"Meatless" Meatloaf

This is delicious (Really! Don't let the "meatless" part scare you!)and healthy and best of all--economical. When we make this meatless meatloaf, I sometimes use a muffin pan to make individual "meatloaves" for everyone. My kids love it when dinner is served with bite-sized food for some reason, lol.

What you need:

2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup lentils
1 cup chopped celery (appx.--add or tke away to your taste)
1 small onion, diced
1 cup quick-cooking oat
3/4 cup grated cheese (cheddar, swiss, jack or american)
1 egg, beaten
4 1/2 ounces BBQ sauce or tomato sauce (personal preference is the BBQ Sauce)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

To Make:

Add lentils to boiling salted water and simmer covered 25-30 minutes, until lentils are soft and most of water is evaporated.

Drain and partially mash lentils.

Scrape into mixing bowl and allow to cool slightly.

Stir in onion,celery oats, and cheese until mixed.

Add egg, bbq sauce, garlic, basil, parsley, seasoning salt and pepper.

Mix well.

Spoon into loaf pan that has been generously sprayed with Pam (non-stick cooking spray) or well-greased. Or divide mixture into muffin pan using non stick spray or muffin liners.

Smooth top with back of spoon.

Sprinkle with grated cheddar cheese if desired.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30- 45 minutes until top of loaf is dry, firm and golden brown.

This usually makes about 4-6 servings. It's yummy, full of fiber and protein and low in fat!

Any Vegetarians In Your Family?

I am seriously looking for school lunch ideas for my daughter. So while surfing around the Net, I came across Vegan Lunch Box..a book full of recipes that are healthy and do not use any animal products, which is a good thing since my daughter is vegetarian (as are my hubby and me.) This book is written by a mom, Jennifer McCann who also happens o have an award winning blog, Vegan Lunch Box.com. I am so excited...there are some great recipes for school lunches on the blog and book (which I am about to go order!) that I can't wait to try some out. If you have a vegetarian in your family, and even if you don't, you might want to take a look at some of these yummy recipes!