Cheesy vegan meatball subs
Servings Prep Time
5subs 30minutes
Cook Time
40minutes
Servings Prep Time
5subs 30minutes
Cook Time
40minutes
Ingredients
For the meatballs
  • 1400g can cooked black beans(drained and rinsed)
  • 1400g can cooked green or brown lentils(drained and rinsed)
  • 1/2cup vital wheat gluten
  • 1/2cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 onion
  • 3cloves garlic
  • 1tsp dried parsley
  • 2tsp dried basil
  • 2tsp dried thyme
  • 1tbsp soy milk
For the tomato sauce
  • 1400g can crushed tomatoes
  • 2cloves garlic
  • 1tsp dried basil
  • 1tsp dried thyme
  • 2tbsp tomato paste
For the cashew cheese
  • 1cup raw unsalted cashews(soaked for at least 2 hours)
  • 1cup vegetable stock
  • 1/3cup nutritional yeast
  • 2tbsp lemon juice(or apple cider vinegar)
  • 1tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4tsp turmeric
For the sandwich assembly
  • baguettes
  • fresh basil
Instructions
For the meatballs
  1. Preheat the oven to 180˚C and line a baking tray with baking paper. Place the onions and garlic into the food processor and pulse until they are coarsely chopped. Add the remaining meatball ingredients and process until everything is well mixed. Roll into golfball sized balls and place on the baking tray, mist with olive oil. Bake for 35-45 minutes until they have browned nicely, turning every 15 minutes.
For the tomato sauce
  1. Heat a small amount of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Crush the garlic and add to the pan, cook for 2 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, herbs and tomato paste. Leave the sauce to simmer for 10 minutes or so, stirring often.
For the cashew cheese
  1. Drain the soaked cashews (if you have a very high powered blender or food processor you do not need to soak them) and add them to the blender with the other ingredients. Blend until a thick, smooth sauce has formed. Tip the cheese sauce into a sauce pan and heat for a few minutes over low heat, stirring constantly, until the sauce is warm and has thickened slightly.
For the sandwich assembly
  1. Add the cooked meatballs to the pan with the tomato sauce and coat them in sauce. Spoon some tomato sauce onto the bottom of the baguette, place the meatballs on the sauce and then spoon the cashew cheese over. Place the subs under the grill for a few minutes. Garnish with chopped fresh basil, serve.