I was telling my friend, Becky, about my vegetarian gravy yesterday and she encouraged me to post the recipe.  Becky is one of my very first vegetarian friends and though I didn’t know it back when we first met, she was one of the inspiring people that–without trying–encouraged me to become a vegetarian.  She never pushed me not to eat meat.  She didn’t criticize my turkey sandwiches or tell me all of the ethical reasons I should give it a try.  She was simply healthy and had conviction about the food choices she made, which can be an even more powerful tool than steamrolling someone into giving up something that has been a foundational part of their diet for a lifetime.

Thanksgiving, to me, is all about returning home to a warm place full of family and friends, yummy food, late night games of Pinochle, crunchy leaves, crisp air and sweaters, red wine, and stuffing and cranberry sandwiches for breakfast the next day. There are also mixed feelings because of the main food choice on this lovely and non-commercial holiday: turkey.  I still call Thanksgiving “turkey day” sometimes. I have to force myself not to be sad about all of the turkeys who give up their lives to be the carved-up centerpiece on American tables.

If you don’t eat meat, it can be a difficult day to navigate.  So, below is a recipe for my veggie gravy that is as decadent as regular gravy, but completely vegetarian.  Vegan, actually, if you don’t use butter.  You can put it on stuffing, mashed potatoes, and all of the other good stuff.

Herby Onion Veggie Gravy
Ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
5 tbsp Earth Balance margarine
4 tbsp flour
1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 ½ tsp Old Bay seasoning (or use poultry seasoning if you don’t have Old Bay)
½ tsp celery salt
1 bouillon cube (hint: best bouillon ever is Rapunzel vegan vegetable bouillon with sea salt & herbs)
2 cups vegetable broth (another hint: best broth by far is Imagine organic)
1/2 cup sherry
pepper to taste

Ingredients

Melt the margarine in a medium saucepan.  Add the onion, bouillon, Old Bay, celery salt, and herbs of choice.  Keep on low heat for about 10 minutes or until the onion is really soft.  Add flour and mix until a thick paste forms.  Add the sherry, stir, and let it simmer for about 3 minutes.  Add the broth and stir, keeping it on the heat for another few minutes.  You can adjust to your desired consistency by adding more broth if you choose.  Take the gravy off the heat and add desired amount of pepper.

The prep time is about 5 minutes and the gravy itself literally takes less than 20 minutes to create.

Yum!

I hope you enjoy the gravy and have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving.