This holiday season, why not forego the traditional ham and turkey that Big Christmas says you have to eat, and instead serve your family a delicious holiday classic of yesteryear: Gruel!
People don’t think about Gruel too often these days, so when a friend mentioned the other day that she knew a guy in college who had offered it to her for dinner, I was taken aback. Upon further questioning it was revealed that this friend of hers was not a character from a Dickens novel, nor had he mistaken her for some sort of orphan, hobbling around on a makeshift crutch. He was actually eating Gruel in the 21st century.
Maybe I was wrong about Gruel. Perhaps popular culture and the unappealing name had led me astray. I consulted wikipedia which informed me that:
Gruel is a type of preparation consisting of some type of cereal, wheat or rye flour, and also rice, boiled in water or milk.
A type of preparation! Perhaps a warning to apply my keyboard’s Drool Shield before reading was in order!
IMPORTANT CLARIFICATION: Please keep in mind, however, that as you are preparing gruel for the entire family this year, that you don’t mistakenly serve up San Francisco attorney Steve Gruel:
The results, while well coiffed and competent in the courtroom, may not be what you expect.
30 responses so far ↓
1 Laura on Dec 16, 2008 at 11:43 am
I prefer Ghoulash. Or Delicious Ca-
THE CAKE IS A LIE.
THE CAKE IS A LIE.
THE CAKE IS A LIE.
2 Ariel on Dec 16, 2008 at 11:48 am
I LOVE steel cut oats. mmmmmmmm
3 James Shearhart on Dec 16, 2008 at 11:53 am
Gruel Shoes by Steve Martin.
4 Nick Fechter on Dec 16, 2008 at 11:57 am
Oh man! If only I had read the last part of this post before preparing my gruel themed christmas dinner!
Oh well, hopefully they’ll just think it’s a goose or something…..
5 Tim on Dec 16, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Just to clarify–does Steve Gruel consist of anything more than some type of cereal, wheat or rye flour, and also rice, boiled in water or milk?
He doesn’t look like much more than that, but I would expect some level of Consort For Men hairspray, as well as a dash of English Leather cologne.
—Tim
6 gammer73 on Dec 16, 2008 at 12:30 pm
A quick Google image search of “Gruel” turned up a couple neat Chinglish Pics:
Do the Chinese like “Gruel”?
7 Onil on Dec 16, 2008 at 1:07 pm
It looks like Joey Buttofuoco’s doing pretty well for himself these days.
8 RemmieBarrow on Dec 16, 2008 at 1:36 pm
Please Sir, may I have some more?
9 jason on Dec 16, 2008 at 2:29 pm
Is gruel the same as grits? I live here by Houston, and many places serve grits, which tastes similar to eating buttery dirt. I have no idea why it’s so popular.
10 Nick Fechter on Dec 16, 2008 at 2:59 pm
MOOOOOOOOOOOORE!!!?
11 NanoRiffite on Dec 16, 2008 at 3:21 pm
Isn’t it like the “Cream of Wheat” cereal?
12 Girl Raised In The South (mstmompj) on Dec 16, 2008 at 3:34 pm
Hey, we’re having grits for dinner at my house (35 miles NW of Houston) tonight. Garlic cheese grits, actually.
Grits are especially good with bacon as well. Or if you’re feeling up for something posh, shrimp, cream, and spinach make for tasty additions to suppertime grits. But butter and salt on grits for breakfast, mmmm!
So in conclusion, grits!
13 Anthony on Dec 16, 2008 at 4:17 pm
I like grits. That’s gruel like, I guess. But with cheese and pepper and salt. Yum.
14 Nick Fechter on Dec 16, 2008 at 4:51 pm
To get off the gruel subject for a moment, I’ve got a story to tell you guys (trust me, your gonna love it!)
Today I just found out that I won the Literary Contest that I entered with my poem “Lost in Faith”.
I found out after my English teacher played a message that was left on his phone where the person who spoke on the message mispronounced my name as “Nick Fickle” (grrrrrrrr….)
But here’s the kicker! The poem that I wrote was poem that explained my agonostic views on spirituality (not to offend any other religious people on this blog……seriously, please don’t yell at me)
Anywhoo, because I won this contest my grandparents will probably find out and read it, who I might add are very religious and are waiting for the day that I enter confirmation class at my local catholic church (which I don’t plan on doing)
And when they find out they’ll probably get seriously pissed off and try to exercise the demon from my body (not saying they’d actually do that, just using hyperbole to make a point….at least I hope they won’t do it)
Looks like I’m in store for a great holiday!
BREAK OUT THE GRUEL!!!
15 Houndstooth Mind on Dec 16, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Since I’m betting rice boiled in water is pretty darn common in China, I’d say yup they like it plenty! But that’s just my uneducated guess.
16 Nihilisto on Dec 16, 2008 at 5:02 pm
Grueling.
17 Nick Fechter on Dec 16, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Exactly
18 RemmieBarrow on Dec 16, 2008 at 5:48 pm
Yes, MOOOOOOOORE!!!!!!!!
19 Nick Fechter on Dec 16, 2008 at 5:51 pm
Well…..no!
20 Adam on Dec 16, 2008 at 5:51 pm
I’m Dr. Steve Gruel. For your health!
21 Brian O. on Dec 17, 2008 at 12:18 am
I’ll just stick with the undercooked bit of beef and howling at the resulting hallucinations, thanks.
22 Brian O. on Dec 17, 2008 at 12:18 am
Do you host Gruel’s Cluels?
23 Brian O. on Dec 17, 2008 at 12:19 am
Great. First soup nazis, NOW gruel nazis!
24 NavarezElectro on Dec 17, 2008 at 6:02 am
Don’t be gruel…
25 Auntie Maim on Dec 17, 2008 at 11:14 am
Mmmm, I may just switch over from porridge!
26 R.A. Roth on Dec 17, 2008 at 11:16 am
A blog about gruel? That’s pretty thin gruel.
Randy
27 Nick Fechter on Dec 17, 2008 at 12:41 pm
And without porridge, you don’t have to worry about some dumb blond sleepin’ in your house after she broke in and ate all of your food!
28 Brian O. on Dec 17, 2008 at 1:46 pm
This subject is grueling, I tells ya, GRUELING!
29 camcat on Dec 19, 2008 at 4:55 pm
Actually, I was fed gruel in hospital once and have never forgotten. It tasted like oatmeal with all the oats removed. No sugar, butter or milk, either. I’ll take fried catfish and cheese-grits any day over that crap. But if you took the removed oats (paste) you could probably sculpt any food product facsimile you’d like.
30 フィンペシア on Oct 15, 2011 at 8:23 am
983
性交痛 原因
性交痛 ゼリー
カンジダ性亀頭包皮炎 ラミシールクリーム
Leave a Comment