Veggie Loaf with Millet

When I was a kid my mum used to do a very healthy vegetable loaf which all of us used to love. It contained millet which is a high-protein grain which is mainly grown for use as bird seed. This grain is highly nutritious and is a staple food in most African countries, India, China, Burma, North Korea. Interestingly enough it is also used to prepare Tongba which is a millet-based alcoholic beverage in Nepal. Millet grain is usually found in health food stores (in Malta we used to buy it from Good Earth and here in England we buy it from Holland & Barrett or Grape Tree. Anyway, this loaf is very tasty and filling and we used to love it when we came back from school. It is 100% vegetarian and if you want to turn it into a vegan dish just omit the cheese and egg and add a teaspoon of Marmite instead of the cheese and more millet instead of the egg, to bind the loaf. Make sure the vegetables are fresh and that are evenly and finely chopped to ensure that everything cooks evenly. If you still cannot find millet you can use bulghur or even barley! I grated the courgette, carrot and mushrooms using my food blender grater attachment. So easy!! Give it a go, it is so tasty that you will certainly do it again!! You will need...

• 65g millet grain
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 3 celery sticks, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 courgette, finely chopped
• 100g white mushrooms, finely chopped
• 1 ripe tomato,de-seeded & finely chopped
• 100g sweetcorn
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 100g grated mature Cheddar cheese (or a tsp of Marmite for a vegan option)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• Fine sea salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 beaten egg, for binding
• Steamed broccoli florets, to serve
• Fresh tomato sauce, to serve

How to...

1. Start by cooking the millet by adding it to about 250ml boiling water and simmer it for about 20 minutes until fluffy.
2. Preheat the oven to 190°C/Gas Mark 5.
3. In a large bowl mix well the cooked millet with all the other ingredients.
4. Now line a loaf tin with greaseproof paper and carefully pour all the mixture in the tin. Make sure you pack it tightly by pressing down with a spatula.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for around 50 minutes. Let it set for about 15 minutes, then carefully turn it upside down. Take off the paper, slice and serve with some steamed broccoli and some freshly prepared tomato sauce (we made a basil & garlic tomato sauce). 
   

Enjoy!!

R&A