It’s the holiday season and we all know what that means: festive gatherings, delicious meals, and lots of added treats. Let’s be honest, sometimes too many treats. The joy of celebration often comes hand in hand with tempting calorie-laden dishes that leave us feeling sluggish and guilty. If you are looking for a guilt-free December, fear not. Epicurean Group chef Lise Eisenberg offers this gorgeous main dish attraction, Holiday Nut Loaf, an entree that is festive, filling, light and vegan.

Holiday Nut Roast

Serves 6 – 8

Roast

• 1 head garlic, minced
• 2 large yellow onions, diced small
• 1 cups cashews (unsalted)
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon each: salt and freshly ground pepper

Stuffing

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced small
• 2 stalks celery, chopped small
• 2 cups breadcrumbs
• ½ cup vegetable stock
• ½ cup pecans, chopped
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• 1 tablespoon each parsley and sage, chopped fine
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme

Preheat oven to 325°F.

For Nut Roast: Place onion and garlic in a large bowl. Grind cashews in a food processor and add to onions and garlic. Add breadcrumbs, vegetable stock, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Set aside.

For Stuffing: In a medium sauté pan, sauté the onions and celery until translucent, about 5 minutes. Place in a medium bowl, add bread cubes and stir in stock. Add pecans, melted butter and dried cranberries. Add in parsley, dried thyme and sage and combine well.

Into a standard-size loaf pan, place ½ of the nut roast one third of the way up the loaf pan and flatten evenly with fingers. Add all the stuffing on top to make the loaf pan 2/3’s full, then finish with the remaining nut roast on top of the stuffing.

Bake for 30 minutes, uncovered. Remove from oven and let rest a few minutes before slicing. Serve with mashed potatoes and gravy.