Just because I am a dietitian does NOT mean I do not loveeee me some pizza.
Let's be real here. Yes, I adore arugula. Um, yeah, raisins are LITERALLY my favorite food. I think about marrying salmon on a regular basis. None of that changes the fact that I freaking love pizza, love brownies and love dumplings.
The pizza cravings are like a real life problema. I live in freakin' Brooklyn in a very Italian neighborhood. The smell of pizza is constantly assaulting as I walk to the gym, walk to the grocer, wander to the subway. Pizza to the FACE (even when I'm not eating it) has become the story of my life.
Luckily, pizza cravings are easily managed with this lentil loaf.
Lentils may not be your jam, but they're certainly myyyy fave food right now. They're fast and easy to heat up on the stove, cheap, and loaded with fiber and protein! Lentils are also a fabulous source of iron especially when paired tomatoes! Basically, eating lentil loaf is like eating a delicious pizza that is totally fabulous for your health.
Did ya know lentils are loaded with resistant starch? Resistant starch is like the coolest kid on the nutrition block right now - since the FDA recently approved labeling for resistant starch to serve as a treatment for high blood sugar. Resistant starch is a type of carbohydrate that does impact blood sugar but rather gets fermented by the bacteria in our gut. When it hits da gut, those little darling microbes in our colon chow down on the resistant starch to form butyric acid. Butyric acid then gets into our bloodstream where it plays a role on sugar metabolism; lowering blood sugar and increasing the burning of body fat. Its dope, yo'.
You're bored. You're like - I don't care about butyric acid. I want pizza.
OKAY, FINE:
Pizza Lentil Loaf
Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
264 calories, 10 gm fat , 29 gm carb, 15 gm protein
Ingredients
1 cup dry lentils (or 2 cups cooked lentils if you already have some in your fridge)
1/2 cup white wine
2 cloves garlic
Broth (any type will work)
1/2 cup part skim mozzarella, shredded
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 cup oats (quick cook not steel cut)
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 small white onion, diced
1 teaspoon garlic powder (or 1 clove minced garlic)
1 teaspoon parsley flakes
1 teaspoon oregano flakes
2 eggs
Instructions
1. SKIP THIS STEP IF STARTING WITH COOKED/CANNED LENTILS. Rinse dry lentils and place in a sauce pan. Cover with broth, wine. Add garlic and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer until the water is absorbed (~20 minutes)
2. Preheat oven to 350*.
3. In the same sauce pan, reduce heat to the lowest heat setting. Stir in cheese, oats, tomato sauce, onions, spices and eggs. Mix well to melt the cheese (~1 -2 minutes).
4. Spray a loaf pan with coconut oil. Add the mixture to the pan.
5. Cook for 35 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and top with additional tomato sauce (optional).