Vegan Meatloaf

One of the dishes that my kids typically like is meatloaf, but since I try to not eat meat every day, I figured I’d make vegan meatloaf. It is topped with ketchup and barbecue sauce, which help give it the familiar taste of meatloaf, but it’s full of vegetables and legumes. It wasn’t exactly the same as regular meatloaf, of course, but it was good! 

I served it with roasted root vegetables and a poppy seed tahini dressing. 

1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil 

½ yellow onion, finely chopped 

2 stalks celery, finely chopped 

1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped 

1 cup finely chopped baby bella mushrooms 

2 (15-oz.) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed 

1 cup panko bread crumbs 

¼ cup freshly chopped parsley, plus more for garnish 

2 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce 

1 Tbsp. vegan Worcestershire sauce 

¼ cup ketchup 

¼ cup barbecue sauce 

½ tsp. smoked paprika 

kosher salt 

freshly ground black pepper 

Preheat oven to 375 °F and line an 5"-x-8" loaf pan with parchment paper. 

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat oil. Add onion, celery, carrot, and mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are soft and most of the liquid has cooked out, 6 to 8 minutes. 

Using a potato masher in a large bowl or food processor, mash the chickpeas until a rough paste forms. (A few large pieces of chickpea are OK.) Transfer to a large bowl if using a food processor. 

Add cooked vegetables, bread crumbs, parsley, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce to the bowl with chickpeas. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together ketchup and barbecue sauce. Add half of this mixture to the bowl with the chickpeas. Season with paprika, salt, and pepper, and stir until all ingredients are evenly incorporated. 

Transfer chickpea mixture to prepared loaf pan, packing the mixture in gently. Smooth top, then brush with half of the remaining ketchup mixture and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven, brush with remaining ketchup mixture, and bake 30 minutes more. 

Let cool 10 minutes, then garnish with parsley and serve.