Teff Loaf with Cranberry Ginger Sauce
Once I realized that I didn’t have a “meatloaf” recipe in my culinary arsenal, I didn’t want to pull off a poor imitation of some 1970s vegetarian one from a dog-eared cookbook. Instead, I worked with this Teff Loaf that was shown to me by a trusted culinary mentor. The dense, meaty texture of the loaf is perfectly accented by the sweet, tangy Cranberry Sauce. This is an iron-rich, nutritious alternative to the same ol’ boring loaf. Speaking of iron, it helps to deliver rich stores of oxygen to your gray matter. I guess you could say teff is a pretty “def” brain grain.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
Teff Loaf:
6 cups chopped tomatoes, divided
2 teaspoons sea salt
3 cups filtered water
1 1/2 cups teff grains
3 cups tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh basil, packed
5 sprigs of thyme
5 sage leaves
3 to 4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup fresh spinach, packed
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for pan
Cranberry Ginger Sauce:
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1 large orange, zested
2-inch piece ginger root, grated
1/2 cup filtered water
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Heaping 1/4 cup coconut sugar
2 cups fresh cranberries
1/4 cup goji berries
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced, plus more for garnish
Pinch sea salt
Instructions
- To make the Teff Loaf: Blend 3 cups tomatoes, salt, and filtered water in a high-speed blender. Transfer to medium saucepan and add the teff grains. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to simmer. Simmer for 15 minutes, then mix. The consistency should be very thick but slightly runny. If there is still a lot of liquid, cover and cook for another couple of minutes.
- Blend the remaining 3 cups tomatoes, basil, thyme, sage, garlic, spinach, and olive oil in a high-speed blender or food processor until roughly chopped. Transfer to a small skillet and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes or until garlic is translucent and herbs begin to brown.
- Add the tomato-spice mixture to teff and mix well. Grease a standard loaf pan with olive oil. Transfer the teff loaf mixture to loaf pan and set aside for 10 minutes. The teff thickens quickly as it cools.
- To make the Cranberry Ginger Sauce: combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once the mixture comes to a boil and the cranberries start to burst, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. As soon as the mixture thickens, remove from heat.
- Flip the cooled teff loaf onto a nice serving dish and top with cranberry sauce. Garnish with fresh sprigs of rosemary.
