It’s been at least 2 weeks now since I set up this blog, made the logo, and published it on the internet. And haven’t written one post, until now. I wanted to think long and hard about what my first post should be like. As a food lover but not quite hipster enough of a foodie to be an expert, I wanted a modest first post that was related to the kitchen, since I spend a lot of time there when I’m not at work. Tonight, as I was preparing a basic lentil loaf, is when I realized that I should go ahead and write my first post.
A million years ago when I was 24, I lived in a 400 square foot apartment above a residential garage in the suburbs of beautiful New Hope, PA. It was the first time on my own, paying rent and really supporting myself. I was alone, but not lonely. I felt independent and strong with my 6 month old puppy, Bennington, by my side. But I wasn’t quite empowered in life as I had roughly $5 to my name and perhaps 5 days to my next paycheck at my new job.
A girl’s gotta eat, right? I resorted to whatever was in my mini food pantry — a few canned items, some rice, and a small bag of Goya green lentil beans. I wasn’t much of a cook, so I looked up a recipe online. I had to improvise because I didn’t have all the ingredients in the recipe or even a loaf pan, to be honest. 90 minutes later, I had my first lentil loaf. It was terrible. Yet, it was satisfying because I had made it with my own two hands and less than $1.50 in ingredients.
Today’s lentil loaf was pretty good — moist with great flavors from the herbs that I used. Nothing like my first attempt, to say the least. Still, it reminded me of my humble beginnings and really, my journey to become frugal and fabulous started right there, in my little kitchenette in New Hope. I was hungry & broke but refused to compromise my independence. In that dire moment, I needed to make it work and really put my limited budget and (very limited) kitchen experience to the test.
Over the years since my first lentil loaf attempt, I’ve made some bad ones and some good ones. Some were so dry that I had to throw it away, while others were so sopping wet that it was more like lentil soup. Today’s lentil loaf was filled with experiences from the past, both good and bad, to produce a decent loaf to which my boyfriend, Brandon, gave a thumbs up.
So here’s to humble beginnings. Thanks for taking this journey with me! While this is definitely better than my first lentil loaf, some things never change… I spent about $2 on this lentil loaf with the help of some ingredients I had leftover from previous nights. Enjoy!
| Servings | Prep Time |
| 6 servings | 15 minutes |
| Cook Time |
| 1 hour |
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A tribute to my humble beginnings, I share with you my lentil loaf recipe. Hearty, wholesome, and good for you, this lentil loaf is both easy to make and affordable. This is a perfect recipe for Meatless Monday, and is both gluten free and vegan friendly.
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- 1 3/4 cups brown lentils
- 2 cups cooked brown rice
- 4 cups vegetable broth or water
- 1 large white onion, chopped (or 2 smalls)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp pasta sauce, your choice (or ketchup, if preferred)
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
- 4 leaves fresh sage, finely chopped (or 1 tsp dried)
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- extra salt & pepper, as needed
- Bring water or vegetable broth to a boil. Add lentils and simmer, covered, for 35 to 40 minutes until tender. Drain thoroughly, then coarsely mash with a large spoon or potato masher. Don't over-mash - you want to keep some of the texture.
- Heat oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. Add garlic and cook till lightly brown, about 1 minute. Then add in chopped onions and cook about 4 minutes until tender. Add salt & pepper if desired.
- Combine brown rice, mashed lentils, onion/garlic mixture, and 1/2 cup of pasta sauce. Add in sage and all dry seasonings. Mix all ingredients very well until thoroughly combined.
- Lightly coat a 5x9 loaf pan with cooking spray (or lightly grease with your choice of oil or shortening). Spoon in the lentil & rice mixture, making sure to press it in to bring the mixture together and seal any cracks. Make sure the mixture is evenly distributed in the loaf pan.
- Spread 2 to 3 tablespoons of pasta sauce over the top of the lentil loaf, just enough to thinly coat the top.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, uncovered. Allow loaf to sit for about 10 to 15 minutes before cutting and serving. Top with extra sauce or serve on the side, if desired.
The nicest thing about this recipe is that you can really play around with the flavor profiles, depending on what you like. Use beef broth instead of veggie broth for a meatier flavor, and replace the pasta sauce with ketchup and mustard to make it more like a traditional meatloaf. If you don't like ketchup or pasta sauce, you can use gravy instead. I have also used an onion soup mix in place of vegetable broth in the past.
I strongly advise using broth instead of water to cook your lentils because it adds depth and flavor to the finished product. If you're out of broth and want to use water, you can season the water with salt and other seasonings to give your lentils some flavor.