Cranks Nut Roast

Serves 5 - from The Cranks Recipe Book, p113-114.

INGREDIENTS

1 medium onion

2 tbsp oil(or 25g or 1oz butter or margarine)

225g / 8oz mixed nuts (100g peanuts and 125g other mixed nuts)

100g / 4oz wholemeal breadcrumbs

200ml* vegetable stock (or water plus a stock cube)

10ml / 2 tsp yeast extract

5ml / 1 tsp mixed herbs

Salt & pepper to taste

How much veg stock?

* The Cranks recipe calls for 250ml, but I found the mixture was just too slack. I've tried 220ml (7 fl oz) vegetable stock, then 200ml, and these quantities are fine. 

HOW TO MAKE

Preheat the oven to 180'C / 350'F / GM4

Use food processor to chop, grind and mix all ingredients, starting with dry ones. (If no food processor, use a liquidiser or coffee grinder, it is fiddly, but it does work.) If using Brazils do them first. Then peanuts and bread and add the mixed herbs and set aside. Then do onion and other wet ingredients.
Fry onions in oil  until transparent in a large saucepan. Add the stock and yeast extract and heat (not necessary to heat to boiling point), then add all the dry ingredients together and mix well. The mixture should be fairly slack.

Turn into a greased shallow baking dish, level the surface, sprinkle with a few breadcrumbs and bake for 30 minutes at 200C or until golden brown.

Variations

Double quantities

I usually make two at once and put one in the freezer. Here are the double quantities

• 2 medium onion
• 4 tbsp oil
• 450g nuts
• 200g wholemeal breadcrumbs
• 400ml vegetable stock (or water plus a stock cube)
• 10ml / 2 tsp yeast extract
• 5ml / 1 tsp mixed herbs
• Salt & pepper to taste

Oats or breadcrumbs?

Another variation is to use porridge oats instead of breadcrumbs. But in that case, you’ll need more stock, say, 450ml stock to 200g oats.