Elgin Street Diner

1. To make the vegetable stock, chop onion, carrots, celery, and green onions. Heat oil in a large pot over high heat, add vegetables, garlic, and herbs, and cook 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add salt and water, bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 1 hour. Strain, reserving liquid and discarding vegetables. Simmer the reserved liquid for about 1 hour to reduce to 4 cups (1 L). Reserve 2 cups (500 mL) of the vegetable stock to make the gravy, and freeze the rest for another use. 2. To make the gravy, add dried mushrooms to boiling water and steep about 10 minutes, or until water is dark brown. Drain, reserving liquid. (Mushrooms may be discarded or chopped fine to add to gravy later.) 3. Melt butter with oil in a medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking, until it darkens and turns thick. (The colour of the roux will help determine the colour of the finished gravy.) Whisk in mushroom liquid and 2 cups of vegetable stock. Gently simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent clumps and scorching. Season to taste with salt, pepper.

1. In a large pot or deep-frying appliance, heat oil to 325 degreesF (160 degreesC). In small batches, carefully fry potatoes just until they soften but are not browned. Remove from oil and cool on counter for about 11/2 hours. 2. Once potatoes are cooled to room temperature, heat oil to 365 degreesF (185 degreesC). In small batches, fry the blanched potatoes until crisp and golden. 3. Place fries on plates; top with curds and then gravy. Variations: Additional toppings may include chopped smoked meat, any type of grated cheese, bacon, fried onions. Fries may also be topped with Elgin Street Diner Chili (recipe, page E3) and curds.