Festive Nut Roast Wreath Recipe

Gaz says: “Well, it wouldn’t be a plant-based Christmas without a nut roast! Roasted in a wreath tin and topped with cranberry sauce, it’s the perfect Christmas centre piece.”

Serves

Cooks in

70 minutes

Ingredients

3 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 celery stick, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 leek, finely chopped
200g (7oz) butternut squash, peeled, and cut into small cubes
1 small aubergine (eggplant), cut into small cubes
60g (2oz) vacuum-packed chestnuts, roughly chopped
½ tsp allspice
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
1 sprig of fresh rosemary, finely chopped
10 fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
Sea salt and pepper
1 orange, zest and juice
140g (1 cup) mixed nuts (Brazil nuts, pistachios, walnuts, etc.)
165g (1 cup) cooked chickpeas (garbanzos)
45g (½ cup) gluten-free breadcrumbs
50g (⅓ cup) dried cranberries, roughly chopped
50g (¼ cup) dried apricots, roughly chopped
50g (⅓ cup) sun-dried tomatoes, roughly chopped
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp white miso paste
3 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp Marmite

For the cranberry topping

6 tbsp cranberry sauce

Optional garnishes

Shelled pistachios
Dried oranges
Fresh rosemary

Method

Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease a non-stick 25cm (10in) cake ring mould/tin. (Line with baking paper if it’s not non-stick.)

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat and sauté the onion, celery, garlic, leek, squash, aubergine and chestnuts for a few minutes, stirring frequently. Add the spices, herbs, some seasoning and the orange zest and juice. Turn the heat down and cook for 8–10 minutes, stirring every now and then. You want all the flavours to marry together and the vegetables to soften slightly.

While the vegetables are cooking, blitz the nuts in a blender until they are a crumb-like consistency. Add the chickpeas and pulse a couple times just to break them down slightly. Tip these into the saucepan and add the breadcrumbs, cranberries, apricots and sun-dried tomatoes, stirring well.

Add the vinegar, miso paste, nutritional yeast and Marmite and cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring often, then turn off the heat.

Spoon the cranberry sauce into the tin and spread out evenly, then carefully spread the nut roast mixture on top. Press the mix into the tin as much as you can. Once you’ve filled the tin, cover it over with foil and roast in the preheated oven for 30–35 minutes.

After roasting, allow to cool slightly before turning out of the tin. Serve your festive nut roast wreath topped with your chosen garnishes.

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