Recipes

Luxury Festive Roast

Serves 6-8

Probably the tastiest Christmas Roast you will ever eat! Teaming with juicy nuts pulses, porcini mushrooms and other surprises.

230g/8oz mixed nuts
4oz red lentils
l large carrot
2 celery sticks
1 large onion
½ large courgette
1 aubergine
100g mushrooms
25g porcini mushrooms
4 tbsp vegan butter
2 tbsp mild curry powder
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
4 tbsp chopped parsley
10g chopped dried apricots
2tbsp soya flour
¼ pint water
Vegan pesto
2 tbsp toasted pine nuts

Preheat oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5

Gently boil the lentils for around 20mins and soak the porcini mushrooms in boiled water for the same time.

At the same time, cut the aubergine in half, then chop into small chunks, along with the courgette. Lay out on a plate and spinkle with salt (this is to reduce their bitterness). Leave for 20mins also.

At the same time, cut the aubergine in half, then chop into small chunks, along with the courgette. Lay out on a plate and spinkle with salt (this is to reduce their bitterness). Leave for 20mins also.

Crop the carrot, celery, onion and mushrooms into small chunks, then pass them through a food processor or blender until they are quite finely chopped.

Then melt the butter in a wok and fry the vegetables for 5 mins, stirring in the curry powder

Drain and crop the porcini mushrooms, then add into a bowl with the lentils, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, parsley, apricots, soya flour and water. Mix well.

Add in mixture from wok and mix all together.

Grease a large bread tin with vegan butter, then line with grease-proof paper.

Press 4 tbsp of the mixture into the tin, then spread over a layer of pesto. Spoon in the rest of the mixture and smooth over.

Bake for about 1 hour until just firm, covering the top with a piece of grease-proof paper if it starts to burn.

Sprinkle with pinenuts to finish, then holding the sides of the grease-proof paper, gently pull the loaf out onto a plate or serving tray. Trim down the paper along the edges, allow to cool for 15 mins, then cut into slices and serve with Roses' Gravy.

Viva! Vegetarians International Voice for Animals
8 York Court, Wilder Street, Bristol BS2 8QH, UK
T: 0117 944 1000 F: 0117 924 4646 E: info@viva.org.uk