This mushroom roast is the standout recipe of my childhood. Rich and sumptuous thanks to the mushrooms and marmite, and with a little crunch from the onions, it is best eaten in an old fashioned way with veg and gravy, but is also great cut in to wedges as a cold snack the next day. My poor mum had to be creative with her meals when I was a kid as I was the only vegetarian in our family, but this recipe was a winner with all of us, and the taste still makes me feel nostalgic! It is from the lovely Vegetarian Cook Book by Doreen Keighley, which is simple and unpretentious in the way that cookbooks used by our parents seem to be (or am I being nostalgic again?). It was written in 1985 when people looked frightened and cooked you a fried egg if you said you were a vegetarian, so at the time the book must have been quite revolutionary!
Use as little butter as possible (draining it once the mushrooms and onions are fried) and press the ingredients tightly in to the baking dish/loaf tin to help it bind. Don’t worry if the mushroom roast breaks up a bit when it is cooked and you are taking it out of the tin. Mine has never stayed all in one piece but it still tastes great!
Mushroom roast – serves 2 hungry people or 4 as part of a lighter meal
200g mushrooms, chopped small
Large knob of butter
1 onion, finely chopped
150g grated cheddar cheese
90g breadcrumbs (I just blend some slices of bread)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp marmite
Salt and pepper
Butter your baking dish/loaf tin. Fry the mushrooms and onions in the butter for approx 10 mins. Drain the butter away. To the mushrooms and onions add the grated cheese, breadcrumbs, marmite, beaten egg, salt and pepper, and mix. Place the mixture in a greased baking dish/loaf tin, pressing it tightly together. Bake at 190 degrees/gas mark 5 for approx 35 mins, until nicely brown. Leave to cool for 10 mins before getting it out. Don’t worry if it falls apart a little! Delicious served with veg and gravy or cut in to wedges and eaten cold the next day.
katielovescooking 
As an ex veggie that sounds lovely, in fact swop the mushrooms for chopped nuts and that’s my fool proof Cranks nut roast-Christmas dinner for me for many years x Best wishes, Fiona Lundie-Smith fiona.bongalong@gmail.com 07811 460282 DOUBLE the FUN If you introduce a friend, who also signs up then you BOTH get £5 off the next term.
Yum! Even meat eaters seem to like it as the flavour is so rich. Thanks for your comment x
I just had a mushroom bake/roast last night and am looking to replicate the recipe. 🙂 I know hers had bread, marmite, and mushrooms, and I am sure I could taste egg as well, but it was darker than this one – different mushroom, perhaps. Will give this one a go and see if it is close to the one I had, which was lovely.
Hi Beth. It sounds very similar, except this has mushrooms too. Hope you like it! Katie : )
I have the book by Doreen Keighley from years ago, 184 recipes and 84 pages. It is such a favorite it’s become quite tatty and I have been searching to replace it with no luck. It’s possible the same recipes are in a later book so I have just ordered 2, 1 for my friend. I have about 40 + vegetarian books but this little gem is my favorite.
Yvonne
It’s nice to hear someone else has a copy! Mine too is very worn and flimsy. My mum says the cheese souffle recipe is wonderful too but I am yet to try it! What else are your favourites from the book? Katie : )