close

Want more recipes?

Try Forks Meal Planner and get hundreds of whole-food, plant-based recipes at your fingertips.

4.7
description
START A FREE TRIAL
More than a recipe box.

Get grocery lists, meal prep guides, and more with Forks Meal Planner.

 GET YOUR FREE PLAN
  • Prep-time: / Ready In:
  • Makes 20 sticks
  • print/save recipe

A hearty mixture of chickpeas, butternut squash, and rice forms the base of this plant-based take on a lunchroom classic, and the bread crumb coating adds a satisfying crunch. These vegan mozzarella sticks make for a kid-friendly side dish that adults will have a hard time resisting. For best results, dry the squash, chickpeas, and rice in a hot oven as directed here. Too much moisture will prevent the sticks from holding together when dipping.

Recipe from Forks Over Knives Family

By Darshana Thacker Wendel,

Ingredients

  • 1 cup 1-inch pieces peeled butternut squash
  • 1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup cooked brown rice
  • ¼ cup finely chopped onion
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • 1½ teaspoons finely snipped fresh sage
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ cup panko or fine dry bread crumbs
  • Ketchup for dipping

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 15x10-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
  2. Place squash in a steamer basket in a large saucepan. Add water to saucepan to just below basket. Bring to boiling. Cover pan and steam squash 5 to 7 minutes or until tender. Place steamed squash, chickpeas, and cooked rice in the prepared baking pan. Bake 20 minutes; cool completely.
  3. In a food processor combine squash, chickpeas, rice, and the next six ingredients (through garlic). Cover and process until well mixed. (Or mash with a potato masher.) Season with salt and pepper.
  4. Place bread crumbs in a shallow dish. Using about 1 tablespoon of the squash mixture, shape into a 3-inch-long rectangle (½ inch thick). Roll in bread crumbs to coat, and place in baking pan. Repeat with the remaining squash mixture and crumbs.
  5. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve warm with ketchup or desired dipping sauce.
(1)
1 Comments

Comments (1)

(4 from 1 votes)
Your Rating has been added Your Comment has been added
Add a Comment and/or Rating
Leave a Reply
Recipe Rating
Please provide a rating
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
You need to provide a comment or rating to submit
Stephanie Cavallaro9 months ago
Reply
Do you want to report this comment as inappropriate?

Very flavorful and easy to put together. I would recommend making 10 sticks instead of 20 as the coating overtakes the flavor a bit.
Also I made mine by first pressing the mixture into a rectangle, then cutting it into the 10 sticks. It was much easier to portion control. Probably will make again.

Healthy eatingshouldn't be a hassle

With weekly meal plans, Forks Meal Planner takes the hard work out of making nutritious meals the whole family will enjoy.

Get meal planner

Learn how to cookplant-based meals at home

Forks Over Knives’ online cooking course will help you learn new techniques, flavors, and skills to live your very best life.

Join the course
Headshot of Darshana Thacker
about the author

Darshana Thacker Wendel

Darshana Thacker Wendel is a whole-food, plant-based chef and former culinary projects manager for Forks Over Knives. A graduate of the Natural Gourmet Institute, she is the author of Forks Over Knives: Flavor! She created the recipes for Forks Over Knives Family and was a lead recipe contributor to the New York Times bestseller The Forks Over Knives Plan. Her recipes have been published in The Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cookbook, Forks Over Knives—The Cookbook, Forks Over Knives: The Plant-Based Way to Health, and LA Yoga magazine online. Visit DarshanasKitchen.com and follow her on Instagram for more.

see more from this author
Forks Meal Planner Free Plan
Free download

Free 5-Day Meal Plan!

Get a taste for healthy, fuss-free meal planning with this free five-day meal plan from Forks Meal Planner!

More from Forks Over Knives

Join our mailing list

Get free recipes and the latest info on living a happy, healthy plant-based lifestyle.

Copy link
CopyCopied
Powered by Social Snap