That being said, I’m always making this for Thanksgiving. Be it American or Canadian (if you have Canadians in your life, you’ll know). Maybe it’s because my family made it every year for Thanksgiving since I can remember. My parents raised us vegetarian our whole lives so it took the place of a traditional turkey. The loaf is so perfectly versatile with all of the other holiday table accoutrements. It’s one of those things to look forward to & then savor the leftovers for days.

I can’t even tell you exactly where the recipe came from, but it’s been written down on a overly creased & folded, food stained and oil blotched piece of paper I seem to always have to call my mom for every year. I finally grew up, and wrote it down in a place that I know where it is, and now I’m sharing it with you.

It’s honestly the answer for your holiday or any dinner gathering. It’s vegan friendly & you can swap out the bread crumbs for crushed up gluten free crackers (Ritz or Saltines crumble nicely) if you need to.

You can skip the gravy, but it’s really not recommended. I mean, that’s honestly just crazy talk. Loaf & no gravy? We had one, but it’s since been lost and since then I’ve been on the hunt for a gravy recipe. I’ve found this Cashew Mushroom Gravy recipe to pretty much do the trick. There’s a trick to it that makes it absolutely & completely gravy-licious (I know… I couldn’t resist).

Vegetarian Nut Loaf

Yield: 8 x 10” loaf pan or 10-12 servings / Time: 30 minutes + 1.5hr for cooking / Difficulty: pretty easy

Ingredients

• 6 C celery

• 6 C chopped onion

• 8 Lg garlic cloves - chopped or mashed

• 2 C chopped almonds or walnuts (delicious toasted)

• 2 C ground sunflower seeds (unsalted is best)

• 1 1/2 Tbsp basil

• 2 Tbsp thyme

• 1/2 tsp Ground black pepper

• 1 1/2 tsp Salt

• 2 C of water or vegetable broth or *non-chicken-chicken broth

• 6 C bread crumbs or cubed bread

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350º

2. In a large covered pot with 1/2 cup of water, steam until tender celery, onion and garlic.

3. Once tender, combine steamed veggies with all remaining ingredients in a large bowl.

4. Once ingredients are well combined, gently mix in bread crumbs or cubed bread and remaining 2 C of water or broth.

5. Bake in 9 x 13” or large loaf pan for 1 1/2 hr.

Storage

Loaf can be frozen before or after baking. If freezing, seal with plastic cling wrap and then cover with tin foil.

If freezing after baking, best to slice into desired portions for ease of reheating.

* They sell non-chicken-chicken bouillon cubes at most grocers that really work well for added flavoring.