Technicolor dining: tahini

The recent celebration of National Cashew Day nudged me to retrieve a favorite recipe featuring cashews, Carrot and Cashew Nut roast. I first made this recipe in the late 1990's when I was a practicing lacto-ovo vegetarian (I consumed eggs and milk, but no animal flesh). I like the recipe because the ingredients are easy to find and the roast can be frozen before or after cooking.

The ingredients:

2 medium onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 medium carrots, cooked (retain cooking water)
1 1/2 cups cashew nuts
2 cups whole wheat bread crumbs ( I've used regular bread crumbs too)
1 tablespoon tahini
1 1/2 teaspoons caraway seeds
1 tablespoon yeast extract (marmite)
1/2 lemon, juice of
1/3 cup water or stock from cooked carrots
salt & pepper,to taste

My steps:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Grease 2lb loaf pan. Set aside.
Measure out all the dry ingredients and a set aside in bowls. I suggest putting the breadcrumbs in a large bowl because the other ingredients will be mixed with the breadcrumbs.
Wash the carrots and cut the ends of the carrots off, discard. I boil the carrots over low to medium heat. I have read that others steam the carrots. It is important that the carrots be soft because the will be mashed.
Grind the cashew nuts in a food processor or a coffee bean grinder. When I first made this recipe I didn't have a food processor. The coffee bean grinder was a less expensive alternative, but meant that the cashews had to be ground in several batches.
Chop onions
Chop garlic. My friend Ally gave me this wonderful a few months ago - it comes in handy!
I use the tablespoon of olive oil to cook the onion and garlic on medium -low heat. I want the onion to be translucent in color
Remove carrots from heat and mash in a separate bowl
Add carrots, onions, cashews, yeast extract, lemon juice, and remaining dry ingredients to breadcrumbs. Add water/stock to mixture so ingredients are well combined.
Move mixture to loaf pan. Press mixture into loaf pan
Place loaf pan in oven. Bake for 1 hour.
After removing loaf pan from oven, let the pan sit for 10 -15 minutes before cutting or unmolding.