Dad's Special Rice Dish

My father sometimes would make a rice dish at night when I was a kid that I really liked.  It was made from a box of chicken flavored rice, a couple of stalks of diced celery and about 1/2 cup of Jimmy Dean Sausage.  It was something he didn't make often but I distinctly think of it as something he made as a late night snack (between dinner and bedtime) and if the smell brought me into the kitchen he would invite me to grab a plate and have some.  I considered it a nice little treat.
Now I think of it as a comfort, especially since his passing last February and that darn anniversary is approaching.
I would like to make a version of this that doesn't use Jimmy Dean sausage or rice flavored with chicken stock but that has the same essence of comfort and time spent with Dad.

Recipe for Plant-based Special Rice

2 cups brown rice
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
3 stalks celery, diced
1/2 cup vegan sausage, crumbled
1 teaspoon vegan bouillon, "not-chicken" flavored
Pinch each of granulated garlic, pepper, dried parsley & rubbed sage

Simmer rice in water and broth until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 40 minutes.  Add the vegan sausage, celery, bouillon and herbs.  Simmer another 3 or 4 minutes until the celery is hot but not discolored.

Makes 4 comfort servings.

I think Dad would have like to listen to "Still, Still, Still" performed on cello by Steven Sharp Nelson (featuring Marshall McDonald), I know I do.