proper NUT ROAST WELLINGTON
when I wasn’t vegan, I didn’t go anywhere near a nut roast. which is why whenever I make one, i want it to have something about it. a bit of character, it’s not just nuts, it’s the flavour bombs you fuse within it. it’s about making something that can be enjoyed without gravy, that’s moist and delicious and just so happens to be plant based.
so i took that, shoved it in puff pastry and i’m sure you’re gonna love it.
MAKES FOR 6-8 SLICES
20 min prep + 45 min cooking = 1 hr 5 minutes
INGREDIENTS:
main bits:
500g chestnut and shiitake mushrooms (oyster too if you fancy it)
300g mixed nuts
2 banana shallots
1 large carrot
1 tbsp red miso paste
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
80ml olive oil
1 sprig rosemary, chopped
3 sprigs of thyme, stripped from stalks
3 sage leaves, chopped
250g pouch of chestnuts
3 cloves garlic, grated
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 roll puff pastry sheet (check if it’s vegan)
salt and pepper
side bits:
two handfuls of kale, without stalks
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
1 tsp red miso paste
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp olive oil with 1 tbsp agave syrup for the glaze
METHOD:
Oven. Preheat 200°C (or 180°C fan). Thank you. Okay let’s take care of the mushrooms first. Chop them up into small cubes, this can be as rough as you like. After those, peel & dice up the shallots and carrots and pop all of this in a roasting tray.
Strip the fresh herbs off the stalk by pulling them off (no, no stop it) and chop the fresh herbs up. In a small bowl, mix the 80ml of olive oil with those herbs, the miso, tomato paste, balsamic and mix till combined. Pour that all over the veg in the roasting tray, and massage it in so everything’s evenly covered. Then pop that tray in the oven for 20 minutes.
In another tray, add your nuts and toast them in the same oven for 5 minutes. Blitz those in a food processor along with some chestnuts, from a packet, not roasting over an open fire. Also at this point, take out the puff pastry sheet from the fridge.
Now the kale. Strip the kale from its stalks and pop in a colander. Pour boiling water over it so it can blanch a little and so it softens. Let it dry for a few minutes before adding it to a small bowl and mixing it with the miso, mustard and lemon juice.
Once your veggies have roasted, add the dark soy, the garlic and the nut mix bit by bit. You might end up with more nuts than you need, so add half the mix first into the mushrooms and mix till it can hold its shape firm. You do this by pressing the mix together and hoping it doesn’t crumble or fall apart. Let it cool for a few mins.
Now you’ve got that, time to roll. Roll out your puff pastry and slice 1/4 sheet off for decoration. Then, length ways and slightly left from the middle of the sheet, spread the kale in a thin row from top to bottom. Add the mushroom mix on top of that kale, and pack together to make sure it holds its shape. Essentially you make a nut roast log on top.
Carefully put the longer side of pastry on top of the nut roast log, like you’re rolling a sausage roll. Crimp the edges with a fork and poke a few holes in the top of the pastry with the same fork. Now make your decorations however you want. Follow the image if you’d like for #inspo. If you want to save this for another day, freeze this when it cools to room temperature.
Glaze the pastry with a mix of olive oil and agave (details above) and bake for 20 minutes or until you get golden brown pastry. Serve with your roast and douse in gravy.