I present to you…
Healthy. Winter. Cozy. Comfort. Food.
For you.
And me.
And mah belly.
Am I the only one who occasionally screams Get in mah belly a la Austin Powers before I eat a good meal?
I thought so.
Let’s talk go-to meals. What are yours? Lately mine are big vegan bowls made up with a base of grains, sautéed vegetables/protein, and a tasty sauce to tie it all together. I can thank Fresh restaurant for my little obsession with bowls. I like to make them at home for a fraction of the cost. There’s just something so satisfying about digging into a huge bowl with a seemingly bottomless pit, isn’t there? Plus, bowls can be changed up countless ways, so you never get bored. Although, I could probably eat the same combo for a few weeks straight without blinking an eye…
During the winter I tend to crave hot, stick-to-your-ribs bowls and in the summer I crave cold, lighter bowls. This is a stick-to-your-ribs kinda bowl…the bowl you make when your house is frigid and no matter how many layers you have on, you can’t shake the chill from your bones. That kind of night calls for a gravy bowl.
And guess what? It just happens to be good for you.
For the base, I used fluffy millet. This is different from the scorched millet which was my first attempt. Fluffy millet is also different from the overcooked mushy millet which was my second attempt. When you don’t forget to set the timer and leave the room, it’s light and fluffy like quinoa, but heartier and denser, in a stick-to-your-ribs kind of way that is perfect for the colder months. If millet isn’t your thing, you can easily change up the grain. Quinoa, rice, barley, noodles, etc would all work well here.
I topped the millet with a healthy but rich mushroom gravy and kale for a pop of super power. Easy but fabulous.
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Cozy Millet Bowl with Mushroom Gravy and Kale
Yield
2 servings
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Feeling cozy? Snuggle up with this comforting bowl of vegan goodness. The dish feels rich without the heaviness that usually comes with traditional gravy.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup uncooked millet (makes ~2 cups cooked)
- 1/2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups chopped sweet onion (1 medium onion)
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 cups sliced crimini mushrooms (300 grams)
- 1.5 tbsp minced fresh rosemary
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1.5 tbsp low-sodium tamari (soy sauce)
- 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 & 1/4 cup vegetable broth
- 1 cup fresh chopped kale, stems removed
- Freshly ground black pepper & kosher salt, to taste
Directions
- Toast millet (optional): In a pot or skillet with a lid, toast the millet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until it starts popping. Be careful you don’t burn it. The goal here is a light toast. Remove from heat. Cook millet: Bring a medium-sized pot of 1 cup water, a pinch of salt, and 1/2 cup uncooked millet to a low boil. Reduce heat to low and cover with tight-fitting lid (with no air holes). Simmer for 15-20 minutes or so. Remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes covered. Remove lid and fluff with fork. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, grab a large skillet and heat oil over medium heat. Add in chopped onions and garlic and sauté for about 5 minutes.
- Add the sliced mushrooms and sauté for about 12 minutes longer, stirring as necessary. Now stir in the rosemary, nutritional yeast, and tamari. Cook for a few minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the broth and cornstarch until clumps are gone, and then stir into the mushroom mixture. Stir in kale. Cook for another 5-6 minutes or so, until slightly thickened. Portion millet into two bowls and serve the mushroom gravy on top.
Tip:
This mushroom gravy just screams comfort food. Check out this deliciousness…
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)Approx Nutritional Info (per serving, serves 2): 355 kcals, 4 grams fat, 63 grams carbs, 11 grams fibre, 6 grams sugar, 16 grams protein.
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This mushroom gravy just screams comfort food. Check out this deliciousness…
If I didn’t have any millet, I would’ve happily enjoyed this gravy all on it’s own. :)
Divide the millet into two bowls and then pour on the gravy mixture on top. That’s all there is to it.
Hi Angela,
Happy New Year! Wishing you lots of love, happiness and success for this new year :)
I made your mushroom gravy for dinner tonight and it was wonderful! I made a few changes with what I had on hand and it was still amazing amazing.
In case anyone is wondering or needs to make the same changes:
I used spinach instead of kale, water instead of veggie broth, arrowroot in place of cornstarch, regular tamari, and used less rosemary.
Thank you for all your hard work!
Thank you for this wonderful recipe. It’s a go-to! I’ve made this 3 or 4 times now. I altered it a bit after the first batch, made with fresh rosemary, was too intensely rosemary-ish for my taste. I used quinoa, as others did, since I had it on hand. I tried mixed dried “Italian herbs” rather than fresh rosemary the last few times and really like it this way. It doesn’t seem as if veggie broth is absolutely necessary – water can work fine. I also don’t add any salt since I seem to get enough for my taste from the soy sauce and the broth.
