Vegan Chicken Parm

This baked vegan chicken parm takes a simple chickpea burger and transforms it into a delicious twist on an Italian classic. Serve with your favorite pasta and steamed vegetables on the side.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Diet Vegan

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 35

Resting Time 10

Total Time 45

Servings patties

Calories 346kcal

Author Marly McMillen

Equipment

Food Processor

Ingredients

1 medium sweet potato
1 cup rolled oats
¼ cup chopped walnuts
15 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon dried minced onions
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed divided
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ cup seasoned bread crumbs
¼ cup vegan Parmesan
2 tablespoons vegan butter melted
3 tablespoons plain soy milk
1 cup dairy-free marinara sauce
1 cup vegan mozzarella shreds

Cups - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F/200°C. Lina a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray a large skillet with vegetable cooking spray.
Place potato in the microwave and cook for 2 minutes. Use oven mitts to remove from microwave and allow to cool about 5 minutes. Once cooled, chop into large cubes.
Place oats and walnuts in a food processor and pulse until a coarse flour is formed. Add potato, chickpeas, onions, garlic powder, poultry seasoning, nutritional yeast, and 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed. Pulse 3 seconds, then use a spatula to push ingredients back down. Pulse again for 3 seconds.
Form mixture into 6 patties and place in a prepared skillet over medium heat. Cook 5 minutes on one side. Flip, then sprinkle salt and pepper on uncooked sides and cook for another 5 minutes until patties have firmed up slightly and are brown on both sides. Transfer from skillet to a large plate and set aside to cool for about 5 minutes.
In a small bowl stir together bread crumbs and vegan Parmesan. Pour melted butter, milk, and the remaining 1 tablespoon flaxseed into a separate small bowl. Dip each patty in butter mixture, then dip in breadcrumbs and place on a prepared baking sheet. Spray patties lightly with vegetable cooking spray.
Bake 25 minutes until bread crumbs are golden brown. Remove from oven.
Spoon equal amounts of marinara sauce over each patty. Top with equal amounts of mozzarella shreds. Return pan to oven and bake another 10 more minutes until cheese is melted.
Let cool for 10 minutes, then transfer patties to a large lidded container and refrigerate for up to 10 days or freeze for up to 2 months. To serve, cook in the microwave in 30-second intervals until heated through.

Notes

This recipe was updated recently. If you prefer the older version of this recipe, here are the ingredients:

1 15 oz can chickpeas

1 medium onion, peeled and chopped

¼ cup flour (regular or gluten-free)

½ cup cornmeal

1 tablespoon ground flax seed

1 tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes

1 tablespoon sage, dried

½ teaspoon thyme, dried

1 tablespoon mild miso paste (optional)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons vegetable broth

1 teaspoon garlic powder

¼ cup dried lentils

¾ cup breadcrumbs

1 tablespoon ground flax seed

½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ cup vegan Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons Vegan butter (aka, Earth Balance), melted

1 tablespoon soy milk

¾ cup vegan mozzarella cheese

1 cup marinara

cooking spray

These are the instructions for this version of the recipe:

Heat oven to 400° F. Coat a large baking pan with vegetable spray.

Add the chickpeas and the chopped onion to a food processor and pulse for several seconds.

Add to the food processor, the flour, cornmeal, nutritional yeast flakes, sage, thyme, miso paste, vegetable oil, vegetable broth, and garlic powder. Pulse for several more seconds until everything looks good and mushy. That’s right, this recipe is going to be messy. But I promise, it will be worth it!

Place the 1/4 cup of dried lentils in a grinder (we use a coffee grinder) and pulse for several seconds until the lentils resemble flour. Set aside.

Next, you’re going to create a dipping station. So get out 2 wide bowls or plates. In the first one combine the ground lentils, breadcrumbs, flax seed meal, salt, and vegan parmesan (you can substitute nutritional yeast flakes if you don’t have any vegan parmesan).

In the second bowl or plate, melt the vegan butter and add the soy milk. Stir until a little combined.

Now, grab a handful of the chickpea mixture and form into something that looks like a patty. Lightly brush the top side of your patty with the vegan butter mixture, then place it buttered side down into the breadcrumb mixture. Yes, this will get messy, but all the best things in life do. Brush some additional vegan butter mixture on the top of the patty and sprinkle some breadcrumbs on top to coat it. Carefully place the breaded chickpea patty on your prepared baking sheet. Here is where you can reshape the patty to make it more oval. Repeat these steps with the remaining patties.

Lightly spray each patty with a little more vegetable cooking spray. Then place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Then remove the pan from the oven and turn each patty over and bake for another 10 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven (again) and spoon marinara sauce over each breaded chickpea patty and top with shredded vegan mozzarella cheese.

Turn the heat up to 450° F and bake the patties for at least 5 more minutes, or until the vegan cheese is melted.
Serve over pasta

Nutrition