Neat Loaf!

Last night I made neat loaf. You read that right. Not meat loaf, NEAT LOAF! I was both excited and apprehensive to try this recipe. Lets face it, when something is supposed to be like a meat-based food it's almost always completely different in taste, smell and texture.

This recipe was VERY easy and VERY tasty! My house smelled delicious too, just like if I were cooking real meatloaf. The taste is similar to meatloaf. The smell is spot on and the texture is close as well, and very moist! I did notice that when it asked that I combine all ingredients there was a bit of the dry ingredients that didn't get caught up in the mass. It wasn't more than a 1/2 cup worth so I just tossed it.

Here's the recipe! Give it a shot. You'll be surprised!

Neat Loaf
(Makes one loaf, about 12 slices)

1 cup cooked brown rice
2 cups bread crumbs
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 pound firm tofu
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
3 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tsp stone-ground or Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp black pepper
barbecue sauce or ketchup for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the brown rice, bread crumbs, walnuts, onion, celery, and carrot. (You can put the walnuts, onion, celery and carrot into the food processor to save time chopping.)

Puree the tofu in a food processor or mash by hand until very smooth. Add to the rice mixture along with the barbecue sauce, soy sauce, mustard, and black pepper.

Stir with a large spoon or knead mixture by hand until it is well mixed and holds together, about 1 minute.

Transfer to an oil-sprayed 5 x 9 inch loaf pan or other baking dish and distribute evenly using a spoon, spatula, or your hand.

Top with barbecue sauce or ketchup. Bake for 60 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe from Healthy Eating for Life for Children by Amy Lanou, Ph.D., as republished in The Survivor's Handbook: Eating Right for Cancer Survival by The Cancer Project.