Mushroom Nut Roast

A gluten-free vegetarian Thanksgiving–those words make some people pretty nervous. Lucky for you Sea Maiden of Book of Yum decided it’d be nice to have some gluten-free veggie bloggers provide you with some inspiration, so she created The Gluten-Free Vegetarian Thanksgiving. Every day up until Thanksgiving a different blogger will share a Thanksgiving dish idea, and Sea will highlight them all on her site. You’ll have a whole menu waiting for you.

Obviously turkey is a big part of Thanksgiving for many people. Some people even call it the “star.” But you probably don’t think that. So if you’re not going to have the turkey, what do you do? The obvious choices are 1) not worry about it and eat plenty of sides or 2) make your own entree. If you’re in the latter group, here’s a dish you might want to try.

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 rib of celery, diced
• 3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 pound of mushrooms, diced
• 1/2 cup white wine, vegetable broth, hard cider, or water
• 1 cup gluten-free bread crumbs (~2 sandwich slices if processing yourself)
• 2 cups pecans
• 1 cup walnuts
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 eggs (or the equivalent amount of egg replacer for vegan)
• sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9×5 loaf pan. Line with parchment paper.
2. Heat a medium-large skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil. Add the onions and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until the onions are translucent and just beginning to brown.
3. Clear a spot in the pan and add the garlic. Cook for half a minute. Add the mushrooms, wine, and a pinch of salt. Stir well. Allow the mushrooms to release their juices, then increase heat to medium-high. Simmer until most, but not all of the liquid has cooked off, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. While the mushrooms are cooking, pulse the nuts in a food processor until evenly ground, but not a fine powder. Place in a large mixing bowl with the bread crumbs. Stir in parsley, sage, thyme, and oregano, plus a pinch of salt and a few cranks of pepper. When the mushrooms are finished, add to the mixing bowl. Stir well. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Lightly beat the eggs in a small bowl, then stir into the nut mixture.
5. Spoon mixture into the greased loaf pan. Press down to ensure mixture is solid, and smooth the top.
6. Place in the oven and bake around 45 minutes, until the edges are browned and a toothpick inserted in the loaf comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Run a knife around the edges if necessary. Place serving platter over the pan, and invert. Remove parchment paper and serve.

[Serves 8]

The pecans really shine through, but they balance nicely with the mushrooms. If you have a gravy recipe you love, whip it up and spoon away. I thought the nuttiness played well with my spiced cranberry sauce.

This certainly packs in the protein if you’re concerned that the other available dishes will be too starchy. (If, on the other hand, you’re in the “Paleo diet be damned, I love my starches” camp, maybe consider a batch of my gluten-free cornbread stuffing?)

Hopefully I got the wheels spinning, and if you’re looking for more make sure to check back into The Gluten-Free Vegetarian Thanksgiving page in the coming days. I’m also sharing this recipe in Wellness Weekend, and Make Your Own Monday.