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

The Potato Salad Debate

Like a spicy homemade chili or a carefully crafted pasta sauce, potato salad is something everyone makes slightly differently.  People have made these dishes time and time again, passing recipes onto their children (and grandchildren).  This conditioning results in passionate debates of using or not using certain ingredients. 

“Oh, you need to use cider vinegar to make a good potato salad.”

“No, no…you should use white wine vinegar…it’s sweeter.  It’s better.”

“Vinegar?  Yuck.  Lemon juice is the best ingredient.  It’s not as overpowering.”

These debates can never be resolved…the loyalty to a mother’s or grandmother’s recipes is immune to challenges.  That being said…I’ll give you my recipes for potato salad.  But feel free to play with these recipes and make them your own.  Adjusting recipes to your taste is the best way to start advancing your cooking skills.  And everyone’s tastes are different, so I would encourage you to add more pepper, reduce the level of salt, or even add some new ingredient, such as paprika or fresh horseradish.

To take the idea of potato salad a bit further, I am going to touch on my favorite three variations on this classic side dish.  The first will be a traditional recipe…mayo, vinegar, potatoes, and a few other ingredients.   This variation is served chilled.  And it’s what you’ll find at almost any grocery store, restaurant, and cafe around the country.  I enjoy it at a good BBQ, with a grilled sandwich, etc. 

The second potato salad is also somewhat traditional but I’m guessing its popularity varies by region.  From my Wisconsin roots, I have come to love a well-made German potato salad, and enjoy it as an alternative to the traditional mayo-based recipe.  The German potato salad removes the mayo, but adds delicious, delicious bacon.  Yes, bacon.  Yum.  It’s frequently served warm, although it can also be served chilled.

The third variation was one that I came across at a restaurant called Plein Sud, located off Chambers Street in Tribeca (NYC).  Their brilliant chef, Ed Cotton, decided to add truffle to a traditional potato salad recipe.  Quick side note…Cotton has worked at a variety of amazing restaurants in Boston, Las Vegas, and New York, and he was the runner-up in Top Chef, Season 7.  Back to the food, the combination of the pungent truffle with the creamy, slightly tart potatoes was delicious.  I did my best to recreate the recipe at home, and it turned out very well.  It’s actually easy to make if you already have truffle salt or some other truffle flavoring in your spice cabinet.  And it’s delicious (if you like truffle that is…the flavor is a bit polarizing).  I have served it with roasted chicken or braised pork chops.

Truffles, if you're not familiar with them, are a fungus, similar to mushrooms.  They grow underground, often in wooded areas, dependent on trees for their existence.  More specifically, truffles and similar types of fungi have developed a mutually beneficial symbiotic relationship with the roots of vascular plants (i.e. trees).  Another interesting aspect of truffles is how people find them.  Hogs, and sometimes dogs, sniff the forest floor, searching for these delicious fungi.  Apparently, female hogs (sows) are naturally talented at this task since there is a chemical in truffles similar to the pheromones of the male hog (boar).  

Try one, two, or all three recipes.  And when you disagree with one of my ingredients, please, post your comment and we’ll debate it. 

Enjoy!

Traditional Potato Salad

Ingredients:

1 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes (or other potato if your choosing), cut into bite-sized pieces

¼ cup mayonnaise, or to taste

1 to 2 T white vinegar, to taste

1 tsp yellow or brown mustard

1 celery stalk, diced (optional)

1 T. parsley (optional)

Dash of cayenne (optional)

salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Boil potatoes in salted water until soft, about 15-20 minutes.  Drain.

2. In a large bowl, mix  together all ingredients, stir well.

3. Refrigerate at least an hour before serving.

German Potato Salad

Ingredients:

1 lb. baby red potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces

¼ lb. raw bacon, sliced into ¼” pieces

2 T. olive oil

2 T. white rice vinegar, or more to taste

4 T. freshly grated horseradish (optional)

¼ cup onion, minced (preferably Vidalia or red)

1 T. parsley, minced

1 tsp caraway seed

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cook bacon in medium skillet until cooked through, but not too crispy.

2. Boil potatoes in salted water until soft, about 15-20 minutes.  Drain.

3. In a large bowl, mix together the onion, olive oil, vinegar, parsley, caraway seed, and horseradish (if using).

4. Add potatoes and bacon, stir.

5. Add salt & pepper to taste, stirring well.

6. Serve warm or cold.

Truffle Potato Salad

Ingredients:

1 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes (or other potato if your choosing), cut into bite-sized pieces

¼ cup mayonnaise, or to taste

1 to 2 T white vinegar, to taste

1/2 tsp brown mustard

1 celery stalk, diced (optional)

Truffle salt, to taste (or other truffle flavoring ingredient)

Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Boil potatoes in salted water until soft, about 15-20 minutes.  Drain.

2. In a large bowl, mix  together all ingredients, stir well.

3. Refrigerate at least an hour before serving.