season the ingredients as I go, as mine turned out on the bland side. The katchup/tomato on top was great. "The chef's Miracle Blend" would be great in this, or maybe soy sauce.

Oh my gosh - this was amazing! I was a bit nervous when I went to the commissary & bought all these ingredients that I've never used (wheat germ & flax seed) just hoping it wasn't a disaster. It turned out GREAT! The preparation seemed to take forever - but I knew that going in. The only thing I changed was adding ketchup to the top before baking it. Mine was still really mushy after the 45 minutes, another 10 minutes later it was ok..but I would have left it in a few more minutes if I had the time. Overall, it was great & we will definitely make this again. My meat eating husband even said he'd eat it again. thank you for posting this recipe

To make this recipe vegan I used Ener-G egg replacer instead of egg whites. It worked well except it took 1 &1/2 hour to bake. Welll worth it! Not only was it delicious last night fresh from the oven but I also ate it as a cold sandwich for lunch today. Loved it both ways.

i thought that this dish was very creative and tasty. Im not even a vegetarian, i just wanted to try a healthy alternative to meat, and im definitely keeping this recipe in my book! i do have one "complaint", im no chef by any means, however i thought it was a bit dry and im unsure what to do next time i make it so that its not dry....any suggestions someone?

Very tasty! I am not a veg., but i don't eat meat that often because there are so many more healthy alternatives that taste delicious...like this recipe! Definitely cover with foil while cooking, I also cooked mine about 1.5 hours but I think I released too much water in the veggies when i was supposed to finely chop them, mine were more pureed. I also went with the suggestion to use indian spices instead of thyme and i loved it! I used curry, cumin, and indian pepper.

Great taste. Only change I made was to add a tbls of Worcestershire sauce. It was a little too moist, so next time I may just add less tomatoe suace or cook a little longer. Really tasty though. Thanks!

Not a bad recipe! I made a few adjustment: used the whole egg, rather than the yolk, added more spices [oregano, basil, rosemary, garlic powder], replaced the wheat germ with ground flax and brown rice with white, and left out the pepper (due to what was in my kitchen), and it turned out good. I like the texture - something I miss as a vegetarian sometimes! It was hearty and had room for flexibility. And it tasted really good with this amazing BBQ sauce I have. Definitely recommend trying.

It was pretty good, but I think needs some more seasonings. Also, remember as at least one other reviewer said, this really has a lot of fiber. Be prepared.

i made this along with a meatloaf for my husband and i was not too impressed with the lentil loaf. it was dry...kinda bland and needed something added to it. Maybe next time i will add the orange preserves mixture i put on his meatloaf. In the end i had a huge amount of the loaf left and tried making sandwiches with it...i melted some cheese overtop trying to not have to throw it out. but in the end half the loaf went in the garbage. :( And iam a lentil lover so i am not too sure what went wrong....?

Needs more onion and definately ketchup on top. Will make again.

This is the first time I've made a veggie loaf-it's ok. It is somewhat bland though. I made a peanut gravy to go over it which helped some. I think it just needs more spice.

I've never made a lentil meatloaf before. I really liked it. I did make some small changes--wheat bran for germ, and topped with a ketchup/tom.paste mix. I have to say that I liked it better after it sat in the fridge overnight. At first it was still a bit too soft in the middle, more like a paste than a meatloaf. Also, as others have commented on, the thyme was a bit odd at first. Again, that mellowed after sitting overnight. It makes quite a bit, and the leftovers are really good. Both my husband and babysitter are true midwesterners, and had never even conceptualized something like this, but they both liked it a lot. My husband thought it would make really good patties or meatballs, and I agree with him. Baby thought it was ok, big brother didn't try it. Real meatloafs never make enough for us to have on hand throughout the week, so I esp liked that aspect. I didn't have any issues with the fiber--it was fine. Thanks Alissa! Great recipe and way to get some lentils into my diet!

I LOVED this recipe. My family and I are very very new vegetarians and my husband is pretty meat and potatoes. He loves this recipe as well. In fact, I used the same idea to make meatballs for spaghetti and those turned out fantastic as well. I was super surprised by how yummy and "meat-like" the texture was.

I am not a vegetarian but want to try and eat healthy. This loaf recipe was prepared exactly as written with the exception of the substitution of green peppers for red (this is what I had on hand). It was very delicious but the next time I may put a catchup, brown sugar, mustard topping on it. Thank you for this recipe. It will get into my regular meal rotation from now on.

I enjoyed this recipe but I agree with others that it needs a sauce of some kind. I made a simple sauce of tomato, basil, red onion and garlic. Everyone enjoyed it. it held together OK but I agree with those who said that it needed an extra 20 minutes uncovered after the suggeted 45 minutes covered.

I give this recipe a three because it is only edible once it is drizzled with a bit of steak sauce or ketchup. Definitely looks like meatloaf!

I really liked the taste of this lentil loaf, but the consistency was not good for me. I did not hold it's shape at all. I didn't make any changes to the recipe.

Added garlic and seasoning just the way we like it and could not be more pleased with the outcome....otherwise followed the recipe as presented....YUM!

It was so bland it was only barely edible with a gallon of ketchup. I think this could possibly be salvageable if there were a boatload of seasonings. I like the mushroom nut loaf vegetarian option far better.

We liked the taste of the meatloaf, but it was alittle dry. Maybe because I did have to cook it alot longer than the 45 minutes for it to solidify? I will make this again and maybe add some kind of sauce over top.