Monday, February 04, 2008

Chicken And Noodles With Gravy


As soon as I saw Sylvie's Chicken and Gravy Stew, I knew what I wanted for my birthday dinner. I just didn't want it with chicken. I had my doubts about trying a vegetarian version of something that really relies on good chicken stock for richness. I'm pretty certain that in a side-by-side comparison mine wouldn't pass muster. Alone though, it was exactly what I wanted. I'm willing to bet there aren't too many times a post at Soul Fusion Kitchen has inspired a vegetarian knock-off (She has me this close to trying smoked pork butt-or at the very least, buying a smoker) but it is still one of my favourite reads on the Internet. I recommend going back through the archives to drool over tamales and Christmas cookies.

What I ended-up doing was making a very rich vegetable broth, heavy on carrots, onions and celery. I added my "secret" cheesecloth-bound pouch of parsley, peppercorns, thyme and a few whole cloves) along with a good-sized stem of rosemary. A couple cloves of garlic rounded it out.

Earlier this morning, I made homemade noodles and by dinnertime they were well dried.

The chicken substitute I used was made by LightLife. It was OK. I'm sure I could have made a better one myself, but I opted for convenience (heck, it is my birthday you know-and I've been on my feet since 6 AM).

I thickened some of the broth with a couple tablespoons of Wondra, some olive oil and salt and pepper. It was perfect. Exactly what I wanted perfect.

I also have enough leftover in a casserole for dinner tomorrow night-which is also, exactly what I wanted.

What more can a woman ask for on her birthday?

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