Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst ’s recipes
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst ’s recipes
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Ingredients
350g diced butternut squash
1 tbsp chopped sage (or 1 tsp dried), plus a few leaves
350g parsnips, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp chopped rosemary (or 1 tsp dried), plus sprigs
1 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 onion, finely chopped
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
1 x 400g tin lentils, rinsed and drained
100g cooked chestnuts
60g dried apricots, diced
60g dried cranberries
300g mixed nuts, chopped (we used a mixed bag, but use up whatever is in your storecupboard)
3 medium eggs, beaten
For the chestnut gravy
1 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 echalion shallots, finely chopped
1 tsp smoked garlic granules
1 tbsp chopped rosemary (or 1 tsp dried)
1 tbsp plain flour
200g chestnut purée
500ml vegetable stock (use 1 cube)
80g cooked chestnuts, chopped
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Get ahead
The nut roast can be assembled and kept in the fridge the day before baking, or frozen, making it perfect to prep ahead for Christmas. Defrost fully before baking, adding an extra 10 minutes or so to make sure it’s piping hot. The gravy can also be made ahead and frozen.
Preheat the oven to 180°C, fan 160°C, gas 4. Line a 20cm springform cake tin with baking paper. Boil the squash for 8-10 minutes or until tender, then remove to a bowl with a draining spoon. Crush gently, season and stir through the sage. Repeat the process with the parsnips, adding the rosemary to the crushed parsnip. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onion for 5-6 minutes, until soft. Add the cinnamon and nutmeg, then the lentils, chestnuts and dried fruit. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and mix in the chopped nuts and eggs then season well.
Spoon a third of the nut mixture into the prepared tin and level out. Top with the parsnip mixture and press down evenly. Continue with another third of the nut mixture, followed by the squash, then the remaining nut mixture. Bake for 45 minutes.
For the gravy, heat the oil in a pan and soften the shallots, garlic granules and rosemary for 4-5 minutes. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute, then mix in the chestnut purée, followed by the stock. Simmer gently for 10 minutes, or until thickened. Add the chopped chestnuts and season to taste..
Leave the nut roast to rest for 10 minutes, then remove. Garnish with herbs and serve with gravy.
The nuts in this recipe make this dish high in fat. But, the fats found in most nuts make them a good source of unsaturated fat, which is good for your heart health. Nuts are also high in protein and fibre. If you're having nuts, they're better eaten unsalted.
The mixture can be made in advance and frozen then defrosted. Divide it into containers and bake, as in Stages 5 and 6 of the recipe. Cooked roasts can also be frozen. Pre-cook and freeze them in the tin(s) you intend to re-cook them in.
A nut roast or roasted nut loaf is a vegetarian dish consisting of nuts, grains, vegetable oils, broth or butter, and seasonings formed into a firm loaf shape or long casserole dish before roasting and often eaten as an alternative to a traditional British style roast dinner.
When polyunsaturated fats are exposed to heat, as is the case with roasting, they're more likely to become damaged or oxidized. This can lead to the formation of harmful free radicals, which can damage your cells. Oxidized fat, or rancid fat, is responsible for the “off” taste and smell in some nuts.
Nuts contain fat. Even though most of it is healthy fat, the calories can still add up. That's why you should eat nuts in moderation. Adults should aim to eat about 4 to 6 servings of unsalted nuts a week as part of a healthy diet.
If you try to slice it when it is very hot it may crumble. If all else fails, cook the roast before the big day. Chill down overnight, then slice into portions. These slices can be reheated in a warm oven when you're ready.
Once the dish has cooled completely, transfer it to an airtight, freezer-safe container, seal and freeze for up to 1-3 months. To serve, defrost thoroughly in the fridge overnight before reheating.
I once saw Nigella on TV explaining how you should first season the meat before freezing it. It really works, at least a bit of S&P and a bit of oil, maybe some wine, and once it defreezes it's ready to use (and defrosting is quicker, too). This is really a time saver!
Nut roasts are a popular vegetarian option. They're high in calories because of the fats in nuts, although these are generally the healthier unsaturated kind. A 120g portion of nut roast contains an extra 10g of fat and 72kcal more than an average portion of roast chicken.
Believe or not, the nut roast has ancestors. It appears to stem from 1908 when Florence George included two recipes for nut cutlets in her book Vegetarian Cookery. It soon became a centrepiece at Thanksgiving and Christmas tables.
Which nuts are good for roasting? Well…all of them! Just be gentler with softer nuts like pecans, walnuts, and pistachios. They will cook faster in about five minutes.
How to Serve Roasted Chestnuts. These roasted chestnuts are fantastic for snacking, especially when paired with a warming co*cktail or homemade eggnog. They also make a fantastic ice cream or yogurt topping, depending on whether you want to enjoy them for breakfast or dessert.
Introduction: My name is Lidia Grady, I am a thankful, fine, glamorous, lucky, lively, pleasant, shiny person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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Prep time: 45 mins
