Gravy Train

I heard a horrible statement on television last night. I feel it my duty to right the wrong. Some woman said that making gravy for the holiday meal was on of the hardest and most time consuming aspect of the meal. AAAAAAFFFFFGGGGGGHHHHHH

Gravy is silly easy to make. So easy, I shall give you multiple options

If you roast a bird and have pan drippings:

Earlier in the day, make a paste of equal parts softened butter and flour. I also like to add a bit of poultry seasoning to the paste.

After you remove your roasted bird to a cutting board or platter to rest before carving, either put your roasting pan over a burner or put a sauce pan on a burner. Over medium to med./high heat - drop a couple o tablespoons of the paste into the pan. Let the butter completely melt, stir it around to keep it from burning - and let the flour cook a bit. If you are making this in the roasting pan, use a wooden spoon to scrape up the lovely bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Add in extra broth, wine, cider, water or what ever combination you like to make the gravy rich and enough. If you are making sauce pan, cook the paste a bit to get rid of the raw flour taste - then add in the pan drippings and enough broth, etc to make a couple of cups. Season with poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, etc to your tastes.

If you aren't roasting a bird, but just are in the mood for gravy (I won't ask, please don't tell me what you intend to do with the gravy) here's what you do.

over med/high heat, drop a couple o tablespoons of butter in a saucepan and equal amount of flour. Cook it for a few minutes -- not letting it burn, but getting rid of the raw taste (do this a couple of times, and you'll get the hang of it. Then add a couple cups of liquid. I personally like broth -- but you can add in a bit of wine or fruit juice. Experiment with amounts until you develop a taste for what you like. Season with salt/pepper/whatever seasoning you like.

Personally, when I roast a turkey - I like to pop a quartered onion and a quartered apple in the cavity. The resulting pan juices are a little sweet and tasty. I use both broth and a little apple cider for the liquids. Sometimes I'll slug a bit of wine in too.

Generally, one tablespoon of butter and flour (each) will thicken about a cup of liquid. Multiply as your gravy needs require.

Now, as an added little aside: white sauce. If you do the butter/flour thing - and add milk instead of broth/juice/wine you'll make White Sauce. Add a couple of handfuls of grated cheese to the white sauce, and you have the makings of great homemade mac and cheese --- or a cheese sauce you can use as the base for nachos or cheese sauce for broccoli/cauliflower so kids will eat them. Who doesn't like cheese sauce? To season the white sauce - add a bit of nutmeg and salt and pepper. For mac and cheese, think about adding a little dry mustard and red pepper. You can use what ever cheese you like. For nachos, use pepper jack and cheddar. For veggies, use cheddar.