I had a hard time figuring out what to include in this vegan meatloaf recipe? Why is that, you ask? Well, it’s been a loooooooong time since I had authentic meatloaf. In fact, I never even ate it that often as a kid. But I got so many requests for a killer vegan loaf over the years that I decided to just have at it. Since I had no idea where to start, I did what any vegan cook would do. I used chickpeas. As luck would have it, chickpea loaf is pretty awesome. Chickpeas are hearty and substantial. They work great as the base for all kinds of amazing vegan dishes, like chickpea burgers, chickpea stew, and chickpea chili. So it totally makes sense that they’d make a good loaf! In fact, they’re perfect for taking the place of meat in a dish like this, particularly when blended up with all kinds of savory seasonings and veggies. Our loaf gets topped with a lightly smoky tomato maple glaze and everything comes together to create the most delicious of vegan comfort food flavor bombs. I had to ask my husband if it tasted anything like normal meatloaf. He assured me that it was delicious, and about as much like traditional meatloaf as one of my veggie burgers is to a regular old burger. Perfect! Tip: For an alternative to the maple glaze, try topping your vegan meatloaf with my vegan gravy. It’ll give it a whole new flavor profile!
How It’s Made
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe!
Pulse everything in the food processor. Whatever you do, don’t let it start running and walk away. Your mixture will turn to mush and you’ll end up with a sad, mushy vegan meatloaf. Every so often you’ll want to stop the machine, open the lid, and use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl and redistribute the ingredients. Taste-test the mixture at this point and season it with some salt if you’d like. Feel free to adjust any other seasonings to your liking.
Tip: Make sure you don’t overblend the mixture. Keep some texture and chunks of chickpeas and veggies.
Lightly oil the inside of a loaf pan and line it with a strip of parchment paper to make your vegan meatloaf easier to remove when it’s done baking. Transfer the chickpea mixture to the loaf pan. Press it in and smooth out the top with a spatula. Pop the loaf into the oven. Mix up the glaze by stirring together tomato paste, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce and paprika while your loaf bakes. After about 30 minutes, take the loaf out of the oven and cover the top with the glaze, then return it to the oven to finish baking.
Tip: I’ve made this loaf using a few different pans and had the best luck with a 9-inch glass Pyrex pan.
Let your vegan meatloaf cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving it.
Tip: This loaf firms up as it sits, so consider making it well in advance if you’d like it to be really sturdy.
Leftovers & Storage
Vegan meatloaf will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 4 days, or in the freezer for about 3 months. Leftovers can be heated in the microwave or popped in the oven for a few minutes. Oh, and they make an awesome sandwich!
More Vegan Comfort Food Recipes
Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!
