Teff Loaf with Cranberry Ginger Sauce

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Soy-Free, Gluten-Free, Nut-Free
Serves 4 people

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 created this Teff Loaf. 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. (Source: National Institutes of Health https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Iron-HealthProfessional/)

Teff Loaf:

3 cups chopped tomatoes
2 tsp sea salt
3 cups filtered water
1 1/2 cups teff grains
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 tsp 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 tsp ground cinnamon
Heaping 1/4 cup coconut sugar
2 cups fresh cranberries
1/4 cup goji berries
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp fresh rosemary, minced, plus more for garnish
Pinch sea salt

To make the Teff Loaf: Blend the 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 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 the 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.

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