Vegan Haggis

This vegan haggis is perfect comfort food for any cold winter night. It's especially festive for a Burns Night supper, celebrating the great poet Robert Burns annually on 25 January. Traditional foods include haggis, bowls of steaming "neeps and tatties," and, of course, a dram (or more) of Scotch whisky! This recipe was created by our always inventive chef tutor Lydia Downey and features in The Daily Express and The Bath Chronicle.

Vegan Haggis

Serves 6

Dietary: Vegan, Gluten-Free Option

Ingredients

• 100g lentils- puy, beluga, green or brown (not red or split)
• 75g pearl barley
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, crushed and chopped finely
• 1 large carrot, finely chopped
• 100g Shitake or chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped
• ½ tsp ground allspice
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• ½ tsp ground mace
• 100g rolled oats
• 75g cashews, chopped roughly
• 1 tsp fresh thyme or ½ tsp dried
• 2 tbsp shoyu
• 1 tbsp dark miso paste
• 500ml hot vegetable stock

Method

1. Generously oil a large pudding basin or individual ramekins or dariole moulds.
2. Cook the Puy lentils and barley in separate pans till just tender, but still retaining some ‘bite’ for approximately 20 minutes. Drain and leave to one side.
3. Heat the stock with the miso in a pan and keep on a low heat.
4. Heat the olive oil in a large pan, and on a medium to low heat, fry the onion for 5-10 minutes until soft and beginning to go translucent.
5. Add the carrot and cook for a few minutes, until it begins to soften and brown.
6. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, then stir in the mushrooms (you may need an extra tbsp or two of olive oil) and fry, adding the spices after a minute or so.Add the lentils and oats, stirring well to combine with the vegetables.
7. Add the hot miso stock, the shoyu, and miso, and simmer until the mixture is very thick, adding a little water if necessary. Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.Stir in the pearl barley, cashew nuts, and chopped thyme, and taste the mix for seasoning. Remove from the heat.
8. Spoon the mixture into the pudding basin, ramekins or moulds, cover with a piece of baking parchment, and a piece foil scrunched around the rim to seal, and bake for 20 minutes, then remove the paper and foil and bake for another 20 minutes.
9. Turn out onto a serving plate and serve with mashed or roasted swede, sautéed greens and mashed potatoes.

Tips

• Instead of baking in a pudding mould, allow the mixture to cool and firm up, then make small patties, coat in breadcrumbs or oats, and fry or bake till crisp on both sides.
• To make the haggis gluten free, substitute the barley for buckwheat and make sure you use gluten free oats, miso paste and tamari in place of shoyu. The buckwheat mixture takes longer to firm up so needs baking for 40 minutes initially with the foil covering.
• It improves by chilling overnight before reheating to serve, so is best made at least a day ahead.

Recipe by Lydia Downey.