

As a person who prefers to eat her vegetables, I have absolutely no idea what the meat version of haggis tastes like, but I can tell you that the vegetarian alternative is a bit like a smooth oaty- bean and nut roast.

There are so many vegetarian and haggis recipes on the world wide web, however the recipe I made was adapted from Hendersons. If anyone should be making a good version of vegetarian Haggis, it has to be Hendersons Bistro and Restaurant, a Scottish institution.
Those of you who read my blog often, will know that I am not a huge fan of vegetables mashed, but if I am to stay within the traditional boundaries of haggis, neeps and tatties, then the one thing I can do is present it slightly differently to those I’ve made in the past, often shaped into quenelles or placed in rings. Once all the components were made, I spooned, pressed and layered each into individual pudding basins and then gently placed onto a plate, if you are not eating these immediately then, they can be gently steamed for 20 minutes before serving. If you don’t have individual basins, you could do in a large basin and bring it ceremoniously to the table.

Now having had the ready-made vegetarian haggis and home-made version, I asked D for his opinion. He said he thoroughly enjoyed it, it had substance and it had flavour. He had one criticism, and it was nothing to do with the vegan haggis, it was my tatties, I did not mash them well. Well I did say, I didn’t like mashed veg.
Vegan Haggis
Serves 4
Ingredients
50g pinhead oatmeal (soaked for 1 hour)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large onion, sliced finely
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 tablespoon Tamari
100g chestnut mushrooms, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and grated
100g puy lentils
100g of cooked kidney beans, about 1/2 tin, rinsed and chopped
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Method
Saute onion, garlic and seasoning in the oil until soft. Add the lentils and carrot and simmer on low heat until the lentils are soft, stirring to prevent sticking. The moisture content of the soaked lentils and carrot should be sufficient, but if not add a very small amount of water. Add the mushroom and allow to soften before adding the kidney beans. Season with black pepper to taste. Finally add the drained and rinsed oatmeal and mix well. Serve warm. Adapted from Henderson's Wholefood Cookbook.