Biscuits & Gravy

Biscuits & Gravy

Ahh…breakfast.  I love the wonderful aroma of coffee slowly rolling through the house on an early morning.   Or that unique slightly burnt toast fragrance, which always reminds me of my grandparents’ house in central Wisconsin.  And who doesn’t enjoy the smoky, savory smell of bacon on a lazy Saturday morning (aside from vegans and vegetarians)? 

Growing up, most of my weekday breakfasts consisted of cold cereal, toast, or maybe a Pop-Tart.   On occasion, my family and I would also enjoy a nut or fruit kringle (a Danish pastry), which are for some reason, made in Racine, WI (a city located in between Milwaukee and Chicago with a strong Danish heritage).  On the weekends, my mom made pancakes, French toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, or cinnamon rolls.  I always looked forward to waking up to the smell of bacon.  Yum.

Today, I still love to cook up a big, American-style breakfast on the weekends.  My go-to is a combination of roasted baby red potatoes, over-easy fried eggs, and thick-cut bacon or spicy sausage patties.  When Rachel makes breakfast, she goes for sweet...cooking up pancakes or French toast.

Most recently, I had an urge to cook up another American breakfast dish, particularly popular in the South: Biscuits & Gravy.  This classic dish consists of a hearty plate of buttermilk biscuits (see my previous post for the biscuits recipe) topped with a creamy, slightly spicy, sausage gravy.  

Biscuits & Gravy, with pears and hard-boiled eggs

Cooking the gravy

It’s not too hard to cook either, with the gravy recipe greatly resembling a béchamel sauce.  All it requires is a little patience and the steady stirring of the gravy in the pot.  Over the 25-30 minutes of simmering, the milk, onions, and sausage thicken into a delicious, creamy gravy.  For a little extra kick, add a dash of cayenne pepper or use a spicier pork sausage.  

I could not find the origin of the recipe.  There’s a non-cited claim on Wikipedia stating it was first cooked in Green Bay, Wisconsin.  With the popularity of sausage in the German-rooted state of Wisconsin, it’s definitely possible.  Wherever Biscuits & Gravy came from, I’m happy she or he decided to mix sausage, biscuits, and creamy sauce.

Enjoy!

Biscuits & Gravy

Serves 4-6 people

Ingredients:

1 T. butter

½ cup Vidalia onion, diced

1 lb. breakfast pork sausage

¼ cup flour

3 ½ cups 1% to 2% milk

4 to 5 medium sage leaves, finely chopped

Dash of cayenne

Salt and pepper to taste

*1 tsp corn starch mixed with 1 T. warm water (optional – see note)

8 to 12 buttermilk biscuits (about 2 per person), cut in half

Directions:

1. Heat pan to medium, add butter

2. Once melted, add onions, salt, & pepper, and stir

3. Sauté for 5-7 minutes, or until onions soften and turn translucent

4. Add sausage, breaking it up as it cooks through, into very small pieces

5. Once sausage is browned, add flour, stirring well to mix it into the onion-sausage mixture

6. Let cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring to prevent burning

7. Add milk, sage, and cayenne

8. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low

9. Simmer for 25-35 minutes, stirring constantly, reducing by about half, or until you reach your desired thickness

10. Cut open warmed biscuits, and spoon a generous serving of the gravy on top

*If you are in a rush or desire an even thicker gravy, add the corn starch mixture