This flavorful vegan Chickpea Meatloaf is the perfect holiday main dish, but it’s so easy and delicious you’ll love it year round.

Do you have a vegan or vegetarian coming for Thanksgiving dinner!?! Don’t panic.

You don’t have to sit them in the corner with a dish of green beans and a dinner roll. Here’s a delicious savory loaf you can serve to your vegan dinner guest. Keep an eye on it though … you may just find all the turkey-eaters sneaking seconds of this loaf too.

Vegan Chickpea Meatloaf

This easy-to-make vegan Chickpea Meatloaf is so flavorful and satisfying, yet it’s loaded with slimming nutrients – meaning you can love your holiday meal without worrying about gaining weight. It presents itself beautifully as a Thanksgiving main dish topped with vegan gravy and served alongside mashed potatoes and Brussels sprouts or a salad.

One Recipe – Three Ways

In addition to serving it as a loaf, this recipe also can be made into a “hash”. In fact, we like it even more that way! We simply mixed all the ingredients together and instead of packing into a loaf pan, we cooked it in a skillet over medium heat until it started to lightly brown (about 10 minutes). Yum!

Leftovers?

If you have any leftovers, mix in some of this vegan Creamy Italian Dressing and you have a great sandwich filling.

Healthy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is typically a time of gratitude, good-will and . . . well, unhealthy eating. The average American consumes about 4,500 calories and 229 grams of fat throughout Thanksgiving Day, and the results of this indulgence may surprise you.

Processing all that unhealthy food causes your body to experience a spike in blood sugar, increased cholesterol, increased blood pressure, general stress and irritation on the entire digestive system, and decreased blood flow to the brain.

Why treat your body that way when you can replace some of those high-fat and/or high-sugar options with some healthier ones (like this Vegan and Gluten-Free Chickpea Loaf with Healthy Herb Gravy)? The Thanksgiving meal will be just as tasty and you will feel so much better!

Chickpea Loaf – small loaf

This flavorful vegan loaf is super high in fiber and other essential nutrients. It presents itself beautifully as a Thanksgiving main dish served alongside mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and pumpkin pie.

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Prep Time 25

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 25

Course Main Course

YIELD 6 slices

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Ingredients

1 cup finely diced celery - (about 2 medium ribs)
1 1/2 cups finely diced onion - (about 1 1/2 medium onions)
2 tablespoons olive oil - optional
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup minced, fresh parsley
6 1/2 teaspoons granulated onion - 2 tablespoons + 1/2 teaspoon
3/4 teaspoon salt - (See note #1.)
3/4 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1/2 teaspoon dried ground summer savory
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon dried ground rosemary
3 cups (two 15-ounce cans) canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans), well-drained, but not rinsed - divided
1/2 cup quick-cooking (not instant) oats - or breadcrumbs (gluten-free if desired)
1/4 cup Jennifer's Kitchen Creamy Italian Salad Dressing - or 2 tablespoons roasted tahini + 3/4 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons water, liquid from chickpeas, or vegetable broth

Instructions

Finely dice celery and onions. I use my veggie chopper to get this done quickly.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large pan with a wide bottom, sauté celery and onion in oil over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes. (Or use this method to sauté without oil.)
Mince garlic. (Garlic can be minced in a food processor.) Add garlic to celery and onions in pan and sauté for 1additional minute.
Mince parsley. (I mince mine in my food processor.) Stir minced parsley into vegetables and remove from heat.
Stir in seasonings.
Place 2/3 cup chickpeas in food processor. Process until very finely chopped/pureed.
Add oats to food processor and pulse several times until thoroughly mixed. Add to sautéed vegetables.
Coarsely chop remaining chickpeas in food processor. Chickpeas should be just coarsely chopped, not finely chopped or pureed. The pieces give the loaf texture. Add to sautéed vegetables.
Add salad dressing (or tahini and lemon juice), and mix very well.
Mix with hands for a few seconds. (This prevents loaf from being crumbly.) Mixture should be moist enough to stick together, but not be mushy. If mixture is too dry, add up to 2 tablespoons water, liquid from chickpeas, or vegetable broth.
Line a 7 1/2-inch x 3 1/2-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Spray with non-stick cooking spray and pack mixture firmly into pan.
Bake uncovered at 350°F for 55 to 60 minutes or until the outside of the loaf is well browned.
Serve hot with this delicious Vegan Herb Gravy.

Notes

1. The amount of salt needed will depend on the amount in your chickpeas.

If you use low-salt canned chickpeas, I suggest a scant teaspoon. If you use salt-free chickpeas, I suggest using one teaspoon of salt.

2. Be sure to use quick oats not rolled oats in this recipe.

Yield: 1 small (3 1/2- x 7 1/2-inch) loaf

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Keywords: beans, dairy-free, gluten-free, healthy, legumes, oil-free, plant-based, vegan

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Chickpea Loaf – large loaf

This flavorful vegan loaf is super high in fiber and other essential nutrients. It presents itself beautifully as a main dish served alongside your favorite potatoes and vegetables.

Rate/Comment Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 1 15

Total Time 1 45

Course Main Course

YIELD 8 to 9 slices