Oh hi. Last week I was in New Mexico due to an urgent family matter. While the circumstances were unfortunate, I was lucky enough to spend time with many of my family members that I hadn’t seen in over a year.
While down there, I learned that a few of my cousins recently started doing Crossfit. I’ve always been nervous about Crossfit, probably because one time I watched the Crossfit games on ESPN and saw women flipping tires and bulked out like the Hulk. That’s awesome, but it’s just not me. However, I needed a good workout and my cousins certainly didn’t look bulky, so I decided to sign up for an afternoon sweat session.
And guess what?! It was AWESOME. Yes, it was difficult and my legs were sore for a few days, but I loved the energy and lifting aspect of the class. I can definitely see how you could get easily toned. I’d love to know if any of you have ever done Crossfit!
Anyway enough fitness talk, we’re going to be doing plenty of that thanks to the #SummerSWEATSeries. Today, all I want to talk about is how amazing this meatless black bean meatloaf is.
So let’s get to it…
Of course, you know me, Trader Joe’s grocery lapper. And while I was pacing around the produce section pondering what I would make next, I thought about how awesome a southwest meatless meatloaf would be. I’ve had my mom’s lentil loaf plenty of times and was craving something a little bit different.
Later that day, I was taking this loaf out of the oven, topping it with some creamy, spicy sauce and licking my plate like I hadn’t eaten in days.
FYI, when you live alone, it’s fairly easy to lick your plate because no one is watching/judging you. Well, except Milly (my overly curious cat).
Make your own oat flour for this black bean loaf
Good news, you can easily make your own oat flour right at home to use in this vegetarian black bean loaf recipe. Check out my tutorial with all of my best tips & tricks. So easy!
I ate this loaf for a few days then froze the rest of the slices for later. Turns out, it still tastes fantastic when reheated. I would however recommend leaving the sauce off if you plan on freezing.
So what do you think? Almost 13g of protein and 15g of fiber per serving. Can I get a YES!
Thought so.
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
The Most Delicious Meatless Black Bean Meatloaf with Creamy Avocado Verde Sauce (vegan, gluten free)
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons flaxseed meal
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, finely diced
- 1 carrot, shredded
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, if you like heat
- 1/4 cup finely diced cilantro
- 2 - 15 oz cans black beans, rinsed and drained
- 3/4 cup sweet corn (organic preferred)
- 1/2 cup gluten free oats
- 1/2 cup gluten free oat flour (you can make your own!)
- freshly ground salt and pepper, to taste
- For the sauce:
- 1/3 cup salsa verde (green salsa)
- 1/2 avocado, mashed
- 2 tablespoons finely diced cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray or line with parchment paper.
- Mix flaxseed meal and 1/2 cup water to a small bowl and place in the refrigerator while you make the rest of the loaf. The flaxseed meal will help bind the loaf together.
- Place large pan over medium heat and add 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Once oil is hot, add in onion, garlic, bell pepper, carrots and jalapeno; saute for 5-7 minutes or until onions are translucent and carrots begin to soften a bit. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in spices and cilantro; set aside.
- Using a blender or food processor, blend beans from 1 can. Transfer to the bowl with the sauteed veggies, and stir in the remaining beans along with the corn, oats, oat flour, and flaxseed meal (from the fridge!). Add salt and pepper, then taste and add more spices or salt and pepper if desired.
- Add mixture to prepared loaf pan, pressing and smoothing to the side to make sure it bakes evenly. Bake loaf for about 35 minutes. Remove from heat and cool for 5-10 minutes.
- Make the sauce by combining salsa verde, mashed avocado and cilantro in a medium bowl. Smooth over black bean loaf once ready to serve. Makes 4 servings.
Hello,
Once again can I use GF flour.
Thanks,
Hi! I’ve only tested this recipe as is, so I’m not sure how the texture will change!
Great recipe! I’ve made your mom lentil one repeat and this was easier since I had few cans of black beans on hand.
I added sriracha for some spice instead of jalapeños. I also just mashed with potato masher instead of food processor. Mine held together really well maybe it was chunkier than if I blended it.
I will definitely make again and experiment with different spices.
Amazing! Great idea to use a potato masher, too!
This is a great recipe!
