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I did a experiment in Lenten cuisine yesterday that actually came out pretty good. I know Lent isn't until March, but I wanted to try this ahead of time, as finding good meat-free dishes is a challenge for me (can't stand Mac & Cheese, don't like seafood, and veggie pizza gets boring after a while).
I started with a base recipe for a pub-style gravy that would normally be made for something like bangers & mash, except I substituted a quality veggie broth for the beef broth, and added a little butter to the pan to replace the non-existent meat drippings.
It went somethign like this:
1.5 cups veggie broth
1/2 cup red wine*
3 tbsp white flour
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp canola oil
1 large sweet onion
1 tbsp cream
salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste
I diced up the onion and sauteed it in the butter and oil (that might be too much buter and oil) over medium heat until it was nicely caramelized, then turned the heat to high and added the half-cup of red wine to deglaze the pan. Cooked that down until almost all the liquid was done, stirring occassionally, then threw in the flour and stirred vigorously until there was no white left (this creates a roux). Then I added the broth, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, brought the mixture to a boil, then turned it down to a simmer, stirring until it was thickened. I stirred in the cream when the gravy was abotu half thickened.
Since this was a test batch (albeit a large one) I tried it out on some instant mashed potatoes (didn't want to invest the time in making real mashed potatoes that might be rui9ned if the gravy was no good).
And you know, it was damned tasty. I think some real mashed potatoes with this gravy and some vegetables would make a fine meal.
*I originally used 2/3 of a cup of wine, and although that made for a good gravy, it was a touch heavy on wine flavor, so I think dialing it back to 1/2 cup would work better.
I started with a base recipe for a pub-style gravy that would normally be made for something like bangers & mash, except I substituted a quality veggie broth for the beef broth, and added a little butter to the pan to replace the non-existent meat drippings.
It went somethign like this:
1.5 cups veggie broth
1/2 cup red wine*
3 tbsp white flour
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp canola oil
1 large sweet onion
1 tbsp cream
salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste
I diced up the onion and sauteed it in the butter and oil (that might be too much buter and oil) over medium heat until it was nicely caramelized, then turned the heat to high and added the half-cup of red wine to deglaze the pan. Cooked that down until almost all the liquid was done, stirring occassionally, then threw in the flour and stirred vigorously until there was no white left (this creates a roux). Then I added the broth, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, brought the mixture to a boil, then turned it down to a simmer, stirring until it was thickened. I stirred in the cream when the gravy was abotu half thickened.
Since this was a test batch (albeit a large one) I tried it out on some instant mashed potatoes (didn't want to invest the time in making real mashed potatoes that might be rui9ned if the gravy was no good).
And you know, it was damned tasty. I think some real mashed potatoes with this gravy and some vegetables would make a fine meal.
*I originally used 2/3 of a cup of wine, and although that made for a good gravy, it was a touch heavy on wine flavor, so I think dialing it back to 1/2 cup would work better.
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