Sausage Gravy and Biscuits

I debated very seriously whether or not to do a post this week at all. In light of the tense and stressful circumstances in my country right now, I wondered if making a post about food would be tone-deaf, insensitive or whatever you want to call it. Apart of me still feels like it is.

On the other hand, the truth is that for me personally, finding ways to mitigate feelings of anxiety is to focus upon things that make me feel happy, relaxed or at least distracted. Cooking is my sport, and a huge stress reliever for me– that includes posting on this blog.

One thing I knew I wasn’t going to do if I did post today was pretend as though the election wasn’t happening, that it didn’t matter, or that I don’t feel very strongly about who I wanted to win. If y’all have been following me for a while, you probably already know how I feel about it. My fingers are crossed, my breath is held, I’m knocking on wood, and hopefully we will be swearing in a new president come January 2021.

But regardless of what happens in this election, I’ve resolved to keep an attitude of trying to plan for the worst, hope for the best, and to keep my head up. Y’all try to do the same.

It’s now November, and while that doesn’t necessarily mean colder weather for everybody, around this time of year I still find myself craving stick-to-your-ribs comfort food.

There can’t be many foods that are more stick-to-your-ribs (and in my case, the hips, thighs and derriere) than biscuits and gravy. It’s such a simple but satisfying dish and I’m surprised it took me this long to get around to putting together a recipe for it.

Making sausage gravy really isn’t complicated. You probably have most of the ingredients that you need in your house already, and the whole thing comes together in little under an hour. Biscuits do take a tad bit more effort, but ohhhh how worth it that effort is for these.

I’m telling y’all, sour cream does godly (or ungodly depending on how you look at it) things to biscuits. They rise SO high, and still come out SO light and tender. I was ready for the best nap of my life after I finished eating this; isn’t that the best indicator for how comforting and delicious a dish is?

Wear a mask. Social distance. Stay safe.

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Sausage Gravy and Biscuits

Recipe from Jess@CookingisMySport

Ingredients

For Sausage Gravy

1 cup flour
6 cups of milk
3 cups water
2 lbs ground pork sausage
1 teaspoon oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons ground sage
2 teaspoons black pepper
salt (if needed, see note)
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 bay leaf

For Biscuits

1 cup unsalted butter, frozen
3 cups self rising flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar (light or dark, doesn’t matter)
1 cup sour cream
About 1/2 cup of buttermilk, plus more if needed

Directions

For Biscuits

In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and brown sugar and stir together with a fork.

Use the large holes on a box grater to grate the butter directly into the dry ingredients. Stir with a fork.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Pour in the sour cream and buttermilk. Use a large fork and a large rubber spatula to stir the mixture together. If it seems a little dry you may add the additional buttermilk until it forms a shaggy dough.

Sprinkle a pastry mat, wooden cutting board or a clean smooth countertop with flour. Turn the dough out onto the surface and pat a few times with your hands until it loosely holds together. (Don’t knead it too much or the warmth in your palms will melt the butter and cause the biscuits to be tough.)

Use a bench scraper or a large sharp knife to divide the dough in half. Roughly shape each half into a square. Stack one of the halves on top of the other and use a rolling pin to roll it together into one mass. Repeat this process two to three more times before patting it into one final rectangle. (This is a process of layering so that the biscuits will bake flaky).

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.

Preheat oven to 425°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place a shallow pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven.

Sprinkle your work surface with flour and unwrap the biscuit dough out onto it. Use a bench scraper or very sharp knife to trim the edges of the rectangle. Use a square cookie cutter, or a knife to cut the remaining dough into squares, about 2″ each.

Remove the cut biscuits to the baking sheet you’ve lined with parchment paper, placing them rather close to each other (it will help them rise higher). Freeze until cold, about 15 minutes.

Bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes.

For Sausage Gravy

Brown the sausage in a large skillet until no longer pink and formed into crumbles. Drain (but reserve the sausage grease!) and remove to a separate bowl.

In a large pot (I used my Dutch oven) over medium heat, pour in the flour. Stir with a metal spoon or spatula for about 1-2 minutes, just until you smell it start to toast. (Don’t let it get too brown, this is supposed to be a white gravy.)

Pour in the milk, water, oregano, sage, onion powder, black pepper and bay leaf.

(A thing to keep in mind: sausage is very salty on its own. In lieu of salt, I added a few tablespoons of the reserved sausage grease to the gravy so that it had both salt and meaty flavor. If you prefer to use salt, you can, but just be careful with how much you use.)

Bring the mixture up to a boil, stirring constantly until smooth. Lower heat to a simmer and allow to cook for an additional 5-10 minutes, tasting and adjusting for seasoning. It should begin to thicken into a gravy-like consistency.

Pour in the reserved sausage, stir and turn the heat down to low, allowing to cook for an additional 10-15 minutes.

Split the biscuits in half and serve with the gravy spooned on top.