Since becoming a vegetarian, I occasionally have cravings for meals that I really enjoyed when I ate meat. One of my most favorite meat meals was meatloaf. After going months without it, several months ago I researched vegetarian meatloaf recipes online and in cookbooks. I found several intriguing recipes on Food.com and adapted them to come up with this delicious meat-free vegetarian “meatloaf.” I have shared this “meatloaf” with several people, and it is by far one of my most requested recipes. This recipe, which serves approximately 4-5 people, contains only 200-250 calories depending on the number of people served- much less than its meat counterpart. Making this “meatloaf” requires few ingredients and minimal effort. Trust me, if you can dice a few vegetables and throw everything into a bowl, you can make this!
Ingredients
EVOO cooking spray
3 cups of Corn Flakes
2 cups of low-fat cottage cheese
4 eggwhites, beaten
1/4 cup of ketchup + more for topping
1 envelope of dry onion soup mix
1/2 small green bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup of onion, finely chopped
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Spray loaf pan with EVOO cooking spray.
3. Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Stir until well-combined.
4. Spoon mixture into loaf pan. Pat down slightly. Drizzle the top with ketchup. It should look something like this:
5. Bake, uncovered, for 60-70 minutes, or until the top is slightly brown and crispy. I generally bake mine closer to the 70-minute mark.
6. Cover with foil and let sit for at least 20 minutes. I have actually been known to cook this hours in advance, put it in the fridge, and reheat each individual piece in the microwave before serving. This is one of those dishes that I think tastes even better as leftovers.
The color of this vegetarian “meatloaf” is slightly lighter than the “real thing,” but it has a delicious texture and the onion soup mix gives it a beefy taste. I may actually prefer this over regular meatloaf and have heard this from several other people who have tried the recipe. This is a recipe that I make often and do not see myself ever getting tired of.
I served the “meatloaf” with cut green beans and an orange.
