The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

I n sticking with this Thanksgiving theme, I'm talking gravy - real homemade from scratch gravy. Please, I beg of you - don't buy that stuff in a can or in that packet! That's not gravy - it's salty paste with fake chicken flavor- ing for goodness sake. You can re-sole you shoes with that canned stuff and the powder in the packet? You can fine sand your cabinetry with it! Considering how easy it is to make great gravy you should never EVER buy that stuff again.

So how do you make great homemade gravy? Well sit down here by the fire and I'll tell you!

What you want to do - and I know this is more time consuming that opening a can or a packet but bear with me because the results are worth it!

First, put a pot of water on - about eight cups, because a cup-to-cup roux is a lot to work with. Here's where you get to cheat a little. Get a jar of that chicken (or turkey if they have it) bouillon called "better than bouillon" and whisk one heaping teaspoon of the stuff into the water and let it thoroughly dissolve. Do not follow their instructions - they recommend using way too much. Remember, you can al- ways add more to taste but this is powerful and concentrated stuff and you can always add to your bouillon. If you have your own homemade chicken or turkey stock - by all means use that instead!

To the pot of stock add a bay leaf, two teaspoons of fine ground white pepper (black will work if you don't have any white), a pinch of thyme, 3 whole cloves, a ¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg and one teaspoon of fresh ground cumin. Next up is you'll want to add all the scrapings from the turkey pan into the stock - assuming of course that you've roasted your turkey in the traditional manner. Simmer the stock on medium while you start your roux.

Roux is simply a base starch of butter and flour. I make a lot of gravy because more is better when it comes to gravy, right? Make the roux by using equal amounts or butter and all-purpose flour. Melt one cup of butter on medium low heat in a large, deep sauté pan. When the butter is fully melted, slowly whisk in one cup of flour so that it is completely and smoothly incorporated into the butter. The objective here is to cook the flour but not too much. Turn the heat down a touch and slowly whisk the flour for about 15 to 20 minutes until you smell a nice nutty aroma and the flower has turned golden -but not dark. If you wind up with dark brown flour you'll have to start over.

When your roux is ready turn the heat down to low, strain your stock and start whisking it into the roux. Note: You'll need to keep adding stock as it will thicken quickly. Sante!