My vegetarian daughter really enjoys it.
I slice it & freeze them.
She uses a slice in her burger.
Thank you
yay! I am so happy you are loving this recipe and it turned out great for you 🙂
I have to be grain free. What would be a good sub for oats and oat flour. Thanks.
Could you use gluten free oats?
One of my favorite recipes! I’ve never made it as a loaf, I prefer to use a muffin tin for anything like this because I love the end pieces. Cooks it same amount of time. Very flavorful and filling! I love to have it with salad and some corn chips. Last time I bought avocado salsa for the topping and will do that from now on as it keeps better but if you’re finishing it in one sitting, no worries.
Perfect! Love that idea!
Delicious! This is in our regular meal rotation!
I’m so glad!!
This has been one of my favorite ambitious kitchen recipes I’ve made so far! I didn’t make any substitutions to the recipe. The flaxseed and blended black beans really helped bind these ingredients into a well formed loaf. I also discovered that dipping some jalapeño lime tortilla chips into the the loaf and verde sauce was an incredible life decision. Highly recommend this recipe! It has the perfect amount of spice, great texture and overall kept me full for hours.
Really enjoy this recipe. I was living with a vegan this past summer and had some flax seed & cans of beans lying around, so we gave this recipe a shot. Now it’s a part of my monthly rotation. So healthy, so *cleansing*, and it can basically be made in a food processor! Does it get any easier?!
Quite tasty, but didn’t hold up as a loaf at all – more like a pan full of spicy, refried beans with veggies to eat with brown rice or wrapped in corn tortillas!
Haha oh no! well, I’m glad you could still put it to use. Sorry it didn’t turn out for you!
This recipe was a winner with everybody! I particularly like your idea to blend the black beans in two different ways to give it the correct texture. I left out the corn, I did not make this vegan, as I used a teaspoon of bacon grease plus coconut oil to fry up the onion etc., and two eggs that I needed to use. I also love the avocado topping, I never would have thought of that. We all agree it was fabulous.
Do the oats have to be gluten free? Can they be the quick cook kind?
Nope they don’t have to be gluten free and yes, the quick cook kind will work!
Im making this now. Looking forward to it!! What kind of side(s) are suggested?
this is the most delicious vegan meat loaf!!
this recipe is my favorite vegetarian meatloaf!
I made this last night but I must be doing something wrong. The consistency is very soft and feels uncooked even after 40 minutes in oven. I noticed a similar consistency in other BB recipes, sliders, meatballs, etc. Is it the BB’s ? What should the consistency taste like? I love the recipe, help.
The consistency is definitely different than other typical ‘meat’loaves. Black beans tend to have a mushy texture. I think it’s delicious, but if you’d like it to be more firm, try using an egg instead of flax eggs or adding more flour.
When you say “flaxseed meal,” do you mean ground flaxseed? Is it the same thing? New to this kind of cooking and I found ground organic flaxseed at the store but didn’t see anything specifically labeled “flaxseed meal.” It looks mealy, kind of like wheat germ.
Yes it is finely ground flaxseed! It should look like what’s on this package.
This looks so delicious! I cannot believe you made a meat-free loaf that actually looks yummy. Most of the ones I have tried were disappointing but this one is probably even a recipe my kids would eat! I can’t wait to make it!
It’s delicious! Hope you get a chance to try it 🙂
This is definitely a go-to recipe now!! I love it so much! I make it in a muffin tin and cook it for about 30 ish minutes instead. They hold together so well. Thank you for the great recipe!
So happy to hear that!! Love this for an easy, meatless dinner 🙂
Had a meatless Mothersday with my Family and used this recipe. It was delicious! My husband, two yearold and Nine yearold Loved it! Thank you for sharing. It’s a keeper! For our slow transition to plant base.
Fabulous! I’m glad the whole family loved this one 🙂 I’ve got tons of delicious plant-based recipes for you to try if you search by “vegetarian”!
I did 1/2 cup of oats and the 1/2 cup was bread crumbs. I don’t understand, but my loaf “fell apart” – any suggestions? I also used 1 egg instead of the flax seed/water combo…
Any ideas 🙂 thanks.
I would make sure your bread crumbs are finely ground in order to replace the oat flour here, and adding another egg!