1.
Add extra virgin olive oil to a pot over medium heat
2.
When hot, add onions, when the onions are golden, add the minced carrots
3.
Add the garlic, sauté for 40 seconds then add the mushrooms, sprinkle some salt, and stir occasionally until the mushrooms cook this will take about 7 minutes
4.
Do not add extra water or oil, the mushrooms are made almost exclusively of water so if you add more water and/or oil you end up with a mushy mushroom paste instead of sautéed mushrooms.
5.
Add the dried TVP then add broth made by mixing veggie broth powder, tomato paste, soy sauce, and water, add little by little until the TVP is soft.
6.
Add black pepper, dried oregano, peperoncino, and red and green bell peppers, sauté for 1 minute, turn off the heat, and add fresh parsley.
7.
Add the cooked vegetables to a bowl along with the remainder of the ingredients for the meatloaf (the flax egg, the oatmeal, the breadcrumbs, the nutritional yeast, the mustard, the creole seasoning, and the vegan butter). Mix until all ingredients are well combined. Adjust the salt, and allow it to rest in the fridge for 10 minutes.
8.
Meanwhile, let's make the quick tomato sauce:
9.
Add olive oil to a pot over medium heat, when hot, add the minced onions, when golden, add whole garlic cloves, sauté for 40 seconds, add the fresh basil sprig, sauté for 10 seconds, and add the cherry tomatoes or canned cherry tomatoes, salt, and pepper, some water, stir to combine, lower the heat to low and let it cook for 10 -15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
10.
If by the end of the cooking time the tomatoes haven’t broken down, mash them with a fork or a potato masher.
11.
The pectin present in the thin tomato peels will thicken up the sauce and it will cook way faster than regular tomato sauce.
12.
Mix the brown sugar, and ketchup in mustard in a small bowl, and reserve.
13.
Line a 10"x 5.5"x 3" inches loaf pan, with parchment paper, grease it thoroughly, add the meatloaf, and with the back of the spoon pack it well, cover with aluminum foil, and bake it in a preheated 190C oven for 1 hour.
14.
After 1 hour remove the meatloaf from the oven, wait 30 minutes until it cools a bit, flip the meatloaf into a baking plate, brush the ketchup, mustard sugar mixture all over the meatloaf, increase the oven temperature to 200C and bake the meatloaf for 15 minutes more but keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn.
15.
Remove the meatloaf from the oven, AND WAIT 30 MINUTES BEFORE YOU SLICE IT, this step is very important because if you try to cut the meatloaf before you allow it to cool, it will fall apart. Serve the meatless loaf over a generous amount of tomato sauce and enjoy!