Question: what’s your take on homemade vegan cheeses? I was given a cookbook as a gift and it contains many recipes that use these (usually cashew-based) but is it worth the work? Cheese is the one food I find myself missing, and I do crave things like lasagna…
I appreciate that your recipes are practical and use easy-to-find ingredients. I’m very happy to have found your blog!
Ive made this twice in the past week already !! ADDICTED!
Lol at the get in mah belly comment… I hadn’t heard that one before but now it’s stuck in my head :p You have a great writing style, great sense of humour :) Inspiring me to start my own blog someday!
this looks really delicious! i was wondering if you can also make two portions and eat one today and the other one the next day for lunch at work? or doesn’t it taste good when it’s cold?
The first time I made this recipe, I tried using millet. I had never used millet before. It was mushy and sticky. Tonight, I used red quinoa and it was amazing! I love this recipe and will be making it throughout the winter. Thank you Angela, for another awesome dinner recipe :~)
Hi Angela, I made this earlier this week, with half chanterelle mushrooms and half cremini, and it turned out great ! I had it with overcooked mushy millet but well, I’ll try again and I’ll hopefully manage fluffy millet next time. Your easy and delicious vegan recipes keep me happy and well-fed in the land of cheese and meat! And they never, ever fail to impress my meat-eating guests.
I made this tonight with quinoa instead of millet (I was too lazy to do all the prep for it), and it was delicious! the perfect belly-warmer for this Ontario winter that will never end ;)
(P.S- this was the first recipe I have made off your site. You have a new fan!)
So glad you enjoyed it Melissa! Thanks for your feedback.
I don’t know why but I really enjoyed making this meal. Actually I enjoy making many of your recipes. I think it’s because you use real ingredients. Chopping the onions, slicing the mushrooms, ripping the kale…for some reason it wasn’t a chore tonight. I’m trying to transition from my hard anodized cookware to my stainless steel all-clad set and this was one that I didn’t burn. For whatever reason, I kinda felt like a pro, even though it was a simple recipe. So thank you very much for this recipe – it was delicious and nutritious and my one year old daughter L-O-V-E-D it! Clearly I also enjoyed eating it!
I made this when I had two friends coming into town because it was easy to make a lot of it, and holy frickin wow was it delicious. It was such a huge success with my friends, they went back for seconds, and the next time one of them visited, they requested this dish specifically.
I had no idea what millet was before making this, and I was pleasantly surprised! I felt so healthy eating what birds eat, too. Hehe. The kale is healthy, the onions add great flavor. Also, I’m a huge sucker for mushrooms. They’re my single favorite food in the world. So I love adding as much rich types of mushrooms like baby bellas and criminis as I can.
This dish was made for me, and I it. ;]
I made this tonight and WOW! So yummy and very filling. Plenty for leftovers as well, which I love. You are amazing!
I made this last night and it was indeed excellent. My cornflour didn’t do a good job of thickening things up, but it was definitely very tasty even so. This is definitely one to do again.
By the way, I pre-ordered your book last week. :)
Does the mushroom gravy freeze well?
This gravy is super duper tasty! One question: when toasting the millet do we have to have all of it popped? I did a run through with it and after cooking it seem like all the one’s that popped cooke up nice but the ones that didn’t were still a bit hard. Thanks again for the deliciousness!
Thank you so much for this recipe! Perfect for a permanently chilly student like myself to curl up with, I love how little time it took, and the scrumptious taste of course :D I omitted the nutritional yeast as it’s hard to find in the UK, do you have any suggestions for what I could replace it with? Thanks again, keep posting amazing recipes! Lots of love from Wales <3
Amazing recipe- so simple and so so delicious! just whipped it up and it really was a comforting endless-feeling bowl!
Dear god, this gravy is AMAZING!!! I think I could drink it…It’s been quite a while since I’ve had any traditional gravy and this is so wonderfully savory! I did a double take thinking it had meat, despite having just made it myself. I missed gravy! Totally making this again ASAP, if not sooner…!! Thanks for the wonderful recipe! (also greatly enjoying your book too and constantly refilling my freezer with your soups!)
Gotta make this soon! mmmm…. goodness health.
Finally tried it! It was a cold day and I work outside so I wanted some good ole comfort food for dinner. It was soooooo good. For anyone reading this…TRY THIS RECIPE!!!!
I just made this tonight and it was awesome! Even my almost 1 year old enjoyed it. Thank you for the awesome recipe!