"Please, sir, I want some more." Made famous by Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, gruel, is a watery thin type of porridge typically eaten by the poor working class during the Industrial Revolution. Gruel is probably the starkest culinary statement next to "stone soup".

Now, here's a true story of when gruel gets gruesome.

Day 1, October 26, 2007

It was the first really cold day in October and my husband requested a pot of my famous vegetable soup for supper.

I checked the pantries and we were very low on provisions: not much more than some potatoes, carrots and onions; barley, rice, corn and lentils. Somehow I had to make that work... maybe enough to stretch out for a few meals.

First, I chopped up the veggies, sauteed an onion, and threw everything in a large pot - heavy on the corn, rice and lentils - with several quarts of water and some seasoning (parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, of course). Then after everything was at a rolling boil, I whisked in a dash of flour to thicken the broth and set the pot to simmer till done.

Hmmm, it smelled pretty good. That evening, we dined on the soup and bread. Not bad. Into the fridge with the leftovers!

Day 2, October 27, 2007

I reheated the soup, taking care to add a little more water to "stretch it out". A little extra salt and not bad! "More" leftovers though, for the fridge!

Day 3, October 28, 2007

When will this soup ever stop stretching? Not one to waste food, I had a large bowl for breakfast (yeah, I should've known better!). Having sopped up the broth with a thick slice of bread, my belly was bloated all day. Still, some leftovers!

Day 4, October 29, 2007

My brave husband checks the fridge and and asks if the soup is still good? I suggest he sample some. One sniff was all it took. We kidded around about Dickens' gruel. Not one to waste food either, he suggested I heat some up for the dog. "No." I replied, "That would conflict with his well balanced kibbles! I'll throw the stuff out later." Later never came.

Day 5, October 30, 2007

Too busy keyboarding on my laptop to remember to clean out the fridge, my pot of mystery gruel began morphing into something far too interesting to throw out. I swear it smiled at me when I lifted the lid. It even sported a hint of "peach fuzz", a distinct mammalian characteristic! Not one to part an emerging higher life with its native habitat, I popped it back into the fridge. I'll at least wait till tomorrow to release it out in the wild; maybe it'll be able to survive on its own by then... if tomorrow ever comes. Anyone want MORE?

Day 6, October 31, 2007

Happy Halloween!

Reference:

Oliver Twist Asks for More
http://www.fidnet.com/~dap1955 /dickens/twist_more. html

Learn more about this author, Violet Fortune.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

---

Add your voice

Know something about The many faces of gruel?
We want to hear your view. Write now!