Cashew and mushroom roast

The perfect choice for a celebration meal.

Vegetarian. Hands-on time: 20 mins. Total time: 1 hour.

Contributed by Moira Adams (November 2008).

Nut roasts are always a popular item on the vegetarian table, especially when it comes to celebratory meals and special occasions like Thanksgiving and Christmas. This recipe is an excellent alternative to our classic nut roast – it's just as easy to make and just as certain to impress.

Serve the dish with roast potatoes and your choice of vegetables – and perhaps a helping of cranberry sauce. The quantities given here will make four portions.

Ingredients

• 3 medium carrots (or try a combination of carrots and parsnips, or a large sweet potato)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove of garlic, chopped
• Oil for frying
• 2 cups (8 oz, 225 g) cashew nuts, coarsely chopped or grated
• 1½ cups (4 oz, 110 g) breadcrumbs
• ½ tsp. dried mixed herbs
• 1 egg, beaten
• ½ cup (4 fl. oz, 120 ml) hot water
• 1 tsp. yeast extract (such as Vecon or Marmite) or miso, or 1 tbsp. tomato puree
• salt and pepper for seasoning
• 8 oz (225 g) chestnut mushrooms or other good quality mushrooms, cut into thick slices

Method

Oven: Pre-heat to 350F (175C)

Peel the carrots (or other vegetables) and cut into small pieces. Boil in lightly salted water for about ten minutes or until completely soft. Remove from the heat, drain well, and mash with a fork or potato masher.

Gently fry the onion and garlic in a little oil until they just start to brown.

Mix the cashews, breadcrumbs and herbs. Add the mashed vegetables, onions and beaten egg.

Dissolve the yeast extract, miso or tomato puree in the hot water. Add this to mixture. Mix well.

Sautee the mushrooms in the remaining oil until they just start to soften. Drain off the oil along with any excess liquid.

Place half the nut mixture in an oiled oven-proof dish, pressing down so that it forms a firm layer that covers the base. Form a second layer with the mushrooms, then cover with the remaining nut mixture.

Cover the dish and bake for 50 minutes.

Note on quantities and temperatures:
Quantities are given in American (cups), imperial (oz, fl oz) and metric (g, ml) units. Do not mix the units - use one or other system throughout the recipe.
See also How much does a cup weigh?
oz = ounces, fl oz = fluid ounces, g = grams, ml = milliliters, tsp = teaspoons, tbsp = tablespoons.
Oven temperatures are given in degrees F (Fahrenheit) and C (Celsius).
For fan-assisted ovens, reduce the temperature by 20F or 10C.