Get-ahead recipes for vegan porcini and root veg gravy and a flavour-packed stuffing
Anna Jones
Fri 21 Dec 2018 12.00 GMT
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I try to get ahead on a few of the things that take a little more time at Christmas, to leave both my head and oven a bit freer. A few days before, I make this vegan gravy flavoured with dried porcini and roast root veg for a silky texture and a hint of sweetness. The stuffing – also vegan – is flavour-packed, with fruitiness from apricots, smoky crunch from charred sourdough and depth from roast onions. This gravy freezes really well, so can be made up to three months ahead; simply defrost and reheat. I use a mixture of root veg (whatever I have around), but remember that if you use squash, you will end up with a slightly orange-hued gravy, which will taste delicious but perhaps look a little less traditional. If you can’t get porcini, use two tablespoons of brown miso in one litre of water. Prep 30 minDay-ahead porcini and root veg gravy
Cook 1 hr 10 min
Serves 8
120g chestnut mushrooms Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/gas 6. Toss the mushrooms, celery, shallots, root veg, herbs and garlic in two tablespoons of the olive oil in a large roasting tray. Season generously and roast for 40 minutes, until the veg is soft and mashable. Use a potato masher to crush the veg and set aside.
2 sticks celery, roughly chopped
2 banana shallots or one onion, quartered
200g root veg (squash, parsnip, sweet potato or carrot)
4 sprigs thyme
2 sprigs rosemary
2 garlic cloves, left whole in their skins
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and black pepper
3 tbsp porcini mushrooms, soaked in 1 litre boiled water for 30 minutes
2 tbsp plain flour
300ml red wine
1 ½ tbsp red wine vinegar
Heat the remaining oil in a pan, add the flour and fry for four minutes, until biscuit-brown. Slowly add the porcini stock, strained through a fine sieve to catch any grit, reserving the mushrooms, and stir through until the stock has thickened. Stir in the mushrooms and mashed veg, stir in the wine and vinegar, bring to a boil, then simmer for 25 minutes.
Pass through a sieve until you have a smooth, thick gravy. Add water to loosen, if needed, and season well before serving.
Speedy vegan stuffing
Instead of making this stuffing into a traybake as below, you could roll it into balls, toss them in a little olive oil and bake for 15 minutes, until golden.
Prep 15 min 4 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing
Cook 1 hr
Serves 8-10
2 red onions, finely chopped
3 sage leaves, shredded, plus extra to top
1 sprig thyme, leaves only, plus extra leaves to top
1 sprig rosemary, leaves chopped
Salt and black pepper
1 large garlic clove, peeled and finely chopped
100g mixed nuts (50g pecans, 25g blanched almonds, 25g blanched hazelnuts, plus an extra handful for the top)
6 chunky slices stale sourdough (275g)
Zest of 1 lemon
10 dried apricots, finely sliced
150g cooked chestnuts
250ml oat milk
Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6 and grease a 1.5-litre ovenproof dish. Heat a generous glug of the oil in a wide pan, and fry the onion, herbs and a pinch each of salt and pepper for 20 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic for the final minute. Meanwhile, roast the nuts in the oven for 10 minutes, until golden. Char the bread in the toaster or under the grill – the slices need to be slightly blackened. Tip the onion mix, nuts and toast into a food processor along with the zest, apricots, half the chestnuts and a generous pinch each of salt and pepper. Pulse until you have rough crumbs – it’s lovely to have chunks here and there. Transfer to a bowl.
Blitz the remaining chestnuts in the emptied food processor with the oat milk and two tablespoons of oil, until you have a smooth puree. Stir this through the crumb and spoon into the prepared dish. Brush the top with the remaining oil, scatter over extra nuts, sage and thyme, and bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden.
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Topics
- Food
- The modern cook
- Vegetables
- Christmas food and drink 2018
- Christmas
- Side dishes
- Christmas food and drink
- features
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